The American Institute of Architects has just unveiled a trio of winners for its Designing Recovery competition, aimed at greenlighting private residences designed with storm resilience in mind. Though there's no definitive timeline yet, it's very likely that these guys will, in fact be built, with funds largely coming Dow Building Solutions, and the four partners involved: the AIA, Architecture for Humanity, and the rebuilding organizations Make It Right, founded by Brad Pitt after Hurricane Katrina, and the St. Bernard Project.
In New York, that means one family hit by Hurricane Sandy last year will be chosen as owners of the Resilient House, proposed by the Toronto-based firm Sustainable TO. The design (above), which the architects say can be built for less than $50K, proposes a cheery, aluminum-clad, passive, and, most importantly, storm-proof twist on the bungalows so famous in the Queens neighborhood of The Rockaways. According to the architects, home will be sited above the floodplain, its living spaces oriented toward the sun.
? Meanwhile, the CORE House, designed by Q4 Architects for Joplin, Mo., contains a central, secure Safe House to provide "all of the functions of 'home' that are necessary for a family to recover quickly from disaster and live for an extended period of time until rebuilding is possible," according to an AIA release. The house, constructed of local materials, also features an internal rainwater collection and filtering system.
? In New Orleans, where Frank Gehry has also designed houses for Make It Right, the local firm GOATStudio LLP has proposed a modern home with vaulted ceilings, an open floor plan, and a steel roof. Shotgun [remix], as the design is called, is elevated seven feet above ground in a region subject to floods; there's also a "perimeter rain garden" to help filter storm runoff.
AIA reps bring word that nope, Pitt had nothing to do with the competition—the actor must be too busy designing furniture and talking lots 'bout it. Meanwhile, neighbors in Queens are talking lots about the design of that newcomer: "The winner might work for young folks, but I prefer a Victorian," said one woman interviewed by the New York Daily News.
· All Brad Pitt coverage [Curbed National]
· Brad Pitt charity Make It Right showcases storm-sturdy houses buildable for $50K [NYDN via The Real Deal]
· "Designing Recovery" Competition Award Recipients Selected [American Institute of Architects]
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