Through an open ideas competition, Gray Organschi was awarded the commission to design a threshold between a restored riverbank and an urban edge in Stamford, Connecticut.  Their urban porch proposal is composed of a shaded lattice formed from simple framing propped by gangs of timber pilings driven at slight angles to emulate the trunks of the trees in the meadow to the north.  Deep slender joists of standard dimensional lumber, bolted into pre-tensioned units, are aggregated and pulled taut to create an expanded grid of wood, the upward pressure of the timber tripods forcing the trellis to undulate slightly, a torsion fostered by the longitudinal geometries and connection system of the continuous timber frame.  Beneath it, a simple banding of concrete planks, interrupted selectively by broad joints of reinforced thyme and grass, provides a steady surface for strolling, seating and a chess game.

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