Cubescape at Harry Reid Technology Park

The introduction of a technology park in Las Vegas must consider the unique nature of our city. By bringing together UNLV, emerging professionals, entrepreneurs, and the surrounding community, Harry Reid Park will become a one-of-a-kind place to foster innovation. The Cubescape is a proposed gateway facility to welcome visitors to the park. Combining residential, retail, office, and educational spaces, it welcomes people of different backgrounds and interests and encourages the cross-fertilization of ideas. The site is located in Southwest Las Vegas, a rapidly expanding area of the city. With commercial developments such as the Durango Station Casino, The Bend, and The UnCommons within a one-mile radius, the development of a technology park will help diversify the local economy. The master plan of the site was designed to help promote community engagement and a healthy style of living. Rather than making the site exclusively commercial or educational, it was designed to include entertainment, retail, and residential components to meet the needs of surrounding neighborhoods. By placing all parking underground, the ground plane of the park will open itself up to pedestrian activity in a campus-like fashion. Hospitality is the largest industry in Las Vegas, so its technology park should aim to combine hospitality with technology and education. This inclusion should not be limited to white-collar members of the hospitality industry but be open to all members. Once residential, commercial, and retail spaces were incorporated into the initial concept of the Cubescape, I chose to include a space that would be dedicated to the grey-collar members of the hospitality industry – the culinary team. This facility is comprised of three parts. First, on the top floor is the laboratory space where students will develop new ways to sustainably process, preserve, and minimize food waste. On the second floor are the culinary classrooms where students will learn to apply these new techniques. On the ground floor, open to the public, are the incubator and restaurant spaces where aspiring business owners can set up small-scale kitchens before transitioning out. To help promote cross-fertilization, the Cubescape was designed to include a series of interconnected platforms that are designed as outdoor spaces. As people within the office and residential blocks step outside to take a break, they will pass by the culinary and retail blocks and be visually connected to what’s going on inside of them. The largest platform is in the very center and is hugged by the building on both sides to create a sense of intimacy even within a public space. The intention of this platform is for the adjacent culinary classrooms to open their doors and invite the community in by hosting events like outdoor dinners and educational activities. By orienting the building to the mountain ranges on the south side and the strip on the north side, the Cubescape gives its residents an inspiring outlook on nature whilst reminding them of the unique nature of their city. In essence, it captures and celebrates the dichotomy of a city like Las Vegas.