BBBC HOUSE PROTOTYPE COMPLETE

Returned to Haiti this week for the official "inauguration" of the BBBC Expo in Zorangé, just north of Port-au-Prince. Went directly from the airport to meet the contractor at the site the day before, since reports from our partner Relief International's local staff indicated there was much yet to be done. Despite a delayed construction process up to this point, after a long day and early morning of hard work, we got our house prototype looking great for the big day. VIP's in attendance included Haitian President Michel Martelly, their Minister of Tourism Patrick Delatour, former President Bill Clinton, and Wyclef Jean, among others. Although the official group only visited a handful of the sixty prototypes this week, we were honored by the attention President Martelly gave our house at a previous visit to the Expo. There were quite a few attendees representing a wide variety of organizations checking out all the prototypes; we made some interesting contacts and received a lot of compliments on our house. We're hoping to be one of the ten or so winners selected who will build approximately 40 houses each as part of a 400 unit "exemplary community" to be constructed at a site near the Expo, and while the Expo is open for the next three weeks we'll be taking advantage of having the prototype available to show as we (Inscape Publico & Relief International) pursue development partners, grants and other funding sources to build communities of these houses at other sites. Very excited to have a great-looking prototype built! Check out more photos on our flickr site here.

On the Boards: A New Dawn - Ayiti Marmont Clinic

Schematic design is wrapping up on the Medical Clinic located in Marmont, Haiti that we are designing for Project Medi-Share. In recent weeks, we’ve taken an initial concept design provided through a charette with GW University students and members of the local architecture community led by OPX, and adapted it to a new site. Our process was thorough, with many layers of trace paper overlapped and covered in hand-sketched iterations drawn during our design meetings. We arrived at a courtyard scheme that features separate functions in individual, small buildings clustered around a central outdoor space. With some feedback from our collaborators, we are moving forward to complete schematic design.

One challenge, personally on this project, has been the odd experience of designing not only at a site I’ve never seen, but in a country I’ve never visited. It is certainly a good exercise in visualization. The other overall challenge is the critical importance of quality construction in a country, so recently ravaged by an earthquake, where building trades are not strictly regulated and rarely have the money or know-how for new construction technologies. This challenges us to think creatively about designing with simple materials and connections that will be familiar to local contractors and will also ensure the longevity of the structure. Those system and connection choices will be made in the coming weeks as we begin design development. All in all, it is an exciting project to take on and I look forward to visiting the site in Haiti soon!