BILOXI

Architecture for Humanity established the Model Home program to provide design services and financial assistance for the construction of a number of new homes for families in East Biloxi whose houses were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Using the latest in materials research, disaster mitigation and sustainable building techniques, this was seen as an opportunity for architects to help set the bar for new construction in the area. To jump start the program, Architecture for Humanity invited a number of national firms, including Rockhill and Associates, to create proposals for homes that meet the new challenges of disaster-mitigation in the post-Katrina environment. The unusual program called for housing to be elevated twelve foot above the flood plain and to be affordable at one hundred thousand dollars for a three bedroom home. Our proposal turns the twelve foot required height into an asset used to promote natural air circulation throughout the house as well as providing useful covered exterior space at the ground level.