gran terminal tasquena development proposal

GRANTERMINALTASQUENAChrisCanna|BrandenClements|TorrenceLaw|PatrickMcDonnell

Gran Terminal Tasqueña

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Looking at the new Tasqueña Station from Taxco Plaza.


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Dear Mr. Bejos:

We would like to present our proposed plan for Cetram Tasqueña, and thank Urban Travel Design

for sponsoring this project. Gran Terminal Tasqueña emphasizes connecting Tasqueña with its

surrounding neighborhoods while introducing new, more intense land uses and a grand public

terminal that will make it a destination in Mexico City that also generates value for you and your

investors. In addition, we would like to acknowledge our professors, Maria Arquero and Lars

Grabner for all of their help and support, and would like to thank Sol Camacho and Manuel

Cerventes for providing crucial information and feedback throughout our design process.

We are very excited to present our plan for Gran Terminal Tasqueña and thank you again for your

support.

Sincerely,

Christopher Canna M.U.P.

Branden Clements M. Arch,

Torrey Law, M. Arch

Patrick McDonnell, M.U.P.


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Gran Terminal Tasqueña from the southeast.


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Contents

CETRAM Tasqueña 7

Gran Terminal Tasqueña 15

Reconnect Tasqueña 19

Build A Grand Terminal 23

Create a Destination 35

Project Implementation 47

CETRAM Tasqueña

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CETRAM Tasqueña

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CETRAM TasqueñaMexico City is one of the biggest urban regions in the world

with over 19 million residents covering nearly 1,500 km2 (UTD).

In order for the city to function, it relies heavily on a complex

transportation infrastructure featuring multiple transit modes,

including North America’s second largest metro system, light

rail, commuter rail, bus rapid transit and a wide variety of bus

networks. Using this system, passengers take 14.8 million trips

per day, and are frequently required to switch between modes

(UTD).

The major transfer stations in Mexico City are called Centros

de Transferencia Modals, or CETRAMs. These stations receive

4 million passengers per day, and are the primary interchanges

between the metro system and Mexico City’s bus and light rail

services. They are typically centered around a metro station

and have substantial infrastructure for buses, most notably for

“colectivos,” or micro-buses. These buses are operated by

private companies and have defined but flexible routes with no

fixed schedules.

There are 45 CETRAMS in Mexico City; the busiest of which are

located at terminal metro stations that receive anywhere from

500,000 to nearly 1 million passengers per day (UTD). Despite

their high passenger volume and importance to Mexico City’s

overall transportation infrastructure, however, the CETRAMs’

mostly consist of obsolete and dangerous infrastructure plagued

by pollution, crime and inefficiency (UTD).

As a result of these poor conditions, Mexico City’s government

has been attempting to improve the CETRAM’s through public-

private partnerships and redevelopment. Most recently, Urban

Travel Design redeveloped CETRAM Ciudad Azteca into a

shopping mall and hospital, simultaneously improving the

connection between the metro and bus infrastructure, as well

as the safety and efficiency of the bus terminal. The city and

investors are also looking at the redevelopment potential of

CETRAMs El Rosario, Chapultepec, and Tasqueña.

Tasqueña

CETRAM Tasqueña, located in Mexico City’s Coyoacán borough

at the southern end of metro line 2, is the third largest CETRAM

in terms of ridership with 500,000 passengers per day using its

metro, light rail and bus connections. CETRAM Tasqueña is also

the terminal bus station for regional bus service from southern

Mexico entering the city.

Like most CETRAMs, Tasqueña suffers from two broad problems

that limit its efficient and effective operation. First, the CETRAM

is characterized by spatial and political fragmentation that

creates inter-modal conflict and results in poorly related and

maintained land use programs. Tasqueña contains a variety of

businesses, and public/private institutions, ranging from the

metro station to a major discount retailer to a music guild and

performance theater. These stakeholders are poorly related,

however. Spatially, they are separated by physical barriers such

as fences and wide-open parking lots. Politically, there is little

cooperation between their owners and managers, which has led

to unkempt, unsafe and inefficient shared space.

Second, Tasqueña’s current form does not capture the station’s

full social and economic value. Tasqueña is built at a very low

density compared to its surrounding neighborhood, and has

relatively few internal circulation routes. This configuration

results in incoherent internal networks illegible to visitors, and

increases conflicts between transit modes. The low-density

also fails to maximize the full economic potential of Tasqueña’s

strategic location or capture its importance as a hub and

gateway with enormous daily passenger volume.

CETRAM Tasqueña

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Coyoacán

CETRAM Tasqueña is located in Mexico City’s

Coyoacán borough in an upper-middle class

neighborhood called Campestre Churubusco.

The surrounding neighborhood mostly consists

of single-family row homes with pockets of

five to eight story multi-family buildings. Retail

and commercial activity is concentrated along

a series of major avenues that pass through

the borough. Coyoácan also has many cultural

amenities, including UNAM, Mexico’s largest

university.

Mexico City

CETRAM Tasqueña is a major hub within

Mexico City, where the metro, light rail, trolley

buses, microbuses and regional coach buses

all meet. As the southern terminus for metro

line 2, it is also a primary gateway into the heart

of Mexico City for passengers coming from the

city’s south and southern Mexico.

Context

Conexión conTren Ligero

Serviciode Transportes ElÈctricosdel D.F.

Dirección Xochimilco

Tasqueña Bus / Light Rail Service Area

TasqueñaCoyoacán CenterUNAM

Major Arterial Avenue

Coyoacán is a low-rise, high-density borough with local retail and services concentrated on major

arterial avenues.

