In Between the Space of PermanenceIn Between the Space of Permanence

[Modular Housing in Response to Hurricane Katrina]

Submitted by Marisa Brown

Thesis Advisor: Donna Dunay

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

College of Architecture and Urban Studies

Bachelors of Architecture, May 2010

Another question that arose through this study was the question of permanence. Is it arrogant to assume a structure can withstand another category fi ve hurricane? Should there be a level of ignorance that allows one to believe another storm of such magnitude will not pass along the same path? Or rather, should there be a humble acceptance of the inevitable; an understanding that nature is powerful and will follow whatever course she chooses. Once this is accepted and understood it is possible to focus on what this means for the town. And further, how a sense of permanence can be created, even if permanence is something that is not achievable.

For this reason the project is divided into two parts: The permanent [masonry] and the changing [modular]. This dichotomy allows the site to remain true as an anchor of the community, even if parts of it are missing. The heavy masonry anchors the site and becomes the face of the project; thus allowing the project to still have a sense of place even without any modular pieces being added to it. The modular system provides a lightness to the site, held within the heavy structure of the columns and beams.

There is always a question of how to rebuild the community after a natural disaster. Is it best to rebuild the same and pretend nothing ever happened? Or should the event be monumentalized; displayed in its gruesome beauty as an act of remembrance? This question is still being asked along the Gulf Coast, fi ve years after Hurricane Katrina. What should remain? What should change? How to rebuild the area when nothing remains of what used to be?

The idea has been narrowed down to the study of housing, and in particular, modular housing. Following the storm Mississippi Cottages and FEMA trailers were given to families, a temporary house to help families get by in a time of need. But temporary houses do not make communities. An idea of permanence must be given to the individual, to the community. The idea of settling ones’ roots, making a space one’s own; and in return building the relationships that create a community. Relationships with the environment, neighbors, the city. This is how communities are developed; by allowing the individual to take ownership of their space, giving them a reason and connection to exist within the larger community.

How do you rebuild a community when everything that made the neighborhood has been destroyed?

Pass Christian, Mississippi

Lac Bleau Avenue

Shaggy’s Harbor Bar and Grill

2nd Street

Downtown

US Hwy 90

Davis Ave

North St

Mississippi Sound(Gulf of Mexico)

Everett St

Henderson Ave

Church Ave

Fleitas Ave

Market St

Lizzy’s Cafe

SouthCoast Design-Build

What once used to be a vibrant street, fenced by a man-made lake running the length of the road, now sit empty, abandoned foundations of houses that once were. These are the only remains of the community that used to be there. The foundations must be respected, but not memorialized; they become integral to the site, to the existence of the project, a place to live among the memories of the past while building a new community. The site consists of the fi rst six foundations. These foundations, along with the fl at topography are used to inform the new structure. These elements come together to create a new landscape of earth and masonry: a topography of change,

dynamic,

anticipated

change.

Porch Level - 4’ above ground

First Level- 12’ above ground

Second Level - 20’ above ground

Roof Level - 28’ above ground

The Southern Porch becomes emphasized as a space separating the public from the private. The concrete footings of the columns rise three feet above the porch level, creating a barrier at ground level between the public space of the road and the house. On the porch the footings become horizon lines, directing the line of site towards the lake behind the houses. A relationship between the concrete footings, masonry foundations, wooden slats of the porch, and the organic material of gardens is formed, creating individual spaces for each porch.

Ceiling Height

Standing Height

Sitting Height

Foundation Height

A moment to linger is needed; time to appreciate a particular tree framed by the sun and the weathered wood. An understanding of the structure is gained, a passage between the planned and the discovered. Notes of interest are kept between the spaces. Stories are shared among neighbors; tales of the mysterious history linger in the air, caught in an ever-changing chorus of perspectives. But always, a moment exists, balancing the tamed and the crude, the difference between the known and the beauty of discovery.

A space hovering between the masonry tower and the modular space becomes distinctive to each house. An entrance that marks the house’s position on the land; a line of site emphasized by the direction of the entryway, a tiny window connecting the house to the larger community, each created to make the house its own. An individual piece among the whole, similar in totality, but unique in the details, in the space offered as a small sanctuary to rest between the t w o w o r l d s .

The modular system provides a freedom to the project, a chance to rebel against the structured grid. The idea of a tree house is used: need dictates the space, the temporary nature of the structure provides the beauty. Floors are slid into place where needed. Walls are placed between the columns to create spaces. Spaces of inhabitation are determined by the needs of the occupant, emphasized by the wall panels. Wooden structure covered by translucent material reveals the uses of the space, provides an elevated landscape of graphic emphasis. The individual is celebrated, appreciated, but connected within the grid; unifi ed by the structure.

Modular Development Examples