Beaufort 3 Century Architectural Competition

We have been super busy the last few weeks preparing our competition entry. The description of the competition as found on the Beaufort County Web page http://bcgov.net/about-beaufort-county/public-service/planning/expo_2011/index.php or condensed below.

"The Beaufort Three-Century Project & Historic Beaufort Foundation are hosting a public exhibition of architecture and community design to complement the City of Beaufort tri-centennial celebration. The exhibit will demonstrate how the valued built forms of Beaufort can be successfully fused with the future requirements for sustainability of energy, water, materials, human ecology and indigenous vegetation. The design categories will include the Single Structure Infill and the Neighborhood Plan – each on one of three pre-selected opportunity sites in historic Beaufort. In addition to cash awards for these two categories, there will be a People's Choice award, as voted by exhibition visitors during the three-week long event.

This professional competition is open to architecture and land design professionals & students of those disciplines. Submissions should be physical models, virtual or perspective renderings of single structure infill or community plan models for one of three selected sites in historic Beaufort. Each submission should be accompanied by a specification board headlining the fundamental design principles and sustainable strategies used."

We chose to enter both the neighborhood master plan and individual building categories. The site we selected was the four blocks at the intersection of Wilmington and Washington Street.

The gray buildings on the site plan are recognized as contributing structures to the National Historic Landmark District. The are modest one and two story houses generally built right after the Civil War. This neighborhood was started by freed slaves and the majority of the current residents are African Americans. The white buildings are non-contributing structures.

This is the new master plan. We added a gathering place at the intersection of Wilmington and Washington and community gardens at the rear of each property.