(re)imagining paradise
alessandro zanghi arch 353-05 stacey white
Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction a) Introduction
b) Executive Summary c)Design Summary and Project Phases
Chapter 2: Community Overview a) History
b) Culture and Community Assets c) Economic d) Prior and Anticipatory Demographics e) Ecosystem Understanding
Chapter 3: Resiliency and Disaster Recovery a) The Camp Fire
b) Defining and Implementing Recovery c) Wildland Urban Interface d) Resiliency e) Learning from Others
Chapter 4: Vision and Goals a) Outreach and Common Themes
b) How Might We...Brainstorming and Outcomes c) Community Vision and Goals d) Creating a Replicable Model
Chapter 5: Constructing a Downtown a) General Plan Update
b) The West Village
Chapter 6: The Built Environment a) Designing Resiliently
b) Project Connections c) The Project
Chapter 7: The Future a) Where Do We Go From Here?
b) Strategic Investments c) Incentivizing Rebuilding Right d) Next Steps
Bibliography Appendices a) Noteworthy Precedent Research
b) Design Iterations c) ARCH 307 Lab/Project Submissions d) ARCH 342 Lab/Project Submissions
Chapter 1: Introduction 1a) Introduction
Legend has it that the town of Paradise, California, gets its name from a mill crew delivering a load of lumber on an unusually warm summer’s day. Exhausted, they came into the shade of the lush pine forests and sat on the blanket of soft needles underneath them. Satiated by the environment, one of the men exclaimed, “Boys, this is paradise!” For anyone who has traveled Skyway Road, it is easy to see why the name stuck. The majestic natural beauty of the canyon and the surrounding Sierra Nevada Mountains instill a humbling sense of awe in all who visit the area. Upon the mountain and away from the noise of the city, visitors to Paradise, and residents alike, are very fond of the small town. The tall pine trees around the houses provided privacy and a close connection to nature; the various public events throughout the year created a strong relationship amongst the community. Because of this strong community bond, the town recovered quickly after the 2008 Humboldt Fire and Camp Fire. The Paradise community has proven to be indisputably resilient. When Paradise residents were awakened by panicked knocking on their doors on November 8th, 2018, they had no idea that they were facing the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in the history of California. Wildfires were an ever-present reality in the area. Because of this, some residents decided to stay behind to protect their homes and businesses. However, the black smoke soon covered the sky and ashes engulfed the entire town. By the time people realized that they had to evacuate, the smoke had blocked all the sunlight, and it seemed like dusk rather than dawn. Stumbling and struggling to see and breathe, Paradise residents tried to flee out of town as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, some of them ended up on disconnected roads, or stuck in stand-still traffic, and escaped on foot. The fire scorched approximately 153,000 acres of land, killed 86 people, and took 17 days before it was doused by heavy rainfall and extinguished. Lots of conversations about loss arose after the fire, and the lessons gained from this tragedy should not be forgotten. Historically, humans have tended not to change their lifestyles or technologies until something catastrophic happened. For example, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the subsequent fire changed the city’s understanding of housing. The dense wooden structures were a tinderbox waiting for a match that, once ignited, would burn down a quarter of the city. This horrifying natural disaster sparked discussion of improving earthquake engineering design, urban planning, and fireproofing for buildings. Similarly, there is so much that we can learn from the Camp Fire, and there is so much we can do to prevent the next wildfire in Paradise and other communities like it. After losing over 90% of its structures, Paradise has a second chance to be planned and built with contemporary knowledge and technology. The streets can be repaved to have sidewalks and bike lanes, commercial buildings can be closer to each other, and a wildland-urban interface zone can be created to provide defensible space and create a more physically resilient condition. Paradise also has a chance to be proactive and solve other issues, including creating a town that is energy, water, and waste regenerative. This is an opportunity for Paradise to become the first Zero Net Energy town in California, paving the way for what is possible by evolving into an ideal mountain town. The heartbreaking tragedy of the past not only shaped Paradise’s history, but also becomes a chance to reimagine the town to be more resilient socially, economically, and physically.
