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SUBMISSION DEADLINE: MAY 15, 2017

2017 Housing Competition

HERE+NOW: A House for the 21st Century

Schedule

Summer 2016

Competition Launch

May 15, 2017

Submission Deadline

Summer 2017

Winners Announced

Winners of the 2017 Housing Competition

The American Institute of Architects, Custom Residential Architects Network (AIA CRAN) and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA), have selected the recipients of the 2017 HERE+NOW: A House for the 21st Century Residential Student Design Competition. The competition recognizes seven exceptional studio projects that seamlessly integrate innovative, regenerative strategies within their broader design concepts. The program challenged students to submit projects that provide architecture students, with a platform to explore residential architecture and residential architectural practice.

The 2017 jury for the Housing Competition includes:

Aaron Bowman
Liollio Architecture
(Charleston, South Carolina)

Patricia Seitz
Massachusetts College of Art and Design
(Boston, Massachusetts)

Emily Roush-Elliott
Delta Design Build Workshop
(Greenwood, Mississippi)

Listed below are the names of the recipients, their school, the faculty sponsor, and project title.

1st Place: UPPER SQUAMISH RESEARCH AND RESIDENCE

Student: Jesse Bird
Faculty Sponsor: Sheryl Boyle
Institution: Carleton University

Juror Comments
This winning project rose to the top for its excellent and in-depth attention to prefabrication, modular construction and building detail that approaches net-zero construction. The design addresses sustainability issues, climate, and flooding head on, and is sensitive, even poetic to issues of daylight. A multiple building layout makes it possible to limit how much space is heated, which is well suited to the cold climate on the Pacific west coast of Canada. The building sections are thoughtfully composed and the development of the design and clear graphics, including multiple versions of wall panels, are compelling and thorough.

Project Description

The Dogtrot Duo home was designed for the Independence Heights community in Houston, Texas.  Established in 1908 as a completely self-sustaining community, Independence Heights was incorporated in 1915, becoming the first African American municipality in Texas. Once a thriving, predominantly African American community, there is now a nearly equal percentage of Hispanic and Black residents, and nearly a quarter of the community’s population is living below the poverty level. Despite these challenges, Independence Heights is on the brink of redevelopment due to its close proximity to downtown Houston. Descendants of the original settlers welcome the revitalization, but are also anxious about losing their heritage.

The 4th year undergraduate design studios focus on regenerative design and sustainable strategies in a public interest design and service learning format. We engage residents and community leaders, using their input to inform our design strategies. In addition to the challenge of gentrification, there is a substantial population of senior citizens who wish to age in place, while the next generation has migrated to the suburbs seeking better housing, services and opportunities. This trend, combined with devastation from Tropical Storm Allison and Hurricane Ike, has left the neighborhood largely vacant.

Our design reflects careful attention to these issues. Taken in conjunction with our mission of regenerative, affordable design, the Dogtrot Duo is a practical infill solution to support revitalization efforts that helps elders to stay in the community and young families to move back. The duplex doubles the density of a single lot and accommodates a number of living scenarios. The 1,200 square foot two bedroom unit will support young families in the 80% AMI range, while the 900 square foot one bedroom unit might support elders, singles, or young couples in the 50% AMI range. The dogtrot increases marketability by creating a duplex that looks and feels like the traditional single family homes in the neighborhood.

Design decisions included developing the site to create inviting outdoor spaces that encourage fellowship among residents and neighbors. Care was taken to elevate the vernacular typology of the carport to function as a comfortable gathering space for people. Generous porches cultivate community while providing eyes on the street. Bungalow styling further maintains the aesthetic quality of the neighborhood. The dogtrot configuration borrows from a Texas vernacular solution that provides a comfortable outdoor living space while assisting with natural ventilation through the living spaces of both units.

While the exterior is intentionally contextual, the interiors respond to modern day living with open floor plans. Each home features built-in solutions for workspaces, storage, and seating to maximize space and efficiency. High ceilings help the home to feel larger, and operable windows and clerestories provide ample daylight and natural ventilation to increase comfort.

Finally, the Dogtrot Duo is designed to be an affordable, net zero energy solution. Designed to meet rigorous Passive House certification and building science standards, the home achieves a HERS score of zero with the option to install a 5kW PV system to achieve net zero energy.

