addressing the urban divide
Deadline for Registration: 15 August 2010
Submission Deadline: 30 October 2010
To rethink the future of mid-size cities, and their role in the overlapping
economic and environmental challenges that the 21st century brings, Mississippi
State University's Jackson Community Design Center (JCDC), USA, will host a design
competition and symposium focused on the inherent challenges and immense
potential for socioeconomic and environmental reconciliation by addressing
barriers created by an urban divide.
FORMCities calls for design proposals to address the negative impacts of
urban forms and transportation thoroughfares which have created visual, physical,
and psychological, barriers that have sorted cities along the lines of race,
income, and class.
What is a mid size city?
For the purpose of FORMCities, a mid size city is any metropolitan statistical
area with a population of a minimum of 100,000 and a maximum of 1,000,000 people
in the city proper and the surrounding suburban municipalities.
Why the mid size city?
Mid size cities are under developed and under designed globally. Cities of this
size seldom reach the agenda of entities working to develop solutions to the
problems we face today. It is easy to overlook the role that cities like these
might play in contributing to, mitigating, or possibly solving these issues. On
one hand, 'green' or 'sustainable' minded organizations focus attention on
rural, suburban, and small town developments of limited scope where results are
easily measured. On the other hand, organizations dedicated to urban development
tend to privilege large metropolitan areas, transportation, and the role of
federal funding in debates on economic recovery. In between, the mid-size city
is all but forgotten; therefore, this design competition seeks to (a) look at
existing barriers in mid-size cities, (b) think about how these barriers can be
redesigned, and (c) critique whether and how this redesign can influence the
future of the mid-size city.
Which mid size city?
FORMCities' design problem can be addressed in any mid size city exhibiting a
significant visual, physical, and/or socioeconomic barrier.
Site Requirements
A case study city must be chosen and a site can be anywhere within the urban
environment, but it must contain a tangible divide in which a noticeably
different socioeconomic situation exists on either side of the barrier.
Case Study: Jackson, MS
An example of this phenomenon occurs in Jackson, MS. Jackson, like many mid-size
cities, is split by a barrier that is both physical and symbolic. Train tracks
elevated on a viaduct cut the city into two vastly different areas: an eastern
side containing a central business district in rebirth with historically stable
neighborhoods, and a west side containing abandoned buildings, failing
infrastructure, and despite substantial investment, lagging development and
unstable neighborhoods. With an income and property value differential of
approximately three to one across this barrier, the citizens of either side live
lives of vastly different opportunities. The view across perpetuates
misunderstanding, prejudice, and failures for the city as a whole. This specific
site in Jackson is an eligible site for proposals, but not required. For any
site chosen, comparable barriers should exist.
Eligibility
There will be both a student category and a professional category. Teams are not
limited by number, there is no age limit, and interdisciplinary teams are
encouraged.
Registration
All teams must register by the official registration date utilizing the
Registration Form. Registration form should be emailed to
FORMCities_competition@gmail.com. Registration forms and payments must be
received via the web or postmarked by August 15, 2010.
The registration fees are $60 for a professional team and $35 for student
teams.
Download the detailed competition guidelines here - FORMCities - and the registration form at
http://caad.msstate.edu/jcdc/index.html.
Schedule
August 15, 2010 Registration Closes
October 30, 2010 Submission Deadline
November 6, 2010 Prize Winners Announced
Winter 2010 - Spring 2011 Traveling Exhibition of Winning Entries
Spring 2011 Competition Summary Publication
Awards
The jury/symposium will be held in Jackson, MS on November 5-6, 2010 and will
combine a public conference with the judging and awards ceremony for the
competition. Prize monies totaling $5000 will be awarded at the discretion of
the Jury.
Finalists and notable projects will be chosen at the beginning of the
symposium and displayed in the exhibition space by the end of the first day. The
number of finalists and notable projects to be displayed will depend on the
judges' discretion and number of responses. Winners will be announced after the
final keynote lecture and will launch the reception. Each of these recognized
entries will be featured on the competition website and a nationally distributed
post competition publication and included in the traveling exhibition.
Further Information:
Jackson Community Design Center
Mississippi State University
College of Architecture, Art + Design
School of Architecture
Jackson Center
509 E Capitol Street
Jackson, MS 39201 • USA
eMail: info@jcdc.caad.msstate.edu
web:
http://caad.msstate.edu/jcdc/index.html