Regional-bus Destinations

400 km radius

Pacific Ocean

Gulf of Mexico

Metro

Light Rail

Mexico City

CETRAM Tasqueña

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CETRAM Tasqueña

1. Metro and Light Rail Station

2. South Microbus Terminal

3. North Microbus Terminal

4. Southern Regional Bus Station

5. Soriana: Discount Retailer and Grocer

6. Gran Forum: Music Performance Center

7. Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals

8. Metro Maintenance Sheds

9. Inter-American University for Development

10. Latter Day Saints Church

11. Regional Bus Maintenance

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2

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9 10

1 3 52

11

300m

CETRAM Tasqueña

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Barriers

Cetram Tasqueña is currently isolated from

its surroundings by a series of barriers that

limit access to the metro station. An elevated

highway runs along the site’s estern edge, and

the metro and rail tracks run through the middle

of the site and along its eastern edge, severely

limiting pedestrian and vehicular access. The

few entry points to Tasqueña are concentrated

along its southern and northeastern edges, but

even here access is constrained by two traffic

clogged arterial streets with poor pedestrian

infrastructure.

Within Tasqueña itself, access is further

constrained by interior fences and walls that

prevent crossing from one area to another and

make internal pathways difficult to read and

follow.

A ten foot wall protecting the train tracks runs through the middle of Tasqueña and along its western edge.

Avenue Tasqueña creates a significant pedestrian barrier between Campestre Churubusco and Tasqueña due to its high traffic flow and lack of pedestrian amenities beyond a single pedestrian bridge.

Current Conditions

Fences and parking lots create interior barriers, like this one between Soriana and the Metro Station.

Elevated Highway

Av. Tasqueña

Av. Canal de Miramontes

Rail Tracks

Interior Barriers

Access Points

Access Point

CETRAM Tasqueña

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Current Conditions

Fragmented Land Use

Currently, the only destinations in Tasqueña

are the Soriana, its related businesses, and

the Gran Forum. These are good potential

anchors, but they are poorly related to the

transit station. Fences, barriers and parking

lots limit access between them and prevent

pedestrians from easily passing from one to

the other. They also literally turn their back on

the station with front entrances facing the far

western edge of the site. Informal vendors, on

the other hand locate along main pedestrian

paths to attract customers.

The route from the metro station to the Gran Forum has no pedestrian infrastructure and leads to the back entrance.

Fences block most of the access between Soriana and the metro station except for a single gate.

The Soriana shows its back to the metro and bus terminals.

Barrier Fence

Informal Street Vendors

Soriana Entrance

Existing anchors, pedestrian flows and barrier fence.

Gran Forum Entrance

CETRAM Tasqueña

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23.6 12.54 4.5 2.1 1.8

Football Field

Hardscape

Building

Rail Track

Vegetation

Informal Vendors

142,500m2

75,900m2

27,000m2

12,600m2

5,600m2

54%

23.6%

12.5%

5%

2%

Low Density Form

CETRAM Tasqueña has a distinctly

different form compared to its surrounding

neighborhoods. Open hardscape makes up

54% of the ground cover, mostly due to surface

parking, and buildings have no more than two

stories. The abrupt change in form at Tasqueña

breaks the city’s rhythm, and creates foreign

landscape at the heart of Coyoacán.

Current Conditions

Building Footprints

Looking northeast at Tasqueña. Retail currently takes the form of a suburban strip mall.

Hardscape and surface parking predominate.

CETRAM Tasqueña

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Current Conditions

An Invisible Terminal

CETRAM Tasqueña is a major gateway into

the heart of Mexico City that sees 500,000

passengers per day (UTD). Despite its

importance as a gateway and transit hub,

however, it has an incoherent and meek form,

particularly compared to major transit hubs in

the United States, Europe and Asia.

Inefficient and Uncomfortable Infrastructure

Cetram Tasqueña’s microbuses idle for up to an

hour waiting for passengers, informal vendors

crowd narrow passageways and unsanitary

conditions predominate, creating congestion,

pollution and an uncomfortable and unsafe

environment for passengers. There is also

significant conflict between different modes as

taxis, microbuses and regional buses fight for

the same territory.

Tasqueña Station’s current entrances are small and narrow, and give no indication of the station’s importance.

A typical road in CETRAM Tasqueña cluttered with informal vendors. Poorly defined routes for pedestrians and buses creates significant conflict.

A regional-bus squeezes by taxis and informal vendors to reach the regional bus station.

Loading areas are exposed and cluttered by informal vendors, while inconsistent arrival and departure times leave passengers waiting.

Entering Tasqueña from the southern pedestrian bridge through a cluster of informal vendors.

Continuing into Tasqueña the station is still invisible.


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1. North Bus Terminal 2. South Bus Terminal 3. Metro and Light Rail Station

4. Housing5. Office Block6. Hotel

7. Taxco Plaza8. Cinemex9. Regional Bus Station

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7 8

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Gran Terminal TasqueñaTo address CETRAM Tasqueña’s spatial and political

fragmentation and maximize the site’s full economic and social

value, Gran Terminal Tasqueña will be a mixed-use, transit

oriented development that includes:

• A new Tasqueña station built to a scale consistent with its

passenger volume and importance as a gateway

• A new public plaza that compliments the station’s

importance and creates a new center for social life in

Coyoacán

• Multi-family housing that meets the demand for quality

residences in close proximity to public transit

• Office space for firms who require convenient access to

Mexico City’s other major employment centers

• Retail and entertainment aimed at transit users and

Coyoacán residents

Three goals will guide the creation of Gran Terminal Tasqueña:

reconnecting Tasqueña to its surrounding neighborhoods,

building a grand terminal, and creating a destination.

