Design Corps

MISSISSIPPI FELLOWSHIP

Location: BILOXI, MISSISSIPPI

Site Partner: Gulf Coast Community Design Studio

Available: September 1, 2008

Deadline: June 8, 2008

Decision: July 6, 2008

Job Description:

COMMUNITY NEED:

The Red Cross has estimated that Hurricane Katrina destroyed 353,000 housing units in the Gulf Coast region. In addition, 146,000 units suffered "major" damage (not currently habitable), 184,000 had "minor" damage (could be occupied), and an additional 206,000 had "extremely minor" or "nuisance" damage such as a few missing shingles or broken windows.. Estimates by the Jackson, MS, Clarion-Ledger are that over 70,000 homes were destroyed in the three Mississippi coastal counties as well. The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that 71% of the destroyed units in the affected areas were affordable to low and very low income households. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the recovery process will take longer than normal because workers have no place to live. According to the Brookings Institute, FEMA is currently supporting trailers and mobile homes for only 83,000 households out of the almost 800,000 households that are still displaced by Katrina.

Without the assistance of community-based rebuilding and redevelopment organizations many low-income families will not be able to resettle in their old neighborhoods. In East Biloxi, because of rising property taxes, property insurance and construction costs, various forms of financial, design and building assistance are needed for area very-low and low-income families. Otherwise, the diversity of income, race and age that has characterized the neighborhoods of East Biloxi will be lost. The Gulf Coast Community Design Studio (GCCDS) was established in the fall of 2005 as an arm of Mississippi State University College of Architecture Art and Design to provide planning and architectural design assistance and leadership to Mississippi Gulf Coast communities affected by Hurricane Katrina. With the award of a HUD University Rebuilding America Partnership Grant and a Federal Small Business Administration Grant the GCCDS has hired additional staff, purchased equipment and has set up a studio in Biloxi with a design team of eight architects, planners and interns. The GCCDS has a close partnership with a local organization, the East Biloxi Coordination, Relief, and Recovery Agency (EBCRRA). Currently, the GCCDS, in partnership with the EBCRRA, is providing ongoing assessment, design, and construction administration assistance for twenty new and renovated house projects each month.

The GCCDS is in the early stages of its next stage of growth to create two branch studios to serve other Gulf Coast communities. One branch studio is being created in Bay St. Louis, MS, in partnership with the Hancock Housing Resource Center and the other will be in Moss Point, MS, with a group of community organizations. The Design Corps Fellow will have opportunity to work in these other studios and will be able to learn from a range of community organizations. In the first two years of rebuilding most low-income housing repair and rebuilding has been done by nonprofit and faith-based organizations. These organizations have been primary in enabling low-income families to get back into their houses. They have been providing free, low-skilled labor. The GCCDS has received funding to develop housing systems applications, such as panelized and modular housing, for rebuilding. There is a great need for design and construction expertise in housing systems to replace the low-cost, low-skilled labor force with more advanced methods of building that can achieve affordable building by applying manufacturing methods to housing.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT:

The GCCDS along with the East Biloxi Coordination, Relief, and Recovery Agency (EBCRRA) and Warnke Community Consultants organized and held a series of six community meetings in the spring of 2006. These meetings, combined with a detailed community survey of over 600 households, led to the East Biloxi Community Action Plan, a written report that compiled the issues and ideas of the community meetings, surveys and property assessments. When asked to prioritize what should be restored and improved in East Biloxi the community placed affordable housing as the number one issue, followed by restoring the sense of community. The work of the GCCDS addresses both needs by focusing on rebuilding neighborhoods and resettling families.

In addition to the Community Action Plan, the work of the GCCDS is associated daily with EBCRRA that has over 2,000 families as part of their case management system. This extensive case management system provides the GCCDS with the families for renovation or new construction. Once the family has been qualified and a plan for financing the project worked out, the interns and architects of the GCCDS meet with the family and works with them to achieve a well suited house. This day-to-day interaction provides an ongoing connection with the community.

There are several other ways the community involvement is assured. First, the partnership with the EBCRRA provides a connection with the community. The director of the Coordination Center, Bill Stallworth, is also a city councilman and thus has a leadership role with the community and with the larger city of Biloxi. The Coordination Center has a board of directors made up of local people, which provide oversight for the rebuilding work. In addition, the GCCDS has a separate Advisory Council. Finally, along side the house design work, the GCCDS is doing neighborhood planning and will continue to organize neighborhood meetings as the work proceeds.

FELLOW’S ROLE:

The Design Corps Fellows will be part of the Gulf Coast Community Design Studio’s (GCCDS) professional design team. The GCCDS is working with the EBCRRA and other community organizations to provide the architectural design for both rehabilitation and new construction. The housing construction is being done by a variety of groups, both non-profit and commercial, and will be using both site-built and manufactured building methods. The Fellow will work with other interns and architects to assess, measure and draw existing houses for rehabilitation, and to design, produce construction documents, and be part of the construction administration of new houses.

Work with the East Biloxi Coordination and Relief Center and other community organizations to hold a series of four community meetings.
Using the East Biloxi Coordination and Relief Center cas management, identify families most in need of housing.
Assess, measure and draw eight (8) existing houses for rehabilitation.
Complete five (5) rehabilitation drawings for rehabilitation of existing damaged housing.
Design and produce construction documents with GCCDS architects and staff including construction documents and construction administration of six (6) new houses.
Track and evaluate progress of housing relief.
Know the families being served, their needs, challenges, and seek both broad and specific solutions for their housing needs.
Research and disseminate new techniques and construction materials for strengths, weaknesses, and resolution of disaster related problems.
Develop best practices, tested through the process of construction.

INTERMEDIATE GOALS:

Identification and tracking o indicators that housing in East Biloxi has improved.
Use of this information by East Biloxi area contractors, builders; Introduce into use newly identified materials into building codes.
Adoption of best practices by local contractors, builders, etc.

TARGET RESULTS:

Community impact which will be measured at the end of the service year to see how many houses have been rebuilt.
A significant percentage of the houses in most neighborhoods of East Biloxi that would otherwise remain un-repaired or the lots that would otherwise remain empty can be seen as the community impact of the work.
Institutional knowledge developed that will ensure the sustainability of the GCCDS.
Further the transition of the East Biloxi Coordination Center from a relief organization to a community development organization.

QUALIFICATIONS:

A degree in architecture or planning.
Experience/study in construction, urban design, urban policy, community service, non-profit or non-governmental organizations is a plus but not required.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
The ability to work with diverse groups, and the demonstrated capacity to move between cultures, disciplines, and professions.
The ability to organize and motivate others.
Highly organized and motivated.