From Curbed:
Several competitions and exhibitions have cropped up focused on rebuilding and sustainable design in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The latest, unveiled at the Center for Architecture today, came together in less than two months and involves a long-stalled site in a "distressed and somewhat ignored" area, in the developer's words, of the Rockaway Peninsula. The more-than-80-acre site in question, Arverne East, was designated for development by L & M Development Partners, Triangle Equities, and the Bluestone Organization seven years ago, but the financial crisis brought the plans grinding to a halt. Following the storm, the developers are ready to resume work, but the old site plan no longer applies. Instead, the developers (and a bunch of other partners listed on the competition site) are seeking input from architects, engineers, interested members of the community, and pretty much anyone else in a two phase competition. The full details and competition brief are available on the official website.
Regardless of who wins, the ultimate site plan will need to be mixed-use, sustainable, "storm-resilient," and mixed-income.
You really gotta love it when the mayor is encouraging more coastal development at the same time that the governor is paying people to leave the waterfront.
It's also interesting when the Curbed comments read like Queens Crap comments.
2 comments:
I heard the Averne-by-the sea development withstood Sandy because of the way it was developed. As a matter of fact I believe I read it on Queenscrap. Maybe we can build by the shore if we do it right.
No, you didn't read it here. I did link to an article where the developer tried to claim that it was superior construction that prevented damage to some of Arverne, but I pointed out that in the same article they admitted that there were dunes in that area and a sturdier section of boardwalk which actually weakened the storm surge there. Next time they may not be so lucky. Mother Nature designed the Rockaways as barrier beaches that are supposed to act as buffer zones. Kind of stupid that we promote development contrary to science, but that's greed for you.
Post a Comment