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Reconnect Tasqueña

Tasqueña is currently disconnected from its surrounding

neighborhoods by a series of physical barriers and by its low-

density, suburban form, which creates an illegible and inefficient

pedestrian and vehicular network that breaks the rhythm of

the surrounding city. In order to remedy these problems, Gran

Terminal Tasqueña will extend Campestre Churubusco’s grid

onto the site. This will remove barriers and increase access

points while improving Tasqueña’s legibility to visitors. It will

also provide an new urban fabric that will facilitate higher

density development. Gran Terminal Tasqueña will also redesign

immovable physical barriers such as the arterial avenues in order

to increase pedestrian accessibility and ease traffic congestion.

Build a Grand Terminal

Tasqueña’s present built form does not reflect its importance

as transit hub and gateway to Mexico City, and the relationship

between its various terminals creates conflict between multiple

transit modes. Gran Terminal Tasqueña, however, will have a

grand public terminal combining metro, light rail and microbuses

into a cohesive whole built to accommodate 500,000 daily

passengers. It will also alter transit routes around the new,

urban grid in order to minimize conflict between buses, taxis

and pedestrians, and introduce a new public plaza, the size of

an entire city block to ease pedestrian access, frame the new

station and create a focal point for the new development.

Create a Destination

Given the value that access to public transit and large flows

of people typically generates for landowners, Tasqueña could

support much higher density development as well as a wider

variety of land uses. Gran Terminal Tasqueña will introduce

much higher density to the site in order to maximize its value. It

will also introduce new office, retail, entertainment and housing

options in an effort to create a 24 hour destination for working,

living and playing. These new uses will center around a new

public plaza fronting the new Tasqueña station.

Project Implementation

Urban Travel Design could potentially implement Gran Terminal

Tasqueña in four phases beginning with a core around Tasqueña

station and Taxco Plaza, the new public plaza. The first stage

will integrate the microbus terminals with the metro and light rail

station, introduce new retail options inside the station and clear


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the way for redevelopment on the rest of the site. The second

phase will establish a retail and office cluster around Taxco

Plaza and Tasqueña Station that will serve as the core of Gran

Terminal Tasqueña. Once established, the core is potentially

self-sustaining without further development, and could act as a

regional retail, entertainment and office destination. From phase

two, phases three and four can flexibly react to changing market

conditions and develop housing or additional retail and office

space as appropriate. We recommend developing housing in

these phases, however, in order to enhance the retail and office

uses as well as to provide quality living opportunities in close

proximity to public transit.

In addition to Gran Terminal Tasqueña’s physical implementation,

Tasqueña’s various stakeholders require a new organizational

structure to maintain and manage their common infrastructure.

Large open plazas and streets near transportation infrastructure

require careful management in Mexico City, otherwise informal

vendors and crime will occupy vacant spaces, and traffic

congestion will dominate the streets. To avoid this at Gran

Terminal Tasqueña, we recommend that Urban Travel Design

continue its management structure for CETRAM Ciudad Azteca

at Tasqueña in order to effectively maintain the station and

prevent traffic congestion.

Additionally, we recommend developing a Business

Improvement District (BID) around Taxco Plaza to maintain the

plaza and surrounding streets and provide a safe environment for

travelers and visitors. A BID is a public-private partnership that

brings stakeholders together under a non-profit management

structure, and provides them with revenue via a levy on area

businesses or landowners. The BID uses this revenue to finance

maintenance, programming and marketing efforts that benefit all

BID stakeholders.


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Challenges Objectives

Significant physical barriers between Tasqueña and surrounding neighborhoods. Incoherent and low-intensity built form limits accessibility to transit and fails to maximize the site’s value.

• Extend city grid into Tasqueña to remove barriers, create new access points and increase internal legibility

• Redesign Ave. Tasqueña and Canal de Miramontes to lessen barrier between Tasqueña and neighborhoods

Connections between transit modes are inefficient and uncomfortable. The station design and environment do not reflect the station’s passenger volume.

• Redesign Tasqueña station and public space to emphasize its importance as a gateway and transit hub

• Redesign transit station and circulation to limit conflict and increase transit efficiency

• Reorganize station management to increase transit efficiency and maintain station

Low-intensity and fragmented land use fails to take advantage of the value generated by proximity to public transit. Fragmented political and ownership structures result in inefficiency and poor maintenance of public spaces.

• Create a regional shopping, entertainment and work destination

• Redevelop underutilized land to take advantage of proximity to public transit

• Create opportunity for people to live in close proximity to public transit

• Organize stakeholders to effectively manage and maintain public space

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2

3

Goals

Reconnect Tasqueña



Reconnect Tasqueña

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Gran Terminal Tasqueña residential street.


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Cetram Tasqueña is poorly connected to its

surrounding neighborhood, which inhibits

easy and efficient access to its stations,

and restricts its full development potential.

Significant physical barriers limit vehicular

and pedestrian access to site, and the lack

of a coherent internal street network makes

it difficult to navigate. As a result of this poor

basic framework, CETRAM Tasqueña suffers

from fragmented and low density land use that

fails to capture the full value that proximity

to a major transit hub should produce for

landowners and the community as a whole.

