Washington D.C. Gallery Place / Chinatown District Vision

SITELAB, as part of the WXY Studio team, was invited by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser to reimagining the Gallery Place / Chinatown District. This was a month-long sprint of radical design ideation, culminating in a day-long convening of design and urbanism minds in Washington D.C. This included design teams, PUSH studio, Field Operations, SHoP Architects, Perkins Eastman, and urbanist Richard Florida along with several local stakeholders.

The district spans nearly 30 blocks, stretching between the National Mall and Washington Convention Center, along with several local and national landmarks. Leveraging this institutional identity, SITELAB proposed externalizing the idea of portraiture, given the presence of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture along the historic 7th Street corridor, spotlighting individuals in the public realm through art, interaction, reflection and activism. The corridor serves to draw people and activity from the National Mall into the district. SITELAB participated in a workshop with Chinatown stakeholders identifying the need for cultural and economic investment by supporting both traditional neighborhood amenities, modern brands, and boutiques.

The outcomes of the workshop were collated by the task force into 8 big ideas for the district, which were presented by the mayor for public feedback to be refined into an action plan.

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