Douglas Lake
Lake is a graduate student in LTU’s MArch 3+ program and works as a Project Architectural Designer for The Dennis Group of Springfield, MA while pursuing licensure. Doug attended Roger Williams University where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management. His experience as a construction project manager persuaded him to go back to school to continue chasing his original personal and professional goal of becoming a licensed architect. Doug’s professional work includes the construction of projects at higher education institutions throughout New England, including the New Neilson Library and Alumnae Gymnasium Renovation projects at Smith College designed by Maya Lin Studio and Shepley Bulfinch, constructed by Shawmut Design and Construction. His current work focuses on delivering projects for clients in the food and agriculture industry throughout the world. Doug is a father, husband, brother and son who enjoys spending free time with family and friends outdoors, working on home improvement projects, and experimenting with design and fabrication tools.
TITLE 
La Escalada Miami
MajorArchitecture [M.Arch]
DescriptionLa Escalada Miami explores the application of modular prefabricated residential units on a site within a community that requires increased housing density to address Miami’s growing population and popularity. Unit designs are based on geometries that allow for the flexible application of units in many different orientations, aggregations and scales.
The varied types of possible aggregations afford the designer opportunities to explore how indoor and outdoor spaces can be organized to address the priorities of the targeted markets and demographics. This project modulates a property situated between small single-family residential structures and high-rise residential skyscrapers.
Units are designed at three different sizes: 200 SF, 400 SF and 800 SF. The units are distributed on site and organized to create generous private shaded outdoor spaces for each unit. The aggregated geometry also creates public indoor and outdoor spaces that afford opportunities for unplanned or planned casual or formal social interactions between the community members.
The units are constructed with fiberglass reinforced polymer components. Units are prefabricated into shippable-sized portions that can be loaded onto a typical truck’s trailer. The units are then inserted into a precast structure and interconnected. The façade treatments applied create privacy, provide shading, and define the outdoor spaces.