In order to address these deficiencies, Gran

Terminal Tasqueña will extend Campestre

Churubusco’s urban grid onto the site, which

will create new access points, and create a

more coherent internal street network easily

legible to visitors. Extending the grid will also

provide a backbone well suited to high density

urban development.

Reconnect TasqueñaChallenges

• Significant barriers between Tasqueña and its surroundings

• Internal barriers fragment land uses and create illegible internal network

• Low density built form in a location capable of supporting much higher density

Proposed Improvements

• Extend city grid into Tasqueña to remove barriers, create new access points and increase internal legibility

• Redesign Ave. Tasqueña and Canal de Miramontes to lessen barrier between Tasqueña and neighborhoods

In addition, Gran Terminal Tasqueña will remove

many of the internal barriers that currently limit

access between transit modes and different

programs as well as between Tasqueña and

its surrounding neighborhood. This is partly

accomplished by extending the city grid,

which will provide greater visual and physical

accessibility to the station and between

different programs. It will also be accomplished

by redesigning the arterial avenues surrounding

the site, which are currently congested and lack

basic pedestrian infrastructure,

Reconnect Tasqueña

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Urban Grid

Extending Campestre Churubusco’s grid into

Tasqueña removes barriers and increases

the number of access points onto the site for

pedestrians and vehicles. It also provides a

legible and easy to navigate internal network

for visitors and residents, and a backbone for

developing higher, urban densities.

Grid extension removes barriers, increases access.

Grid allows an urban form consistent with surrounding neighborhoods.

Photo from Google Street View

Gran Terminal Tasqueña picks up on the surrounding block pattern and provides a legible form.

Scale: 1 cm = 2 m

Scale: 1 cm = 2 m


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Pedestrian Streets

Strengthening Tasqueña’s connection to its

surrounding neighborhoods means creating a

pedestrian scaled street network that supports

urban density. This includes the major arterial

roads that surround the site, particularly

Avenues Tasqueña and Canal de Miramontes.

Enhancing the pedestrian infrastructure on

these streets will make the grid extension more

meaningful, turning a major barrier into a seam.

Narrower Lanes Reduce Traffic Speed

Widened Median

Avenue Tasqueña proposedResidential Street proposed

Handicap Accessible Curb

Av. Tasqueña current condition (above): cluttered, narrow medians with no pedestrian amenities.

Sidewalk w/ Bioswale

On-Street Parking

A

B

Section AB7m 10m10m10m 3m3m


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Gran Terminal Tasqueña metro station platform.


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Tasqueña receives 500,000 passengers each

day, making it the third busiest CETRAM

in Mexico City. Most of these passengers

come from the city’s southern boroughs or

southern Mexico, and, for them, Tasqueña’s

metro connection makes it a gateway to the

entire city. Therefore, the station is not only an

important hub, but also a major entry point into

the largest and most important city in Mexico.

CETRAM Tasqueña’s physical form gives no

indication of its importance, however. Instead,

it welcomes people with a cramped, chaotic

environment characterized by inter-modal

conflict, poor visual access and unsanitary

conditions.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña, however, will create a

grand public terminal by clearly integrating the

microbus terminals with the metro and light rail

station. This new station will have large open

spaces and vaulted ceilings in order to provide

an environment consistent with Tasqueña’s high

passenger volume. The new station will also

Build a Grand TerminalChallenges

• Station form does not communicate its importance as a major transit hub and gateway to Mexico City

• Inter-modal conflict and congested entry and exit routes

• Uncomfortable and unsafe user experience


• Redesign Tasqueña station and public space to emphasize its importance as a gateway and transit hub

• Redesign transit station and circulation to limit conflict and increase transit efficiency

• Reorganize station management to increase transit efficiency and maintain station

contain new retail options that take advantage

of its high passenger volume and provide

services to transit users.

This retail will provide the necessary funding

to improve transit infrastructure management,

particularly for microbuses on a model similar

to Urban Travel Design’s structure at CETRAM

Ciudad Azteca. Improved management along

with the greater spatial control provided by

integrating the terminals will greatly improve

passenger comfort and transit efficiency at

Tasqueña.

Finally, a grand public space, Taxco Plaza, the

size of a full city block, will frame Tasqueña

Station and emphasize its importance. It will

also create clear visual access to the station

and channel pedestrian flows, while a providing

retail, entertainment and work options to transit

users and visitors.

SPO_001 SPO_002


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Grand Terminal

In order to create a grand terminal fitting

Tasqueña’s importance and passenger volume,

we propose moving the south microbus

terminal, and creating a public plaza the size

of a full city block in front of Tasqueña Station.

The station itself would also be modified

through a new facade and concourse meant

to act as a true gateway to Mexico City. The

combination of Taxco Plaza, flanked by shops,

cafés and offices, and Tasqueña Station

creates a grand terminal and opens the station

to its surroundings, creating a new landmark for

Coyoacán.

1. Taxco Plaza2. Tasqueña Station Concourse3. South Microbus Terminal4. North Microbus Terminal

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2

4

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Gran Terminal Tasqueña Floor Plan. The plaza continues into the station through its new, open facade and consistent paving into the station’s first level.

50m

BA

Taxco Plaza

Section AB

Looking at the new Tasqueña Station from a café on Taxco Plaza.


