josh nichols

plank road urban food hub

Louisiana has a diverse harvesting period throughout the year. There are local farmers markets and commercial produce areas. Plank road however lacks these options even if it is connected to some of the local farms that sell in the local farmer markets. Plank Roads history was the entrance to Baton Rouge by local farmers. It was the stopping point for selling their produce, now it is just a bypass. The new structure will house every harvesting season in Louisiana and will house national gatherings of farmers to sell to our own city. The structure is split up in three parts that shows the progressions of the vendors and small startup business. The first phase is the commercial kitchens that will serve as ghost kitchens. These kitchens will be of monthly rent and will be able to help that start of a small business. The second phase is moving into the open area where there is a kitchen core that will have the commercial kitchens program but will be able to bring and sell their food at the vendor boxes. The Third phase is to own a restaurant and be able to rent for a whole year and serve food to the public that is using the building space. The indoor open space is connected to an outdoor gathering space that will also have vending areas and can be allowed to have farmers markets and other events. The building itself will allow for an easy start up for businesses instead of having to rent an expensive space around the city. This will be an activator for future growth of the Plank Road.