Build a Better Burb Competition Winners

Today, the winners of the Build a Better Burb ideas competition for retrofitting Long Island downtowns were announced.

The competition asked for ideas to help Long Island master several pressing challenges: to build affordable housing and greater housing choice, especially for rentals; to reduce car dependency and congestion; to bring Long Island’s diverse communities together in a shared public realm; to improve equity and access to opportunity for all; to meet the needs of retiring baby boomers who wish to age in place; and to fight the “brain drain” of younger residents who don’t see a future here and leave.

Build a Better Burb drew 212 submissions, from more than 30 countries, and showcased designs for retrofitting Long Island’s 156 downtowns and train-adjacent areas.

Nancy Douzinas, President, Rauch Foundation and publisher of the Long Island Index, explained the significance of presenting the winners at the CDC luncheon and pointed out that,  “We are delighted by the imagination of these winning submissions.  Long Island needs this kind of creative energy to tackle our problems and open up the discussion to a wider set of opportunities that might be included in our future plans.”

June Williamson, associate professor of architecture, City College of New York / CUNY and co-author of “Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Solutions for Redesigning Suburbs,” served as the consultant for the competition and today announced the winners, who are:

AgIsland

“AgISLAND looked to put the “farm” back in Farmingdale by proposing the replacement of office parks with organic farms.” -- Juror Allison Arieff

Team Members:

Parsons Brinckerhoff: Amy Ford-Wagner, Tom Jost, Ebony Sterling, Philip Jonat, Emily Hull, Will Wagenlander, Meg Cederoth, Melanie George, David Greenblatt, Melissa Targett

 

Building C-Burbia

“A landscape proposition at multiple scales for addressing climate change with an exciting new kind of infrastrucure designed to efficiently sequester carbon in plantings.” -- Juror June Williamson

Team Members:

The City College of New York, Bernard and Anne Spitzer School of Architecture, Landscape Architecture Program: Denise Hoffman Brandt, Alexa Helsell, Bronwyn Gropp

 

Levittown: Increasing Density and Opportunity through the Accessory Dwellings

“Compactly designed accessory buildings built in the back yards of the original Levittown prototypical home, creates not only affordable housing options, but creates a new neighborhood fabric, denser and more varied. The dream lives on!” -- Juror Paul Lukez

Team Members:

Ryall Porter Sheridan Architects: Meri Tepper, Ted Porter, Ted Sheridan, John Buckley

Parsons The New School for Design: William R. Morrish

 

Long Division

“Long Division, concerned about the contamination of Long Island’s aquifers, aims to establish a regional strategy to promote both growth and contraction.   Proposing alternatives to conventional single family housing … is an important strategy for developing more sustainable approaches to sprawl.” -- Juror Allison Arieff

Team Members:

Network Architecture Lab, Columbia University: Kazys Varnelis, Leigha Dennis, Momo Araki, Alexis Burson, Kyle Hovenkotter; and Park: William Prince

 

SUBHUB Transit System

“This project displays unconventional thinking about connectivity and the new economic synergies in suburbia. The transit stations become small-business generators with markets, freight exchange and cart rentals, while the school sites are infilled with efficient new buildings to create centers for the surrounding communities.” -- Juror Galina Tachieva

Team Members:

DUB Studios: Michael Piper, Frank Ruchala, Natalya Kashper, Gabriel Sandoval, Jeff Geiringer

 

Upcycling 2.0

STUDENT WINNER

“Upcycling 2.0 is bold, addresses financing, and employs a creative, optimistic reading of the suburb and its building blocks, which it proposes to combine in interesting ways.” -- Juror Dan D’Oca

Team Members:

Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture and Planning and Preservation: Ryan H. B. Lovett, John B. Simons, Patrick Cobb

 

LIRR: Long Island Radically Rezoned

Long Island Index’s PEOPLE’S CHOICE WINNER

“LIRR proposes an impressive island-wide reorganization of regional governance structure for a carbon-neutral future, comprised of a network of dense centers with agricultural and open space in between.” -- Juror June Williamson

Team Members:

Tobias Holler, New York Institute of Technology; Ana Serra, Buro Happold; Sven Peters, Atelier Sven Peters; Katelyn Mulry, New York Institute of Technology

 

The winners were selected by a diverse jury of distinguished academics and professionals. They are:

• Allison Arieff, design journalist, contributor to the New York Times "Opinionator" blog and GOOD Magazine
• Daniel D'Oca, partner at Interboro, New York, and assistant professor, Maryland College of Art
• Rob Lane, director of the Design Program at the Regional Plan Association
• Paul Lukez, principal of Paul Lukez Architecture, Boston, and author of Suburban Transformations
• Lee Sobel, real estate development and finance analyst, U.S. EPA: Office of Policy, Economics and Innovation
• Galina Tachieva, partner at Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company, Miami, and author of the Sprawl Repair Manual
• Georgeen Theodore, partner at Interboro, New York, and associate director of the infrastructure planning program at the New Jersey Institute of Technology