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Janu

ary

Outdoor Concerts Cafés on the Plaza

Interactive

Fountain Film FestivalNew Years

Celebration

“Plaza Mayor” by Peter Curbishley Flickr Creative Commons “Movie on the Tundra” by kcolwell Flickr Creative Commons“Zócalo Square” by Photolibrium Flickr Creative Commons “Atlanta Fountain” by Russbengtson Flickr Creative Commons

Feb

ruar

y

Mar

ch

Ap

ril

May

June

Taxco Plaza Programming

Public spaces require consistent programming,

particularly near CETRAMs, to avoid informal

vending, crime or neglect. For that reason,

Taxco plaza is designed to accommodate a

wide variety of uses.


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Tianguis

Christmas Market

Volley Ball

Tournament

Día de los Muertos CelebrationsIndependence Day

CelebrationPublic Art Exhibition

“Dia de los Muertos Parade” by Jennifer Janviere Flickr “Downtown Holiday Market” by afagen Flickr Creative Commons“Mexican Independence Day” by Jan’s Cat Flickr Creative Commons“Art Museums Struggle” by MexicoReporter Flickr

July

Aug

ust

Sep

tem

ber

Oct

ober

Nov

emb

er

Dec

emb

er

50m


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Tasqueña Station

The new Tasqueña Station features an open

floor plan and large interior spaces that reflect

its importance as a major transit hub and

gateway into Mexico City. It also brings the

metro, light rail and bus terminals into one

clearly defined space by extending the station

walls around the bus terminals and integrating

retail and services along the paths between

modes.

First Level

Second Level

South Microbus Terminal

North Microbus Terminal

Existing Stairs

Clinic

Retail

Retail

Retail

Soriana

TOP_069

Looking at the South Microbus Terminal from the metro tracks toward Tasqueña Station.


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50m

Elvated Walkway over Metro Tracks

Long Span Tensile StructureElevators/Escalators

to Microbuses


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Gran Terminal Tasqueña Second Level Circulation

Building on Existing Station

The proposed metro station plugs into the

existing transit infrastructure maintaining use

of existing stairs and first level columns. The

long span structure reduces columns on the

second level and opens up views to the metro

platforms, improving visual and physical access

to the metros.

Existing Second Level Circulation


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Entrance into Tasqueña Station.


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Circulation

In order to improve traffic circulation and

reduce conflict between different modes, Gran

Terminal Tasqueña separates car and regional

bus circulation from microbus routes and

establishes complete streets with pedestrian

and bike infrastructure. This is made possible

by extending the surrounding city grid onto

Tasqueña, which increases the number of

access points and available circulation routes. Metro and Light Rail

Bus

CarsBicyclesPedestrian

Existing Circulation Gran Terminal Tasqueña Circulation


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(“Zurich Train Station” by Colin Eles Flickr Creative Commons “Zurich Train Station” by Drogonroy, Flickr Creative Commons)

Zurich Hauptbahnhof

CETRAM Ciudad Azteca

Ciudad Azteca is a CETRAM located in Estado de México at the end of metro line B. In 2008,

Urban Travel Design received a 30 year lease on the CETRAM and entirely rebuilt the station.

Specifically, they enclosed the micro-bus terminal and added a retail mall and hospital above. They

also updated the management structure and technology in order to provide greater security and

passenger comfort. By taking greater control over the space, they were able to eliminate informal

vending from the bus waiting areas and more strictly enforce bus schedules, thus reducing waiting

times for passengers as well as congestions from idling buses.

Learning from Ciudad Azteca’s success, Gran Terminal Tasqueña will also establish greater

control over the micro-bus terminals in order to remove informal vending and provide clean

and comfortable waiting areas for passengers. The station will accomplish this by bringing the

bus terminals within its walls and creating clearly defined waiting areas for each bus based

on its destination. Gran Terminal Tasqueña will accompany this design change with improved

management and security technology that will greatly reduce crime and improve station

maintenance. As at Ciudad Azteca, adding new retail options targeted at passengers will provide

the financing necessary to implement these changes.

Like most large European train stations, Zurich Hauptbahnhof is a grand public space with a

prominent facade facing a large public plaza, and an open interior plan that emphasizes its

importance as well as the importance of Zurich as a whole. The station is also a social center

that includes over 100 shops, 38 restaurants and basic services such as banking, post boxes

and tourism information all integrated into the station itself (SBB, ShopVille). These retailers and

service providers thrive with 300,000 passengers using Zurich HB each day, and make the station

a destination in its own right (SBB, Joint Project).

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will follow the lead of stations like Zurich HB and take on a grander

form that reflects Tasqueña’s importance as a major transit hub with 500,000 daily passengers.

Specifically, the metro station entrance will have a new facade and vaulted concourse that fronts

a new public plaza, Taxco Plaza, that will enhance the station’s stature. Additional retail will also

be incorporated into the station in order to take advantage of its passenger volume and provide

services to busy commuters.

Case Studies

Advanced surveillance technology and active management at Ciudad Azteca help keep informal vendors and crime at bay, while efficient management of the microbuses decreases waiting times and congestion.

Photos by Katie Baldwin, Megacentralities


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Taxco Plaza looking at Tasqueña Station.


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Currently, CETRAM Tasqueña is a place people

pass through on their way to other destinations

within Mexico City or Southern Mexico.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña, however, will be a

destination in its own right with opportunities to

live, work and play within easy walking distance

of the station itself.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña accomplishes this by

introducing new retail, entertainment, office

and housing programs to Tasqueña at a much

higher density than is currently present. This

higher density captures the value created

by proximity to public transit and large daily

passenger volumes, and creates a true

destination that has the potential to be an

active, lively place 24 hours a day 365 days a

year.