1b) Executive Summary
Twenty-six thousand people were displaced due to the Camp Fire. One thousand families are still searching for housing six months after the fire. In order for the town’s residents to return home, Paradise needs to be rebuilt in a timely manner. A group of third-year architecture students from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo intended to bring inspiration to Paradise residents by designing sustainable, fire-resistant, community-oriented buildings. Based on research and feedback from multiple rounds of community meetings, a new town concept plan with individual building designs has been tailored to revitalize Paradise and to act as a catalyst for further investment. Through mentoring and peer-review of designs from professional firms, the projects can be developed more fully to bring Paradise residents hope that there will be a home to which they can return.
1c) Design Process and Project Phases From January through June, the workflow for the (re)imagining Paradise project in was designed around human-centered design thinking. The process, created by the founders of the firm Ideo, is a method of solving complex problems. It is an iterative design process grounded in first building understanding, then giving all parties involved a chance to explore divergent ideas and thoughts before finally focusing on converging solutions to address specific community needs. The 23-week process* was organized as follows with key presentations noted by date: Weeks 1 – 4 Researching and Building Understanding (and Empathy) January 17, 2019 Weeks 5 – 6 Urban / Concept Planning (Defining Issues) Weeks 7 – 9 Catalytic Project Conceptual Design (Creating Solutions/Prototyping/Testing) February 22, 2019 Weeks 10 – 12 Merged Catalytic Project Conceptual Design (Creating Solutions/Prototyping/Testing) Weeks 13 – 15 Supplementary Research and Tours of Cities (Revising Empathy/Issues) Weeks 16 – 17 Catalytic Project Schematic Design (Creating Solutions/Prototyping/Testing) April 19, 2019 Weeks 18 – 25 Catalytic Project and Concept Plan Design Development) June 3, 2019 *This process commenced two weeks prior to the first of the two quarter series of courses, which accounts for the 25 weeks listed.
Chapter 2: Community Overview
2a) History
The rich history of Paradise dates back to 1848 when gold was first discovered along the American River. This attracted many of the town’s early settlers. The largest gold nugget, weighing 54 pounds, was found in Magalia, an adjacent town to the north. This inspired the Gold Nugget Days Festival, which is celebrated annually in April. Due to the Gold Rush, Paradise’s population grew and infrastructure was built reactively to support the settling families settling. Lumber mills, a post office, a school, and a church were built by 1880. Another round of settlers then came to Paradise and established agriculture, which became a big part of the town’s identity. Infrastructure like the Magalia Reservoir and the Paradise Irrigation District were created to support irrigation needs. In 1889, the town celebrated the Paradise Harvest Festival in honor of this agricultural heritage, which evolved into the Johnny Appleseed Days two-day festival that Paradise still celebrates today. In just over a decade, from 1950 to the mid-1960s, the population of Paradise quadrupled to 20,000 people, and residents decided to incorporate as a town, and the town remained reactive to its rampant growth. Instead of a clear plan for development, the town had low density, sprawl, limited infrastructure, and discontinuous streets. These problems would contribute to the devastation of the wildfires to come. In 2008, the Humboldt Fire evacuated 9,500 Paradise residents and destroyed 66 homes. Ten years later, in November of 2018, the Camp Fire devastated the town, killing 85 people and destroying 14,000 homes and 5,000 other buildings. After the second of these two tragic events, planners questioned whether it was safe to rebuild the town as it once was. It had been determined that the town lacked central planning and adequate infrastructure; Paradise was therefore not fire resilient. Post Camp Fire, Paradise has an opportunity to redesign and address these problems to create a town that is resilient physically, socially, and economically.
1800
Inhabited by Maidu Tribes
1850
Lake Oroville & Lake Oroville Dam This is the main water source for Butte County. This is one of the two hydroelectric power plants in the county.
1849: Gold is discovered in the American River, first white settlers search in the Feather River along the way and settle in Butte County 1860-1879: The first town infrastructure is built including a school, post office and church 1880: Lumbering and livestock become main economic attributes, population reaches 301
1900
Feather Falls Waterfall This waterfall is located on Fall River within the Plumas National Forest in the Sierra Nevada Mountain range.