2nd Place: THE DOGTROT DUO

Students: Shannen Martin, Sean Benson, Jabbar Cobbs, Kimberly Montgomery, & Emanuel Soito, Prairie View A&M University
Faculty Sponsor: Shelly Pottorf, Prairie View A&M University

Juror Comments
This project stood out for its research and responses to all five criteria for judging, which grounded it in reality and made it more tangible. The design is responsive to the social and economic issues of the Independence Heights neighborhood in Houston, Texas, and sensitive to the local climate. The jury is particularly impressed with the rigorous analysis of affordability issues and participatory design process that included community stakeholders, which the studio used in developing designs. The students engaged with the suburban context and showed a well-informed understanding of the neighborhood and contemporary housing challenges while considering client needs.

Project Description

The Dogtrot Duo home was designed for the Independence Heights community in Houston, Texas.  Established in 1908 as a completely self-sustaining community, Independence Heights was incorporated in 1915, becoming the first African American municipality in Texas. Once a thriving, predominantly African American community, there is now a nearly equal percentage of Hispanic and Black residents, and nearly a quarter of the community’s population is living below the poverty level. Despite these challenges, Independence Heights is on the brink of redevelopment due to its close proximity to downtown Houston. Descendants of the original settlers welcome the revitalization, but are also anxious about losing their heritage.

The 4th year undergraduate design studios focus on regenerative design and sustainable strategies in a public interest design and service learning format. We engage residents and community leaders, using their input to inform our design strategies. In addition to the challenge of gentrification, there is a substantial population of senior citizens who wish to age in place, while the next generation has migrated to the suburbs seeking better housing, services and opportunities. This trend, combined with devastation from Tropical Storm Allison and Hurricane Ike, has left the neighborhood largely vacant.

Our design reflects careful attention to these issues. Taken in conjunction with our mission of regenerative, affordable design, the Dogtrot Duo is a practical infill solution to support revitalization efforts that helps elders to stay in the community and young families to move back. The duplex doubles the density of a single lot and accommodates a number of living scenarios. The 1,200 square foot two bedroom unit will support young families in the 80% AMI range, while the 900 square foot one bedroom unit might support elders, singles, or young couples in the 50% AMI range. The dogtrot increases marketability by creating a duplex that looks and feels like the traditional single family homes in the neighborhood.

Design decisions included developing the site to create inviting outdoor spaces that encourage fellowship among residents and neighbors. Care was taken to elevate the vernacular typology of the carport to function as a comfortable gathering space for people. Generous porches cultivate community while providing eyes on the street. Bungalow styling further maintains the aesthetic quality of the neighborhood. The dogtrot configuration borrows from a Texas vernacular solution that provides a comfortable outdoor living space while assisting with natural ventilation through the living spaces of both units.

While the exterior is intentionally contextual, the interiors respond to modern day living with open floor plans. Each home features built-in solutions for workspaces, storage, and seating to maximize space and efficiency. High ceilings help the home to feel larger, and operable windows and clerestories provide ample daylight and natural ventilation to increase comfort.

Finally, the Dogtrot Duo is designed to be an affordable, net zero energy solution. Designed to meet rigorous Passive House certification and building science standards, the home achieves a HERS score of zero with the option to install a 5kW PV system to achieve net zero energy.

3rd Place: COMMON GROUND: COLLECTIVE LIVING IN SEATTLE, WA

Student: Ariel Scholten, University of Washington
Faculty Sponsors: Elizabeth Golden & Richard Mohler, University of Washington

Juror Comments
This concept is awarded for its broad applicability as an urban response in a detached single-family neighborhood of downtown Seattle, of a shared housing solution, and its potential use as a model in other locations. The proposal responded to local demographics current in the area including students, and singles in addition to families, and provided community space in the design sensitive to scale, public-private distinctions and public co-working spaces. The jury also appreciated the distinct graphic style and boards composition. The floor plan is strong and shows a thoughtful use of light coupled with transparency. The differentiation between public and private spaces is very clear, which allows the building to take on both public and private realms in an expansion of the definition of urban living space.

