This project, titled Developing a Dialectic, began as an analysis of the tangible evidence of time within a built environment, specifically the changing paths on which we experience our cities and the objects and spaces that become void of use. The exploration of unused space will produce a denser urban environment, building upon valuable space and bridging gaps between old and new construction. The site chosen is the previous path of the Northern Pacific Railway over the Red River between Grand Forks, ND and East Grand Forks, MN. A lone pivot pier is all that remains today of this railway, a once vital component in the growth of these two cities. This prompted an investigation into what form a built structure takes when resulting from a truly deep analysis of context in an effort to create a positive symbiotic relationship with the existing environment. But what do we learn or remember from the juxtaposition of ‘old and new’, of past and present? This then became an investigation of the translation between the process of a drawing and its implementation into the 3-dimensional world. By retaining layers of information - of decision, thought, process- the lines of the drawing articulate possibilities of space, rather than a finite object. Developing a Dialectic is a 56,255 square-foot community analysis and celebration center, examining the ways in which changes in the identity of this city are preserved and communicated over time.