1904: Railway system is established, settlers from the East travel to Cailfornia and develop agriculture in Butte County
1950
1916: Farming flourishes due to construction of Magalia Reservoir and the establishment of Paradise Irrigation District
Butte County Fairgrounds Many social events, such as the county fair take place at these fairgrounds for residents and families to enjoy.
1955: “Paradise” is given its name. Population of Paradise reaches approx. 5,000 1966: Population reaches 20,000 1979: Paradise is incorporated as an official ‘town’ covering approx. 18 square miles
2000
s.
HISTORY OF PARADISE HISTORY
Feather River Recreation and Activity Center This recreation center holds a lot of recreational events for the community.
2000: Population reaches 26,400
2008: Humbolt Fire stretches over 22,800 acres between Chico and Paradise. 9500 residents are evacuated from their homes, 66 homes are destroyed 2018: Camp Fire, the deadliest California wildlifefire to date, strikes Paradise and Chico area. 10,000 structues burnt88 Paradise residents dead
2b) Culture and Community Assets
The culture of Paradise revolves around its history, community, and outdoor environment. The many assets of Paradise create its culture. Their greatest assets are its festivals and events, Recreation Center, Performing Arts Center, the many outdoor activities available to residents, and most importantly their strong community ties. All of these make Paradise a beloved home to its residents. The town’s major festivals are the Gold Nugget Days, Johnny Appleseed Days, and the Chocolate Festival. Gold Nugget Days celebrate the beginnings of Paradise as a gold mining town where nearby in Magalia the largest gold nugget was found. The first two days of the festival feature a parade, a Miss Gold Nugget Pageant, a children’s costume contest, a donkey derby, and a crafts fair among many other fun activities. Johnny Appleseed Days celebrate its history of agriculture. It is a two-day festival during which there is local entertainment, vendors, artisans, and most importantly apple pies. The residents of Paradise bake a thousand apple pies for this event. The Chocolate Fest is a fun day to celebrate all things chocolate. Among the events during this day are the “fun run” called the Chocolate Chase, a bike ride called Tour ‘de Chocolate, the Chocolate Cuisine Challenge, and the royal coronation of the Chocolate Fest Queen and King. These three festivals bring the community together to celebrate their town, history, and people, and community celebrations is one of the town’s strongest assets. The other most important asset the town has is its natural environment. Paradise is recognized for its dynamic surroundings, with vistas of pine and oak forests, rivers, and mountains. Being there is like living and breathing nature. During the summer months, there are swimming spots and rivers right outside of town. There are many hikes and trails like the Paradise Flume Trail to the east of town and the Paradise Memorial Trailway, which is located right along the middle of town. In the winter months when it snows, a short drive southwest allows residents to ski and snowboard. In town, they have parks like Billie Park, which has beautiful landscaping, a gazebo, and a lake that makes it a great place to go for the day. It is also a great venue for events like weddings and birthdays. There is Terry Ashe Park, as well, where the Paradise Recreation Center is located. The Recreation Center is utilized for birthdays and events, and during the winter the skating rink opens. The natural landscape and available outdoor activities make being active in sports and outdoors a great part of the lives of the people of Paradise. All of these assets, the festivals, nature and outdoor activities, and civic centers, create the culture and lifestyle of Paradise. These are the reasons people settled in Paradise and they are the reasons people choose to retire there. It is what makes its people feel proud and passionate about their town.