Project Description

Seattle is one of the fastest growing cities in the US with among the nation’s fastest rising housing costs.  Yet, nearly two thirds of the city’s developable land area is zoned for detached single family dwellings at suburban densities. The Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle, located north of Downtown, is home to families, singles and students, many of whom are long-time Seattle residents. The neighborhood is known for early 20th century craftsman style houses, mixed-use residential zones, and a plethora of parks and schools. The neighborhood is currently dealing with issues of increasing density as well as proposals for upzoning portions of the neighborhood to accommodate multi-family structures, which some residents feel will compromise the scale and character of the neighborhood. At the same time, there has been a demographic shift to a more independent lifestyle, including “settling down” at an older age, among millennials.  This has changed the priorities and living arrangements of singles, with more people living for longer periods of time with non-relatives. A parallel shift towards a live/work lifestyle that allows one to work from home while valuing community and social engagement is also taking place.

Common Ground responds to all of these conditions by providing shared living spaces for its residents and a space for collaboration and engagement for the neighborhood as a whole, while being sensitive to the existing neighborhood context. The proposal is zoned with the most ‘public’ spaces facing the street and the most private facing the alley.   Viewed from the street, Common Ground is of a consistent scale with its neighbors and offers transparency and a welcoming entry to a community co-working space, providing a strong connection to the neighborhood and enhancing the web of community connections. Private suites on the alley provide each resident with a place of refuge and solitude, allowing them a sense of privacy while having direct access to the community. The provision of eight sleeping units also increases the residential density without altering the scale and character of the neighborhood.  Between the community co-working space and the private bedrooms suites are the shared living spaces.  A kitchen, living area, reading room, green house and several outdoor spaces provide an environment for the strengthening of social bonds and wellbeing within the household. They offer areas for enrichment, knowledge, nourishment, relaxation, conversation and connection to nature to provide a framework for a vibrant and supportive household. Connecting the more public and private spaces, the shared living spaces enliven the home and provide a sense of inclusion.

Common Ground is a 21st Century hybrid housing solution that responds to the global crisis of housing affordability, changing household demographics, living/working relationships and a desire to retain existing neighborhood character. It does so in a way that cultivates a strong sense of community for both the household within and the neighborhood outside.

Honorable Mention
SLIDING CANVAS HOUSE: TRANSITIONAL HOME

Student: Samantha Geibel, Washington State University
Faculty Sponsor:Taiji Miyasaka, Washington State University

Project Description

The aim for the project was to design a transitional home for someone who is currently homeless. The site is located in the backyard of a house in Seattle, Washington. The project size had to be less than 800 sf to follow the DADU zoning laws. This house is approximately 600 sf and occupies a 2,000 sf backyard, but can transition to engage with the entire site. Going from living on the streets to living in the backyard of someone’s home is a big transition. There are a few ideas that I learned throughout my study of people who are struggling with homelessness. The main concepts that stood out to me were the importance of being a part of a community, and the therapeutic aspect of art. It is well known that art is a form of therapy for some, and can help people who are transitioning through any aspect in their lives. There are already many non-profit organizations that assist the homeless that incorporate art into their daily programs as a way for the community to become more engaged. Not only do these programs help the homeless feel more engaged, but gives people who are homeless a way to express themselves and feel recognized for it. The aim for my design was to somehow incorporate these concepts into the home while still maintaining the ideas of a traditional house. To meet both of these needs The Sliding Canvas House features 7 operable wall systems. Just like the people who are occupying it, the house transitions to meet the comfort levels and needs of the tenant. When all of the walls are closed the house is your typical home, featuring the bedrooms and bathroom on the north end while the living room and kitchen are on the south end. Since there are 7 independent walls systems there are a variety of ways to transform the house into something new, depending on the activity. When the front walls are open the house can function as a space for a small gathering with friends. Once the walls are open the two interior walls can slide out to provide a private space for meetings or art classes in the neighborhood. Not only do the two interior walls provide privacy but they can also provide a space to display art work or even to be used as a canvas themselves. The Sliding Canvas House provides a space for the surrounding houses to come together and engage with the new tenant, and each other, giving them a sense of community. Since the walls are adaptable to the tenants wants, the house can simply function as a house until the tenant is ready to open their home to the neighborhood or become a space to engage in community activities.

