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| Inside the Concepts Phase II Jury |
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Brian Congleton, AIA
AIA Monterey Bay Special Projects Director
Co-Chair Competition
Committee
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Volunteering as gofer
for the Concepts Phase II Jury made it possible for me to be a
virtual “fly on the wall,” listening to jurors work
through the criteria parameters of various entries until they finally
established a palette of winners. Now I am happy to share some
insider views and comments from the closed jury sessions, while
protecting the sanctity of their specific remarks and rights to
confidentiality! A dozen of the twenty finalists from Phase I received
site assignments and developed their designs in Phase II. Unfortunately,
some of the student winners from the University of Tennessee at
Knoxville had academic demands and were unable to enter Phase II.
During the first day of Jurying, twelve teams made 15-minute pitches
followed by Q&A’s. The field of consideration was then
cut to five, who came back on Day Two for a more intense review
of their proposals. Here are some of the notable entries:
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| Grand Prize Award: |
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This talented
UC Berkeley instructor injected his teaching principles
about housing into an infill design for Monterey. Michael’s
Phase II linear parcel on Van Buren Street was in the
reverse direction of his Phase I design, and provided
difficult site, parking and density requirements. He
began by breaking the site into four “lots,” each
containing a building and parking. The units—each
with a carport below—surrounded interior courtyards,
providing pedestrian scale, tenant propriety of the shared
spaces, and excellent light. Thus, a very high density
(45 units per acre) was achieved without the usual increased
massing. Judges noted that among all of the entries denoted
this project offered the best affordability.
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| Award of Merit: |
Greenan &
Vargas-Hidalgo
Oakland, CA |
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| This
team developed a Phase I site-specific design for inner-city
housing above retail located adjacent to the Steinbeck
Center in Salinas. For Phase II, they were linked with
the Broadway West corridor in Seaside. The jurors gave
high marks to the housingover- commercial units surrounding
a “square donut” courtyard, as well as the
urban design of the streets and architectural detailing.
This concept and application would integrate well in
Seaside, Castroville, Salinas, and almost any town corridor
in the county. |
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| Award of Merit: |
Studio
Acito
Madera, Italy
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| After presenting an
excellent Phase I design for a Carmel Valley site, The Italian
Team was assigned a 24-acre parcel in Ryan Ranch for Phase II.
Both the design and presentation were beyond compare! A Mediterranean
hillside neighborhood of closely-clustered houses along narrow
pedestrian streets featured energy conservation integrated via “smart
walls.” Storm and gray-water collected and retained in
lakes was recycled for landscape watering. The separation of
parking from housing requiring a lengthy walk from car to door
proved to be a controversial element, and was initially considered
a deterrent by the Jury. However, in final review, the jurors
determined that the American view of the pedestrian vs. auto
relationship may be shortsighted. |
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Rodriguez/Jobson
Santa Rosa, CA |
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| A Phase II site on
Fort Ord was matched with the fivestory, sustainable site concept
linear building that included storm water collection, photovoltaics
and solar systems. The units were 20x20x20 boxes that could be
finished to suit the occupant. |
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Chris Ridgeway
Half Moon Bay |
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| Chris’s Phase I design was the “People’s
Choice,” fulfilling its title, “The American Dream.” He
provided a full-size residence with a front porch, pedestrian
streets, side yard, and traditional single-family residence appearance.
Other popular elements included back-to-back duplex configuration,
a single-car garage hidden from the street, usable courtyard
side yard, and pedestrian driveway-width street. Favored more
highly by the public than the judges, this entry has infinite
possibilities for implementation. |
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Gerry Tierney
Berkeley,
CA |
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| Tierney’s Phase II assignment was a Salinas Housing Authority
site in Chinatown. Responding to the city’s request for
future street front retail, he created a podium concept, hard-edge
façade with housing above and behind, and studio lofts
in the future retail space. This project has good opportunity
for implementation. |
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Paul Byrne
Carmel Valley, CA |
SPHCG
Ventura, CA |
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| Paul emerged as the
only Phase II finalist from the seven Monterey County entries
in Phase I. His design for a typical single family, multiple-unit
infill was matched with a small parcel in Sand City. The judges
liked the simplicity and affordability of the design as well
as Paul’s presentation. |
This consortium of
five planners/architects selected “Paradigm Shift” for
their Phase I concept, and was matched with the MST Transit Mall
site on Reservation Road in Marina for Phase II. The final design
reflected Marina’s General Plan desires for street-front
retail, upper level housing, and a new city hall! However, the
judges were not impressed with SPHCG’s pursuit of “rewriting
the rules,” and the design itself was never reviewed. |
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| We are now well under way on Phase III! |
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A rotating exhibit will
soon be on display at banks and city halls, getting the word
out to the cities and county. Several of the competitors are busy
contacting
cities, agencies and property owners in hopes of seeing their
designs implemented. There is a great possibility that we just
might see
that happen!
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