long
Tall Pines Entertainment Center bowling alley
Religious Buildings and Events community gathers for a bap�sm
Table Mountain Masonic Lodge events like Bikers Against Child Abuse
Gold Nugget Museum historical roots of the town
Paradise Performing Arts Center plays and musicals
Paradise Performing Arts Center plays and musicals
Aqua�c Park lake, landscaping, trees
Bille Park beau�ful outdoor venue
Bille Park landscaping, trees, pavillion, hiking trails
Paradise Memorial Trailway 5 mile long paved trail
Paradise Flume Trail trail just outside Paradise to the East
Miocene Flume Canal fun swimming spot, mini waterfalls
Paradise Chocolate Fes�val Chocolate Royale Corona�on
Paradise Chocolate Fes�val many fun events and ac�vi�es
Gold Nugget Days parade through town
Gold Nugget Days parade through town
Johnny Appleseed Days many fun booths, food, and ac�vi�es
Johnny Appleseed Days many fun booths, food, and ac�vi�es
Paradise Recrea�on Center swimming pool
Paradise Recrea�on Center ice ska�ng rink
Paradise Recrea�on Center kids a�er school program
Paradise Recrea�on Center adult fitness programs
Paradise Recrea�on Center dance classes
Paradise Recrea�on Center kids and teens sports
2c) Economic
Similar to many rural towns scattered across the United States, Paradise had a very localized economy. As a town with a majorly aging population, Paradise employs 10,024 people out of a total population of 26,396 people. Based on an index in which the U.S. average cost of living is 100 (an index > 100 means it is more expensive compared to the U.S. average), California is 169, and Paradise is 111. Housing is the biggest factor in the cost of living in Paradise. The median property value is $205,500, which is higher than the U.S. ($193,500), but lower than California ($442,400). As a comparatively affordable town in the State of California, it is no surprise that some former Chico residents would want to retire to the town. In fact, the top three industries of healthcare and social assistance (25.8%; 2,589 people), retail trade (13.2%; 1,319 people), and educational services (8.4%; 844 people) complement its aging population. The healthcare and social assistance category consists of registered nurses; nursing, psychiatric, and home health aides; and personal care aides. This category is the fifth highest paying industry in Paradise; employees earn a median annual income of $32,483. The retail trade category consists of retail salespersons, first-line supervisors of retail sales workers, and cashiers. The educational services category consists of elementary and middle school teachers, post-secondary teachers, and teacher assistants. This category is the fourth highest paying industry in Paradise; employees earn a median annual income of $33,496. Additionally, as a rural town, Paradise has a high number of residents working in the industry categories of agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting (251 people), healthcare and social assistance (2,589 people), and utilities (123 people), which, according to the census, is high comparatively for a town its size. The highest paying industries in Paradise by annual median earnings are utilities ($67,667), real estate, rentals and leasing ($52,130), and finance and insurance ($50,679). The lowest paying industries are arts, entertainment, and recreation ($9.453); accommodation and food services ($11.538); and administrative, support, and waste management services ($20,424). Occupationally, the most common jobs of Paradise residents are administrative (11.4%; 1,145 people), management (10.3%; 1,033 people), and sales (9.6%; 960 people). From there, Paradise has an unusually high number of residents working in the occupation categories of health technicians (450 people); personal care and service (728 people); and farming, fishing, and forestry (101 people). The highest paying jobs by annual median earnings are life, physical, and social science employees ($79,955), firefighting supervisors ($71,625), and legal employees ($63,247). The lowest paying jobs are in food and serving ($13,072), arts and recreation ($14,561), and personal care and service ($15,405). Unfortunately, due to its isolated location with limited localized economic opportunity, Paradise did have a stagnant economy before the Camp Fire. Its unemployment rate of the time was 4.6%, whereas the national rate is 3.9%. University students were not returning to Paradise after graduation, which led to the increasingly aging workforce. Additionally, many residents did not work in Paradise and would instead commute every day to Chico in order to compete in the job market. Information and charts from: https://datausa.io/profile/geo/paradise-ca/
- locate and create social spaces important to Paradise? - design infrastructure for an agricultural community? - respond to an existing culture through new development and innovation?
Statistical Breakdown of Paradise
Statistics from Data USA
2016 Median Property Value
Age Breakdown
United States California Butte County, CA Paradise, CA
Racial Breakdown
Paradise vs. U.S. Income
Chico, CA Metro Area
Job Breakdown
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urban centers that encourage social interaction? of Living munities that serve people of backgrounds while attracting Cost new people? The cost of living indices are based on a US average of 100. An amount below 100 means Population byvarying Education Paradise is cheaper than the US average. A cost of living index above 100 means Data from U.S. Census Bureau, updated in May, 2017 aces important to Paradise? Paradise, California is more expensive. updated in September, 2018 293 n agricultural community? 300 U.S. average Grade school Some high school 2.7% ure through new development and innovation? Others 5.8% California
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Statistics from Data USA
Data from U.S. Census Bureau, updated in May, 2017
Educational services 7.6% Others 20.5%
Administrative, support, waste management services 3.6%
100 High school grad only 32%
Some college 9.9%
Racial Breakdown
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107
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93
96
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Professional,scientific, technical services 4.2%
Public administration 5.5%
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Accommodation, food services 6.9%
Overall
Grocery
The Culture of Paradise Cultural Endeavors
147
136 111
Degree 4 years 23.3%
Health
Housing
Utilities Transportation
Misc.
