Second Shift

Terraviva Competitions: Urban Toilets
Honorable Mention
with Jasper Owen
Summer 2026

New York City is shaped by constant turnover so that its construction elements have become an essential part of its fabric. Sidewalk sheds and street barriers have become characters occupying streets and sidewalks for years at a time, organizing how people move through the city. This proposal coincides with calls for both new public bathrooms and the removal of widespread street construction in the city.
Second Shift proposes a public toilet prototype for New York City that repurposes its urban infrastructural elements.
Street barriers modify circulation; they may indicate that a street is closed off for outdoor seating or redirect pedestrians away from an active construction site. Sidewalk sheds respond to circulation, protecting pedestrian walkways from falling debris, as well as sun and rain. The structure is supported by stacked street barrier walls that form individual, accessible toilet modules. Typically filled with water, the barriers now serve as wet walls, supporting the interior toilet or exterior sinks. These walls support a roof that reconfigures the sidewalk shed structure to cover the toilets and collect rainwater for usage. Stainless steel floor grates allow the modules to be washed efficiently by draining directly below.
The design intends to question the role of these familiar infrastructural elements. Typically associated with the inaccessible maintenance of the city, here they are part of civic and individual life more directly.