Type: Open, restricted
Registration Deadline: February 2, 2001
Submission Deadline: April 13, 2001
Open to: Third-year students & above
Entry Fee: None
Awards: Up to US$12,000 plus travel to Istanbul to present projects
Jury: Not yet announced
Throughout the course of modern urban development, one hallmark of a thriving urban core has been the existence of stable residential areas in proximity to the downtown commercial, civic, and cultural centers. Flourishing cities have retained a rich residential mix of generations and incomes, in part because of policies and amenities that have kept the city attractive to them, as well as the existence of diverse and readily available housing integrated with the urban infrastructure.
The mutual dependence among residents, businesses, and their civic and cultural institutions is a central fact that binds them into cohesive communities. Without this close connection, disposable income migrates away from the central core, depriving the city center of necessary resources and resulting in an ultimately unsustainable quality of life. At the same time, housing created independently of supporting infrastructure often lacks essential services, leading to untenable communities disconnected from the previously existing socio-economic network. As a consequence, in many cities, real communities disappear, leaving a city devoid of social cohesion in their place. On the other hand, vibrant urban centers have housing opportunities for people of all incomes and land use plans that facilitate employment, education, culture, recreation, public transportation, and retail.
With this in mind the competition calls for a housing design that takes into account the competing interests of any urban setting: integrated land use, optimum density, compatibility with existing infrastructure, environmental impact, affordability, contextual appropriateness, preservation, and above all, social need. The underlying theme of the competition calls for a solution that actively engages the social and economic context of its urban setting; in short, a design that redefines the aspirations of your city.
The competition will challenge students from all regions of the world to propose urban development schemes integrating mid-rise housing (five stories and taller) within an existing urban infrastructure, emphasizing mixed-use potential and the socio-economic and physical needs of the resident population in the students' region. Design solutions that look at master planning as well as the development of specific plan elements are encouraged (though not required); this may take the form of two-tiered programs over the course of one or two semesters, or a more integrated exploitation of multi-disciplinary teamwork.
The competition calls for the integration of new mid-rise housing and ancillary facilities for approximately 1,000 residents into an historic or redeveloping urban setting of the contestant's choosing, adapting and/or augmenting the existing service infrastructure. Depending on the site selected by each participant, the design could comprise a combination of open space, reconstruction/rehabilitation of existing buildings, and new construction.
In developing the design, students must specifically address the following issues:
1 responsiveness to the socio-economic and physical needs of a high-density resident population;
2 integration, augmentation, and/or reinforcement of the existing urban infrastructure to provide a sense of community, including provision for mixed-use structures, direct connection with public transport, parking for private automobiles, and incorporation of open space for local recreation;
3 attention to site-specific issues, such as climate, urban context (including the proposal of an urban typology appropriate to the particular evolutionary stage of the selected city), and cultural responsiveness in the selection of materials and construction techniques;
4 creation of comfortable, modern dwelling space with a human scale, compositional unity, and contextual connection to the surrounding environment;
5 sustainability, both in appropriate building practices and selection of building materials;
6 application of universal design principles, considering people of all ages and physical abilities;
7 the design policies and building regulations set by the local housing authorities.
Recognizing that students from a variety of cultures will be participating in this competition and developing solutions for aspecific site in their own cities, the competition program is purposefully open-ended in order to cross cultural boundaries.
For more information or to register, contact:
ACSA/Otis Elevator Company Student Design Competition
Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture
1735 New York Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Phone: 202.785.2324
Fax: 202.628.0448
Website: http://www.acsa-arch.org
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