New dining, shopping and entertainment

options aimed at Coyoacán’s middle class

residents as well as transit users will center

around Taxco Plaza and Tasqueña station. New

office space aimed at back-office operations

Create a Destinationfor larger Mexican and international firms as

well as boutique firms, such as law offices, will

also focus on the plaza allowing them to take

advantage of Tasqueña’s connectivity to other

major employment centers in the city.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will also feature multi-

family housing aimed at families, young adults

and students who desire close proximity to

public transit in order to reach school, work,

shopping and entertainment.

The combination of these uses along a new,

legible, urban street grid will create value

that is greater than the sum of its parts as

office workers eat lunch in Taxco Plaza during

the day, business travelers stay in the hotel,

residents catch dinner and a movie after work,

or visitors from surrounding neighborhoods go

shopping and enjoy a concert in the plaza.

Challenges

• Tasqueña is not a destination in and of itself

• Low intensity and fragmented land uses fail to take advantage of the value generated by proximity to public transit

• Fragmented political and ownership structures creates land assembly and maintenance problems


• Create a regional shopping, entertainment and work destination

• Create opportunity for people to live in close proximity to public transit

• Redevelop underutilized land to take advantage of proximity to public transit

• Organize stakeholders to effectively manage and maintain public space


36

Taxco PlazaRetail 13,750m2

Office 19,000m2

Open Space 13,000m2

Hotel200 Rooms

Tasqueña StationRetail 3,500m2

Concourse 4,000m2

Clinic 1,500m2

North Micro Bus TerminalConcourse 7,600m2

HousingTotal Units 450

1 bdr 2002 bdr 1003 bdr 70

Live/work 80

Office TowersOffice 19,000m2

South Micro Bus TerminalConcourse 6,000m2

Office TowersOffice 1,500m2

Total Build Out 107,800sm2

Retail 14,000sm2

Office 54,000sm2

Hotel 4,300sm2

Residential 35,500sm2

Retail

Office

Residential

Transit

Hotel

Cinemex8 Screens

MONDAYlunes

TUESDAYmartes

WEDNESDAYmiercoles

THURSDAYjueves

FRIDAYviernes

SATURDAYsabado

SUNDAYdomingo

VISITORS

NEIGHBORS

TRANSFE

ROFF

ICE

RESIDENT


37

A 24 / 7 Destination

Gran Terminal Tasqueña’s programming will

create a 24 hour destination active everyday of

the week. Each program will draw and benefit

different users at different times of day and

different days of the week. For example, a

resident would be able to live at Tasqueña, use

the transportation infrastructure to commute to

work, and then meet friends for a drink and a

movie on Taxco Plaza.

Trasportation

Station Retail

Hotel

Office + Plaza Retail

Housing


38

Taxco Plaza

Taxco Plaza will be Gran Terminal Tasqueña’s

center for retail, entertainment and office.

It will include shopping and dining options

aimed at middle class Coyoacán and Mexico

City residents as well as a movie theatre and

performance space on the plaza itself. Office

space will attract back office operations for

large firms as well as smaller boutique firms.

The retail is well positioned to take advantage

of pedestrian flows to and from Tasqueña

Station and will activate the plaza while Turning

Tasqueña into a shopping and entertainment

destination. Office space will also benefit

from proximity to Tasqueña’s hotel, retail and

entertainment programs, because they will give

clients, business travelers and office workers

an attractive environment for lunch and after-

work activities.

Potential Retail Tenants

Stores

• Sanborns

• Fabricas de Francia

• Zara

• H+M

• Gandhi Bookstore

• Independent Boutiques

Restaurants

• VIPS

• Sanborns Café

• El Globo

• Independent Cafés

Entertainment

• Cinemex

• Bars

• Discothèques

major brands

back o�ceo�ce service

boutique o�ce

independent cafe

independent boutique basic retail

grab n go

high end restaurant

cinema

soriana

Potential Office Tenants

Back Office Operations

• Coyoacán Pharmaceutical Companies

• Firms Headquatered on la Reforma and other

major employment centers

Boutique Office

• Gran Forum practice facilities and offices

• Law Firms

• Architectural Firms

• Small Consulting Firms

major brands

basic retailindependent boutiques

high-end restaurantindependent café

grab n go

boutique office back officeoffice service

visitors

office workers


39

Hotel

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will include a ten story,

200 room hotel that will punctuate Taxco Plaza

and act as a local landmark. The hotel is meant

to complement the offices on site and in the

surrounding area by providing easy access to

public transportation and entertainment for

business travelers. It also has conference and

auditorium space available.

Auditorium

Swimming Pool

Outdoor Café

Sky Bar

50m


40

Housing

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will introduce housing

in close proximity to public transit, shopping

and entertainment as well as basic services.

This will meet demand for housing that

provides an urban setting and does not require

a car for daily activities, and should prove

particularly attractive for young adults, students

and families.

50m

Underground Parking

Shared Courtyard

Landscape Buffer

Gran Terminal Tasqueña Housing

Total Units 450

• 1 bdr 150

• 2 bdr 150

• 3 bdr 70

• Live/work 80

Average Unit Size 100m2

A

B

Section A-B

Underground Parking

Shared Courtyard Roof-top Terrace


41

Scale: 1 cm = 2 m

First Floor

Middle Floors

Bridge Floors

One Bedroom UnitSingle Story

Live Work UnitsTwo Story

Two Bedroom UnitSingle Story

Double Height Glazing

Green Roof Terrace

Balcony


42

Landscape Strategy

Landscape is an integral part of Gran Terminal

Tasqueña that utilizes native species to give

each area a unique identity that helps visitors

navigate the neighborhood. Trees in the

housing area serve as buffers, the oak on the

southern edge sheltering the housing from

busy Avenida Tasqueña while the alders shield

the buildings from harsh western sun all year

long. The shrubs line the pedestrian pathways,

creating a sense of continuity as one traverses

the site laterally. The swales planted with high

grasses on the eastern side of the housing

serve as areas for on-site water management.

