Lower Ninth Ward Abstract

By Scott Fisher

This past semester and current semester, I have been doing a lot of reading for my thesis topic. My research investigates residential housing and community design for the disabled and elderly housing (my thesis topic), and its ability to provide these parties with a sense of place and value within the population. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused massive destruction in New Orleans, particularly in the area identified as the Lower Ninth Ward. Since this event, actor and human rights activist Brad Pitt, has been committed to working with a body of well-respected architects with a shared mission to assist in the rebuilding of the Lower Ninth Ward. The goal of this union was and remains to design and build 150 homes that are green, affordable, and capable of withstanding any future hurricanes. Through this commitment, Pitt, himself a one-time resident of New Orleans, has become an advocate for assisting displaced residents in returning to new housing on lots on which their destroyed homes were once located. These new housing designs, however, are not specifically designed to meet the needs of the disabled and elderly. It is this population that seeks to be addressed by this research. It is the intent of this research to result in the design of three new residential structures that are ADA accessible, green, LEED Certified, and accentuated using the latest technology. One structure/home will be designed for the elderly; one for the disabled; and one that addresses/integrates/combines the beneficial elements of both houses. All will become prototypes for the basis of establishing a new residential community development within the Lower Ninth Ward. To address the needs of today’s society changing; residential, commercial, and industrial spaces are often grouped together to form a sense of security, place, convenience, and fit with the needs of the particular town/community. Each structure/home will be able to operate on its own. Residential communities often design one unit and then copied to various locations throughout the community, as exemplified by “The Villages” (a retirement housing community) in Florida. This often results in a loss of individual identity. The products of this research will provide each structure/home with external characteristics that are unique to the individual occupant(s), while containing elements common to all homes within the community. For this research, a community will be defined as a neighborhood, district, ward, Parrish or a sub division. There exists many solutions that have been resolved to address the residential needs of the disabled and elderly, however, more effective solutions have yet to be designed. One solution is to look at other homes designed for the disabled and elderly that are located around the country, and use this collected data as the basis for my thesis.


Image:
http://blog.silive.com/sinotebook/2008/10/nola-hurricane-katrina.jpg
http://www.usdemocrazy.net/2010/02/19/film-festival-mardi-gras/untitled/