The Tulane City Center houses the Tulane University School of Architecture’s urban research and outreach programs. So far this year, the students at the Tulane School of Architecture have built three projects, a Green Pavillion (a sustainable exhibition on rainwater re-use, a Farmer’s Market in Hollygrove, and a LEED certified (soon to be) house in Central City. All of these projects are located in New Orleans.
You can find more on the Tulane City Center here. Images and description of the three projects, after the break.
Eco-Pavilion Sustainable Exhibition
The Tulane City Center and New Orleans’ City Park are working together on an Eco Pavilion to showcase environmentally sensitive building strategies and technologies. Under the guidance of Architect Coleman Coker the TCC team is building the pavilion for the Fall Home and Garden Show, 2008. City Park’s Botanical Garden will use the Green Pavilion to provide the public with a full scale educational model of how sustainable technologies can employed.
The Pavilion includes a rainwater catching roof, indigenous plants, salvaged materials, and rainwater filtration systems. The intention of this approachable and informative exhibition is to make these alternative building methods accessible to the public in the hope that individuals might choose to rebuild their homes and gardens in a more sustainable way. The Eco Pavilion is one project in a larger ongoing partnership between City Park and the TCC.
Hollygrove Growers Market and Farm
Located in the heart of New Orleans, the Carrollton-Hollygrove Neighborhood is in desperate need of extensive re-development in the post-Katrina era. One urgent issue is the development of infrastructure and resources that support a healthy food system and benefit the community through the availability of fresh foods, beautiful neighborhoods and the promotion of a vibrant local economy. To implement some of these important incentives, the Carrollton-Hollygrove Community Development Corporation (CHCDC) and the New Orleans Food and Farm Network (FFN) have partnered with the Tulane City Center to create the Hollygrove Growers Market & Farm (HGM&F), a storefront retail center in Hollygrove offering locally-grown, affordable fresh produce as well as ‘green jobs’ certification programs in urban agriculture.
A major component of the CHCDC’s revitalization and recovery work involves promoting sustainable living and healthy lifestyles through support of local growers and accessibility of fresh regional and local produce for neighborhood residents. The community food center will be a centerpiece for FFN’s food security recovery planning. Combined with the training farm, the HGM&F is contributing greatly to the revitalization of Hollygrove, serving as an important step in making the neighborhood sustainable and acting as a catalyst for future city-wide innovation.
URBANbuild prototype 04
This year’s URBANbuild house has just finished construction in New Orleans’ Central City neighborhood. This fourth URBANbuild built prototype has involved a class of 25 design students in the fall and 18 student builders in the spring semester. This house is a study in sustainable building practices and is on schedule to achieve LEED silver certification.
The 1200 s.f. scheme is one story with a footprint of 24′ by 71′ and is situated on a corner lot in the Central City neighborhood. Exterior walls are activated with an operable impact resistant screened panel system. The overall form of the house is simple so that the screen system becomes the defining aspect of the project. In response to New Orleans shutter systems, typically used for shading and hurricane protection, the sliding panels can cover the interior public areas of the home or be moved to provide shading for the exterior porch spaces.
URBANbuild’s partner in the development of these houses is Neighborhood Housing Services, and Tony Christiana is the contractor of record.