Paradise vs. U.S. Income
Age Breakdown
Social Paradise PartyUnited in States the ParkCenters
Green Spaces Paradise Flume Trail
California Butte County, CA Paradise, CA Chico, CA Metro Area
Job Breakdown
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2016 Median Property Value
Paradise Performing Arts Center
Construction 7.9% Manufacturing 3.5%
200 169
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Population by Occupation
Green Spaces
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150
Degree 2 years 16.2%
2016 Median Property Value
Paradise Party in the Park
Paradise Flume Trail
Parad Retail trade 13.5%
Population: 26 Health care and social assistance 26.8%
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2d) Prior and Anticipatory Demographics
Looking forwards how might Before the Camp Fire, Paradise waswe... home to a population of 26,400 people, from which 98.9% are US citizens. As of 2017, - re-zone to create vibrant urban centers that encourage social interaction? 2.39% of Paradise, CA residents were born outside of the country. The ethnic composition of the population of Paradise, California, - develop housing and communities that serve people of varying backgrounds while attracting new people? is composed of 23,300 White alone residents (88.3%), 1,640 Hispanic or Latino residents (6.21%), 834 Two or More Races residents - locate and create social spaces important to Paradise? - design infrastructure for Indian an agricultural (3.15%), 308 American andcommunity? Alaska Native alone residents (1.17%), 269 Asian alone residents (1.02%), 53 Black or African - respond to an residents existing culture through new development and innovation? American alone (0.2%), 0 Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone residents (0%), and 0 Some Other Race alone residents (0%). Given its demographics, the most common Statistics from foreign Data USA languages spoken in Paradise are Spanish or Spanish Creole Statistical Breakdown of Paradise (703 speakers), German (167 speakers), and Chinese (88 speakers). Due to the disproportionally large young and old populations in Paradise, the median age of all people in Paradise was 49.2. Native-born citizens, with a median age of 49, were generally younger than foreign-born citizens, with a median age of 58. Paradise was majorly a town with young families and retired couples. Consequently, the town was home to a large population of veterans with over 1,039 Vietnam, 299 Korean, and 217 Gulf War veterans. Looking forward, the demographics of the town will change dramatically as people begin to repopulate the area. In fact, Populatio ban centers thattoencourage according a survey fromsocial Urbaninteraction? Design Associates, only 51% of residents plan on returning to Paradise. Furthermore, only 36% Age Breakdown say that they intend to have their children return to school in Paradise. Through conversation with displaced Paradise residents, unities that serve people of varying backgrounds while attracting new people? many have expressed that retired residents have decided that it is not worth the wait to rebuild in Paradise and have instead moved United States ces important toMany Paradise? elsewhere. generational families likely will return to Paradise since their families have resided there for centuries. As for the California influx of people wanting to re-populate Paradise, the overall economic, workforce, and educational development of the town will agricultural community? Butte County, CA determine the demographics of the “new� Paradise.