Honorable Mention
AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

Student: Zachary Henry, Mississippi State University
Faculty Sponsor: Emily M. McGlohn, Mississippi State University

Project Description

Twenty-two percent of Mississippi residents receive incomes that fall below the nation’s poverty line. This affordable housing prototype is designed for the 21st century and the families that will occupy it. It is a home that responds directly to the climatic conditions of the Mississippi Delta, while also responding to the families that live there.

The families that are scattered throughout the Mississippi Delta are comprised of multiple family members. It is not uncommon to see a family that consists of single parents, multiple children, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc.

Eastmoor Estates, a neglected subsidized neighborhood in Moorhead, Mississippi, was chosen as the site for the project.

The home is placed and oriented on the specific site in relation to the winds, rainfall, and sunlight angles. A structural gird is implemented that is appropriate for building only one room and a hallway wide, along with building techniques relating to the locally available materials and skills. This allowed for a narrow floor plate that would allow for the maximum amount of cross ventilation and natural lighting. Clearstory windows were inserted under roof soffits on the southern side, and clearstory voids were positioned above interior partitions. Visor-like overhangs and external fin like sun blades tuned to the correct length and angle were used to manage the amount of southern light coming into the building throughout the year. They allow for full sunlight to penetrate the façade in wintertime, and allow no sunlight in during the summer. The glazing in combination with the external blinds and overhangs allows the inhabitant to control how much light comes in throughout the year. The floor system is a concrete floor that acts a thermal mass, so it naturally cools the house in the summer, and heats it in winter.

Innovative active systems and insulation have been used to ensure the home leaves a small carbon footprint, as well as saving the homeowner money throughout the life of the building. These systems include wool insulation, high-density foam, hydronic radiant floor heating, led lighting, and water efficient fixtures. Even though some of these require higher upfront costs, the owner will see savings of roughly nine hundred dollars on an annual basis.

The home was designed with two zones: one for sleeping and one for living. The sleeping zone features three small bedrooms with walls that fully open up to the activated hallway where their closets are located. This idea was to encourage as much of their time as possible out of their bedroom. In contrast to the smaller areas in the sleeping zone, the living zone is completely open and free of columns. This allows for an activated family experience to fully interact with each other. This dwelling was designed to work with all types of family, seeing that the family structure is continually changing in our day and age.

Hopefully with the cooperation of the inhabitant, the logic at work will enable the dwelling to take its place in the natural environment that we are constantly invading.

Honorable Mention
REVITALIZING THE RURAL

Student: Jacob Eble, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Faculty Sponsor: Mark Stephen Taylor, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Project Description

The rural areas of our country make up 75 percent of our landmass but just 20 percent of our population. Taking a drive through these areas of our country it is clear to see their overall decline. Family farms and local downtowns that once thrived have since been abandoned.

New technologies in the agriculture industry allow for smaller groups of people to farm much greater quantities of land. This allowed for larger farms to monopolize the land and smaller farms to leave the industry altogether. Children who grew up in these rural towns were no longer able to stay at home and maintain a desirable quality of life working on family farms. Instead, they were forced to head to urban areas where they could find greater employment opportunities. Architects and designers have been drawn to focus on the urban areas of our country and how they can design for the mass populations that are entering our ever-expanding cities. However with 75 percent of our landmass remaining relatively unpopulated, designers should instead be solving the issues of how we can bring the population back to the rural and revitalize communities that have been in decline since the advent of highly mechanized farming methods.

It was technology that ultimately led to the degradation of our rural communities and it is technology that we will bring these communities back. Workplaces of the future are shifting from physical to digital, creating less of a dependence on individuals to reside in our urban centers. Likewise, the rapid advancement in the transportation industry is shrinking the relationship between space and time.

As architects and designers, we can reimagine how our degraded farms and rural towns can be repurposed and adapted to fit into our ever-changing world. Grain silos, barns, and sheds that have been left to rot can be repurposed into rural hotels, workplaces, and organic farms. These rural areas can begin to have a greater presence in the hospitality market. Writers, musicians, and families seeking a peaceful and tranquil setting away from our hectic urban centers can look to our farm towns as a place to fulfill those needs.

