The Cloud Post

Fall 2021

GSAPP Broadway Stories Studio
Instructor: Josh Uhl


The definition of a contemporary public infrastructure in NYC has been largely challenged by the increasingly transient, fast-paced urban sprawl. Instead of the traditional uniform, static and formal public infrastructure as a product of gentrification that lacks flexibility and cultural-specificity, ‘Cloud Post’ explores a new form of public infrastructure that preserves the vitality of the informal and dynamic aspects of the neighborhood.


East Inwood, the northernmost tip of Manhattan is home to a large immigrant Dominican population which makes up an integral part of manhattan’s service labor force. As a counter-proposal to the current rezoning development by the city of sweeping large-scale apartments prior to establishing social spaces, the project takes an ephemeral approach challenging the conventional physical presence of a public destination.


‘Cloud Post’ is a rooftop deck pavilion system that could be replicated across blocks to serve as  ‘third-spaces’ where social connectivity and knowledge exchange could happen and flow at the most trafficked streets. The new public space extends the vitality of the informal social street upwards through a modular, minimal and adaptable structure inspired by the typologies of street sheds below. Socially, the ‘Cloud’ serves as a new type of ‘post stand’ that is casual, accessible as a communication web for the city. Environmentally, the ‘Cloud’ also features a scalloping canopy that operates and collects rainwater feeding a hidden garden at the back. The modular system with vertical partitions as an extension of the scalloped roof serves as flexible dividers to accommodate different scales of activities. Ultimately, the ‘Cloud Post’ creates a new social typology that can parasite on the site to become unique icons of the neighborhood to advocate and strengthen the immigrant community bond.