Nhuy Cindy Ma

ID	Project	Type
2601	[Un]Predictable Suburbia	Thesis
2602	Common Ground	Design
2501	Weathered Lines	Design
2502	We Demand Community Continuity Through Transition	Research
2401	Walkable Neighbourhoods	Analysis
2402	Urban Canopies	Analysis
2101	C.O.R.E.	Design
2102	[Off] The Shelf	Research
2103	The Grand Crossing	Design

2602

Common Ground

Design

Common Ground is a food bank conceived as a village. It is an interconnected community that promotes the relationship between food and the body, the mind, and the relationships that bind people to one another and the land. Here, all members are all part of a singular community, in which giving support is a given rather than an expectation.

Located at 431 Dundas Street North in Cambridge, ON, the new site for the Cambridge Food Bank is organized as a series of pitched-roof “houses,” each accommodating a unique program while contributing to a cohesive village-like environment. Together, these spaces serve the needs of both the food bank, provide a dignified space for its users, and create opportunities for the broader community to gather, learn, and connect.

Behind the food bank, an urban farm and greenhouse directly support food production while offering a space for members of the community to explore ecology, sustainability, as well as the labour involved in growing food. At the heart of the project is the idea of “common ground.” It is physically and conceptually a shared landscape where food is grown, knowledge is shared, and community is strengthened. In Common Ground, the food bank is more than place of distribution, it is also a place to reconnect people to the food and community.

Collaborators: Mahara Falif and Gwen del Rosario