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Paradise, CA Chico, CA Metro Area
Statistics from Data USA
Job Breakdown
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2016 Median Property Value
Paradise vs. U.S. Income
Age Breakdown
Racial Breakdown
The Culture of Paradise Cultural Endeavors
Social Centers
United States
Green Spaces
California Butte County, CA
2e) Ecosystem Understanding
Paradise is a town in Butte County, California, located at 35.7596º N, 121.6219º W. Paradise is located to the east of Chico and north of Sacramento in the Sierra Nevada foothills in a lush green environment among pine and oak forests. It is located on a ridge in the foothills that has elevations ranging from 2,000 to 2,800 feet above sea level. The land in Paradise is rugged, resembling a plateau surrounded by canyons that becomes increasingly hilly. Its topography ranges from being extremely walkable to non-buildable with slopes ranging between 0% up to greater than 20%. Paradise has only a few main roads due to its unique topography. Soils in Paradise are well drained and of a reddish brown loam. Paradiso, originally formed from volcanic rock, is the most common soil found in the town. Pre Camp Fire land use types in Paradise ranged from commercial zoning to residential, industrial, public service, and agricultural. Uses were separated horizontally, with the primary commercial zones being along Skyway and Clark. Paradise is a grassland chaparral and mixed conifer habitat biome. This type of biome, along with the climate of Paradise, allows for the town to be covered in a heavy green canopy, creating a wooded sense of place. There are many natural assets in and around Paradise, such as the water features within Butte County surrounding Paradise—Feather River and Butte Creek, that contribute to the rich diversity in vegetation and wildlife. There are also many protected areas within the county such as Plumas National Forest, Butte Sink National Wildlife Refuge, and Lassen National Forest, which contribute to the beauty and preservation of the natural assets surrounding the town. Native vegetation in Paradise includes tall foothill ponderosa pines, California black or blue oaks, western redbud, lupine, flannelbush, buckeye, California buckwheat, common whiteleaf manzanita, California fuschia, deergrass, and coyote brush. Most of these native plants require well-drained soils, are drought tolerant, and are able to withstand the hot, dry summers of Paradise. The type of wildlife found in Paradise can range from snakes (king snakes, rattlesnakes, gopher snakes, garter snakes, and striped racer snakes), opossums, bats, squirrels, fox, racoons, mountain lions, western bluebirds, yellow warblers, bobcats, coyotes, and bears.
California Buckeye Trees
Pinus Ponderosa
Kingsnake
Black Bear
Western Redbud
California Buckweat
Mule Deer
Mountain Lion
Paradise has a heating dominated Mediterranean climate that consists of hot summers and wet, cool winters. The predominant wind direction comes from the northeast along the ridge and under some conditions is strong. Average summer temperatures for June, July, and August are in the 90º’s F range with June having an average high and low of 84º/60 º, July with 92º/66º, and August with an average high and low of 90º/64º. Fall temperatures average around 70º F. September has an average high and low of 85º/61º F, while October has an average of 74º/53º F, and November has 60º/44º F average high and low temperatures. Average winter temperatures reach as low as 36º F. December has an average high and low temperature of 53º/39º F, while January has averages of 54º/39º F, and February has averages of 57º/41º F. The temperature averages 68º F in the spring. The average high and low in March is 61º/43º F, while April averages 66º/47º F, and May averages 76º/53º F. The town experiences snowfall in the winter as well. Paradise averages approximately three inches of snowfall per year and nearly inches of rain on average per year, which is greater than the average rainfall for California at 22 inches annually.
Due to the nature of this climate, good passive design strategies to utilize in Paradise are natural ventilation and cooling, direct solar heat gain, solar shading on the south, and minimizing north glazing. Other strategies to consider are utilizing thermal mass, implementing the use of solar pv panels on rooftops for energy production, planting native vegetation that is low water maintenance and fire resistant, and using green roofs for rainwater collection. Taking advantage of the strong northeast wind would require a design that incorporates opposite inlet and outlet air openings into the building designs. Inlet openings should be oriented perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction and outlet openings should be oriented opposite the inlet openings to provide for natural cross ventilation. Elongating the building forms along the east and west directions will minimize solar heat gain and allow for cooling. Utilizing a green roof in building design would provide for both roof insulation and lower air temperatures and also would provide for water retention. Implementing a green roof into building design requires anywhere between 2.5 inches to 39 inches in thickness for the proper structure and roofing material implementation depending on the intensity of the roof garden. Designing for daylighting requires considerations in building form, shading, and glazing area. Buildings with a narrow floor plate and elongated east and west can maximize glazing to light interior spaces while minimizing solar heat gain on the north and south faces. Incorporating high ceilings and windows will also optimize interior lighting. To design for solar shading on the south face, exterior horizontal louvers and horizontal overhangs can be used. Shading should be size as the size of the glazing on that face in order for it to work effectively. Good landscaping strategies to implement into this mountainside community are preserving native species, landscaping with fire resilient species, preserving natural drainage patterns on site, protecting and preserving healthy soils, and locating and managing vegetation to mitigate potential fire hazards and prevent unnecessary grading or stripping of vegetation. Planting trees on the east and west faces of buildings cools the ground around the buildings as well as air temperatures and provides for shading. With landscaping a site, it is important to consider effective defensible space, which requires proper management of vegetation around buildings. Areas within 30 feet of buildings must be planted with vegetation that cannot easily ignite and should be routinely maintained. Canopies of mature trees should not be within 10 feet of a building to avoid the risk of ignition. Choosing to landscape with plants that are low growing and have a high moisture content such as herbaceous non woody plants and succulents within 3 feet of a building will help to mitigate the risk of fire spreading due to vegetation.
