Architecture and Urban Planning cohort with our clients, Mujeres de Islas. Culebra Puerto Rico, March 2022.
Project Overview:
Visualizing the Problems:
Housing Inventory
Opportunities for Infill Approach
Historical Hurricane Destruction
Flood Risk Mapping (10ft SLR)
Community Engagement
During the second week of March, our Studio traveled to Culebra, where we engaged with various community members who shared their stories, deepening our understanding and development of our proposals.
One of the first individuals we met was Valentina, a Culebrense who built her home with her family's help after receiving a lot from the Municipal Government. Sadly, she lost her home during Hurricane Maria in 2017. Despite receiving reconstruction funds from FEMA and hiring a private company in mainland Puerto Rico for the designs and materials, Valentina has been unable to rebuild her house because the plans provided were designed for a flat lot, and her lot sits on a steep slope. She now has no home of her own and now owes the company. Contributing factors include the need for more guidance, a local workforce, and the disparity in FEMA funds between the U.S. mainland and Puerto Rico, a territory under the Jones Act. Valentina invited us to her home and shared her story with great pain.
An unusable house plan was purchased for Valentina due to a lack of guidance and support.
Our team also spent time with the Mujeres de Islas team. Abigail, a recent university graduate who moved back to Culebra, expressed her desire to own a home but noted the high cost of housing for locals, driven primarily by the rental market. Additionally, we visited the “Museo Polvorin” and learned about Culebra's complex history of ownership and displacement due to Military Occupation. We heard harrowing testimonies of Culebrenses being forcibly removed from their homes with only 24-hour notice, leading to migration and the need to build new homes elsewhere
Phase 1: Hurricane Resiliency Handbook
Our clients expressed their nostalgia for wood construction. However, Hurricane Hugo demolished 80% of the wooden structures on the Island, leading to a rebuilding effort primarily of concrete homes, something that the locals feel does not resonate with them culturally or with island living. Our challenge was finding a way to design with wood while ensuring the structures were hurricane-safe and resistant. To achieve this, we researched hurricane-safe wood construction, referencing sources such as Habitat for Humanity and FEMA. We created a toolkit for hurricane-resilient wood structures that our implemented design would follow. This toolkit explains how our housing proposal will be constructed and guides how Calabrese's can fortify their existing wooden structures. After learning how to design for hurricane resilience, the next step was to design housing that could withstand the forces of nature while being flexible enough to adapt to the ebb and flow of life
Phase 1 Prototyping
Phase 2: Design
Incremental Housing Design: The design begins with a central unit called the nucleus. The nucleus is the hub for all main living, electrical supply, water usage, and drainage and features a wrap-around veranda for outdoor living, laundry utilities, and growing food. Over time, the home can be built upon, following our toolkit based on the family’s needs. The house can grow from the nucleus, a studio apartment of about 370 square feet, to a 4-bedroom home of roughly 1,170 square feet that can sleep up to 8 individuals. By providing a flexible and adaptable housing solution, we hope to meet the needs of the community, particularly young families, while ensuring the structure’s permanence against natural disasters.
Base Unit (Nucleus): 1-2 People - 370 Sq.ft
Base + 2 Bedroom Addition. 2-4 People - 744 Sq.ft
Base + 2 Bedroom Addition. 3-6 People - 940 Sq.ft
The design incorporates critical features to ensure resilience in extreme weather conditions. One of the main features is the inclusion of operable storm shutters for every window, which can be closed and locked to protect the home from strong winds and flying debris during a hurricane. This design element adds an extra layer of protection to the house and provides a sense of security to its occupants during extreme weather events.
In addition to the storm shutters, the homes are designed with a 30-degree roof pitch that is optimal for preventing uplift during severe hurricane winds. This design feature ensures that the roof remains intact and the home remains structurally sound during extreme weather events. The operable veranda roofs are also an important aspect of the design, as they can be unfolded flat against the home's facade to shield it from flying debris during a hurricane completely. These design features work together to create a resilient home that can withstand the harsh weather conditions typical in Culebra.
Facade during standard weather conditions: When open, the front veranda is designed to serve as a space for gathering and connecting with neighbors. The operable roof also provides shading and protection from harsh sun conditions.
Facade fortification in severe weather conditions: In extreme weather, the operable roof folds down to shield the façade, adding another layer of fortification to the structure. This versatile design feature not only enhances the veranda's functionality but also ensures its durability and resilience against weather fluctuations.
Veranda - Open
Veranda - Closed
Passive Design Strategies
The homes are designed sustainably and offer various features to promote sustainable living. One such feature is the roof pitch, which allows for installing PV roof panels that generate electricity and heat water. This supports the island’s goal of becoming entirely solar-powered shortly. The design also facilitates rainwater collection, which is culturally significant to the residents of Culebra.
In addition, the homes incorporate natural cooling methods such as cross ventilation, ceiling fans, and external window shading to reduce the need for air conditioning during hot seasons, thus increasing thermal comfort and reducing energy consumption. These sustainable design features allow residents to live in comfortable homes while reducing living costs and their impact on the environment.
Phase 2 Prototyping
Base Unit Model
Detail Model Photo
Model Components
A New Design for Valentina
Valentina's lot where her home once stood
View of lagoon from the top of the lot
Floor plan designed for Valentina (Above)
Valentina’s case study serves as an example of how incremental housing can be applied in practice. By examining the house plans she acquired after losing her home in a hurricane, we can observe that the basic elements of both homes are similar. However, the new home she purchased was unsuitable for her existing sloped lot and was made of concrete with a flat roof, which may not be appropriate for Culebra's climate and cultural preferences. Valentina's plan, on the other hand, offers an alternative approach. It features a nucleus, a two-bedroom addition, and a living room addition, providing Valentina with sufficient living space for herself and visiting children like her son. The design also takes advantage of the home’s location by offering views of the lagoon from the back of the house. This incremental approach allows for flexibility and adaptability in housing design, accommodating changing needs and preferences over time
Rendering of model designed for Valentina