Lastly, the courtyard gardens within the housing

blocks contain fruit-bearing trees, providing a

fragrant experience to the residents allowing

them to utilize and consume the fruit that is

produced.

Trees

Mexican Alder

Oak

ShrubsYucca

Buttercup Bush

Fruit Trees

Avacado

Black Cherry

Mexican Hawthorn

Grass

Species(Mexican)

Species(U.S.)

Height

Coverage

Flowering Period

Uses on Site

Photograph

Aile

Mexican Alder

6-20 m

> 7 m

November and May

Shading on west side of

housing

Encino

Oak

7-25 m

6-10 m

April to June

Lining surrounding

avenues; creating buffer

from roads

Liquidamber

American Sweetgum

15 m

6-8 m

March to June

Lining east side of

Taxco Plaza

Yuca

Yucca

n/a

n/a

April to June

Lining pedestrian pathways

Lining pedestrian pathways

Retama de Tierra

Caliente

Buttercup Bush

1-4.5 m

1.5-4 m

April to August

Aguacate

Avocado

15 m

8-10 m

May to July

Couryard gardens in

housing

Couryard gardens in

housing

Capulin

Black Cherry

5-15 m

6-9 m

March to May

Couryard gardens in

housing

Tejocote

Mexican Hawthorn

4-10 m

4-6 m

March to September

Swales on east side of

housing

Hierba de Pluma

Mexican Feather Grass

0.7 m

n/a

n/a


43

Source: Rodríguez Sanchez, Luis M. and Eréndira J. Cohen Fernández. Gu´â de Árboles y Arbustos de la Zona Metropolitana de la Diudad de México. Flexíon, 2003.


44

Parking

Even though Gran Terminal Tasqueña is a

transit oriented development parking will

remain important in order to have viable retail,

office and housing programs. Underground

parking structures will be developed throughout

the site and provide 1,300 hundred spaces for

office workers, residents and visitors. If parking

demand exceeds expectations, the initial

structure can easily scale up by increasing the

number of underground levels, or by adding

more underground parking in the residential

area.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña Parking

Total 1,300

• On-street 150 spaces

• Underground Structured 1,150

Current Parking

Total 1,085

• Surface Parking 1,085

Parking for retail, office and Regional Bus Station

Parking for retail, office and hotel

Parking for retail, office and

residential

Residential Parking


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Business Improvement District (BID)

Many of CETRAM Tasqueña’s problems will

not disappear through design changes alone,

because they are symptoms of its fragmented

political and ownership structure, which

prevents cooperation between stakeholders. A

Business Improvement District (BID) centered

around Taxco Plaza, however, could provide

these stakeholders with a means of working

together as well as a stable funding source to

finance maintenance and security throughout

Gran Terminal Tasqueña.

BIDs are non-profit, public-private partnerships

used to fund improvements and maintenance

within a defined area, usually adjacent to

a large public space, or in a city’s central

business district. They receive revenue by

charging a levy on businesses or property

owners located within the BID boundary,

and use these funds to finance maintenance,

programming and marketing.

A board of directors oversees the BID,

and contains members elected by local

business and property owners, as well as

local government officials and community

representatives. This structure allows multiple

stakeholders to come together and manage

commonly shared space with a stable revenue

source. Day-to-day BID management is

typically handled by full-time staff hired by the

board of directors.

Financing Methods

Levy Property or Business Owners

Public / Private Grants

Management Structure

Board of Directors

• Property or Business Owners

• Local Government Officials

• Community Representative

Full-Time Staff

• Chief Executive Officer

• Security/Maintenance

• Event Planning

• Marketing

Activities

Maintenance

• Security

• Litter removal

• Capital Improvements

Programming

• Concerts

• Markets

• Sporting Events

• Art Fairs

Public Relations

• Advertise Special Events

• Create District Brand

• Market District to Visitors

BID Structure and Activities

Business Improvement Districts providing financing for security and maintenance staff as well as public art installations and streetscape improvements. A BID could be used in Gran Terminal Tasqueña to manage public spaces that are currently unsafe, dirty and poorly used. (Photos from www.goldentriangledc.com)

Potential BID area for Gran Terminal Tasqueña.


46

Gran Terminal Tasqueña final build out.


47

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will require careful

implementation to achieve its three goals:

Reconnecting Tasqueña, Building a Grand

Terminal and Creating a Destination.

Reconnecting Tasqueña means extending

Campestre Churubusco’s grid onto the

site thereby creating greater access from

surrounding areas, and laying a foundation for

creating urban density. It also means removing

the physical barriers within Tasqueña itself,

and redesigning the major arterial avenues

that surround the site in an effort to improve

pedestrian accessibility and relieve congestion.

Building a Grand Terminal requires redesigning

Tasqueña Station to more cohesively integrate

bus service with the metro and light rail, and

to reflect Tasqueña’s importance as a hub and

gateway to Mexico City. It also involves building

a new public plaza in front of the station to

enhance its image and provide visual and

physical accessibility.