Client: The client for the project is an individual who wishes to become a new pioneer in a rural community but is unable to due to a lack of economic opportunity and life quality sustainability. They will be seeking a home that is forward thinking but has a strong relationship with the local vernacular. The home must be budget conscious and also provide economic opportunities in order to allow for a stable income and way of life. A space dedicated as a digital workstation is a must, along with spaces that can be rented out to short or long stay visitors.

Honorable Mention
THE BATTERY HOUSE

Students: Homa Ansari, Anmol Kollegal, & Timothy Massa, University of Houston
Faculty Sponsor: Zui Ng, University of Houston

Project Description

After a natural disaster, neighborhoods are fragmented and left in a lurch. For the victims, the foremost thing is getting back to their homes at the earliest and start re-building on their lost. The Battery House aims at being a self-sustaining prototype that can facilitate onsite rehabilitation as well as be used as a back-up battery to support the vernacular.

The project is housed in the historic districts of Galveston Island, in Texas. The island city has well defined historic neighborhoods with distinctive vernacular house typologies which are getting degraded at a rapid pace due to its unpredictable weather and high proximity to natural disaster. The Battery House aims to correct the vast difference in the number of abandoned vernacular homes to the ones being renovated per year.

The prototype serves as a base that can be applied to the most common vernacular housing typologies. Limitations of the rear exterior, Galveston Historic guidelines, and the commonalities found within these typologies are utilized to merge the prototype with the vernacular, in an act to preserve, restore, rehabilitate and reconstruct on site.

The Battery House, upon arrival is 120 ft2 and contains the most essential spaces of a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom. This small footprint, along with back alley access, leaves recently affected victims with an easy acquirement, distribution, and deployment process. After deployment, the Battery House square footage will double in size, 240 ft2, by adopting space from the existing vernacular homes interior. This process of increasing space will allow the Battery House to add a bedroom, and living area to the overall layout. The increasing of space will expand throughout the vernacular home as the rehabilitation process takes place, blending the Battery House into the vernacular and forming one single entity.

Construction

The shell is a lightweight cage structure made up of multiple layers of steel mesh. Inside this cage, is a system of sliding walls integrated with HVAC and electrical power. The rigidity of the exterior and the flexibility of the interior is what makes the battery house satisfy its functional and practical requirements. The foundation is a system of metal bars sliding outwards to anchor the structure into the ground at various heights to counter the uneven topography.

Ecology

The Battery House is equipped with amenities and features to sustain a 72-hour disaster period independently. Solar orbs, 5-inch diameter, are laid in-between the steel mesh surfaces and affixed to the same sliding metal bars as the foundation support technology. The sloped shed roof beneath the solar orbs redirects the harvested rain water into water tanks that are integrated into the bottom of the cage structure in-between floor joists.

Community

The shear flexibility of the battery house serves the community at large. A LED lit façade creates security and comfort at night for residents. As the most essential needs of a kitchen and a bathroom are provided, the unit can also be used as an outdoor community kitchen, thereby encouraging disaster victims to work together towards rebuilding their community.

Participating Schools

The competition had over 560 participants from the following schools:

California State University, Long Beach; Carleton University; Carnegie Mellon University; Catholic University of America; Cuesta College; Drexel University; Dunwoody College of Technology; Erie Community College; Ferris State University; Hampton University; Illinois Institute of Technology; Iowa State University; Kansas State University; Laurentian University; Mississippi State University; New York City College of Technology; NewSchool of Architecture and Design; North Carolina State University; North Dakota State University; Prairie View A&M University; Pratt Institute; Ryerson University; Savannah College of Art and Design; Southern Illinois University; Texas A&M University; The Cooper Union; The University of Colorado Boulder; Universite de Montreal; University Laval; University of Arkansas; University of Calgary; University of California, Berkeley; University of Cincinnati; University of Florida; University of Hawaii At Manoa; University of Houston; University of Illinois at Chicago; University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; University of Kentucky; University of Massachusetts, Amherst; University of Memphis; University of Nevada, Las Vegas; University of North Carolina at Charlotte; University of Tennessee-Knoxville; University of Texas At San Antonio; University of the District of Columbia; University of Virginia; University of Washington; University of Waterloo; University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Virginia Tech; & Washington State University

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