Project ImplementationCreating a Destination means introducing new

and denser programming to Tasqueña that will

take advantage of proximity to public transit

and high passenger volumes. By bringing office

and housing to Tasqueña and substantially

increasing the amount of retail, Gran Terminal

Tasqueña will become an active, 24 hour

destination.

Urban Travel Design could potentially

implement Gran Terminal Tasqueña in four

phases beginning with a core around Tasqueña

station and Taxco Plaza. The first stage will

integrate the microbus terminals with the

metro and light rail station, introduce new retail

options inside the station and clear the way

for redevelopment on the rest of the site. The

second phase will establish a retail and office

cluster around Taxco Plaza and Tasqueña

Station that will serve as the core of Gran

Terminal Tasqueña. Once established, the core

is potentially self-sustaining without further

development, and could act as a regional retail,

entertainment and office destination. From

phase two, phases three and four can flexibly

react to changing market conditions and

develop housing, or additional retail and office

space as appropriate.

Beyond physical implementation, Gran Terminal

Tasqueña will require negotiation with multiple

landowners to assemble the necessary parcels.

These landowners should ultimately benefit

from the new terminal, however, and could be

brought into the project as partners who are

able to retain their existing businesses and

infrastructure.

After Gran Terminal Tasqueña is implemented,

it will also be important to maintain its new

open spaces and pathways, so that Tasqueña’s

current problems do not reappear. A business

improvement district (BID) will allow the various

stakeholders to cooperate in post-project

management with a stable revenue source for

maintenance, programming and marketing in

Gran Terminal Tasqueña.


48

Phase One

New Tasqueña station built, integrating microbus terminals into metro and light rail station. South

microbus terminal moved to western portion of station. Soriana relocated into new station.

Phase Two

Urban grid extended into Tasqueña. Taxco Plaza built with surrounding retail, office and structured

parking. Gran Forum relocated to plaza area. Av. Tasqueña and Canal de Miramontes redesigned.

Phase Three

Grid extension continues. Additional office and structured parking constructed. First round of

Multi-family housing completed.

Phase Four

Final grid extension and multifamily housing completed.

New Tasqueña Station

Soriana Moved

South Microbus Terminal Moved

Taxco Plaza

Arterial Avenues

Office Block

Multi-Family Housing

Multi-family Housing


49

Land Assembly

Urban Travel Design could potentially

implement Gran Terminal Tasqueña in four

phases, but the land assembly process will

require significant negotiation and coordination

with current landowners and stakeholders.

For that reason, Gran Terminal Tasqueña

is designed to offer benefits to the exisitng

landowners to encourage their cooperation

Transit Authorities

Their are four primary transit authorities

controlling land at Tasqueña: Sistema de

Transporte Colectivo (STC) controls the metro

station. Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos

(STE) controls the light rail platforms. Secretaria

de Transportes y Vialidad (STV) controls the

microbus terminals, and Central Camionera del

Sur controls the regional bus station.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will most greatly affect

STC, STE and STV and each benefit from a new

station with increased retail space that can help

subsidize better transportation management

and security. Central Camionera del Sur will

continue to operate from their current station,

which is presently under renovation, but the

project requires purchasing their western

parking lot. We propose compensating them

for this lot by allowing access to the new

underground parking structure that will be

located on the same site.

Current Business Owners

While the physical form of businesses currently

on the site will change, Gran Terminal Tasqueña

can retain them as tenants. For example, the

businesses owned by Group Gigante could be

relocated into Tasqueña Station or along Taxco

Plaza. Group Gigante could also become a

direct investor in the project as a partial owner

of the retail and office buildings as well as

multifamily-housing.

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will not directly affect

Eli Lilly’s pharmaceutical facility, but does

require purchasing one of their parking lots.

Again, they could be compensated for the lost

parking by providing them with access to our

underground parking structures.

Cultural Organizations

Gran Terminal Tasqueña will require moving the

Gran Forum, and we propose compensating

them with a new facility built into our office

and retail space along Taxco Plaza. They

could also be heavily incorporated into the

plaza’s programming through frequent outdoor

concerts.

Transit Operators

• STC

• STE

• STV

• Central Camionera

Business Owners

• Group Gigante

• Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals

Cultural Organizations

• Gran Forum

Benefit

Improved Station; Retail revenue funds better

station management infrastructure; Access to

structured parking

Benefit

Businesses retained but in new form; project

investors; Access to structured parking

Benefit

New office and practice facility; outdoor

concert space on Taxco Plaza

STVGroup Gigante

Gran Forum Central Camionera

STC


50

Sources

Urban Travel Design (UTD). “Megacentralities Presentation” January 2011. Powerpoint available at

www.megacentralities.com

Rodríguez Sanchez, Luis M. and Eréndira J. Cohen Fernández. Gu´â de Árboles y Arbustos de la

Zona Metropolitana de la Diudad de México. Flexíon, 2003.

SBB. Joint Project between Canton of Zurich and SBB. Available at http://mct.sbb.ch/mct/en/infra-

dienstleistungen/infra-bau/infra-grossprojekte/infra-durchmesserlinie_zuerich.htm.

SBB. ShopVille-RailCity Zürich. Available at http://www.railcity.ch/en/index_zuerich.htm.


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gran terminal tasquena development proposal

Documents

bus terminal

grand terminal

terminal metro stations

grand public terminal

gran terminal tasquea3

bus infrastructure

mexico citys bus

new tasquea station