Chapter 3: Resiliency and Disaster Recovery
3a) The Camp Fire
All cities grapple with responding to threats. In California, natural threats include tsunamis, earthquakes, flooding or fires and in some cases a mix of all these. Towns in locations in High Fire Hazard Zones are primarily contending with the threat of wildland sourced fires. These fires can be caused by natural sources such as lightning, human-caused or infrastructure-based. The more accessible the natural setting, the more likely that humans play a role, intentional or not, in enhancing these natural threats. In Paradise, there were two fires in 2008 that necessitated evacuation, caused damage to property (buildings and vehicles), and played a role in influencing the natural surroundings that created the deadly conditions of the 2018 fire. Post 2008, PG&E provided maintenance along the ridge where they removed mature trees surrounding the above ground utility lines Once these mature trees had been removed, the underbrush was able to grow exponentially, and PG&E did not continue with their maintenance regimen. The Camp Fire of Butte County, California, began on November 8, 2018, and was not fully contained until the 25th of November. During that time, the fire swept through the town of Paradise and the surrounding wilderness. The fire led to 85 civilian fatalities and 12 people injured. By the time of containment,153,300 acres and nearly 19,000 structures had burned, depleting the town of most of its resources, including fresh water. The fire created $16.5 billion in damage, over $4 billion of which was not insured. The Camp Fire was the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California’s history and the deadliest fire in the United States since the Cloquet Fire of 1918. Further investigations since this time determined that under-maintained electrical transmission lines ignited fires in two locations (Pulga and Concow/Rim Roads) to create the deadly fire. These initial starts combined with “ideal� fire conditions to create the extraordinarily fast moving and hot burning fire. Winds were blowing down the ridge at 40 - 50 mph, relative humidity was extraordinarily low (11%), and the ignition points were met with poorly maintained underbrush that acted as perfect fuel for the fire. Interestingly enough, the underbrush was thriving due to maintenance practices caused by the 2008 fires, which also were found to be caused by PG&E.
3b) Defining and Implementing Recovery
Recovery in the wake of disaster is a multifaceted challenge reliant on the ability of community members and aid organizations to cooperate toward shared goals. Many entities can be involved in both short- and long-term recovery, including residents/community members themselves, volunteer and civic organizations, faith-based organizations, schools, businesses, academic institutions, and governmental agencies. After the Camp Fire, the first steps toward recovery were taken by community members themselves, who set up an encampment in the parking lot of a Walmart in Chico, California. Later, FEMA began passing out motel room vouchers and the Red Cross and local church congregations established ten shelters. Finding access to shelter and food, along with medical care for the injured, should always be the first response after a disaster, as meeting these basic needs is the catalyst that helps those impacted regain their sense of safety and may allow them to process the trauma they have faced. The effects of disasters like the Camp Fire on mental health range based on personal experience. Residents of Paradise experienced a myriad of traumas including sustaining serious injuries; enduring near-death experiences; losing loved ones; witnessing devastation among friends, family, neighbors, and the greater community; and experiencing the irreparable loss of possessions and property. In their article on the psychological impact of natural disasters in adults, Anka A. Vujanovic and Matthew W. Gallagher state that “individuals directly impacted by natural disasters may be feel a strong sense of grief, panic, loss, fear, and sadness.” In Paradise, professionals came in to help with the psychological effects of the tremendous loss, but notably community members uplifted and supported one another in their recovery. “Maintaining a connection to others in the aftermath of disaster can be healing for individuals and the community. Avoiding isolation and increasing social support is an important factor in building resilience” (Vujanovic and Gallagher). As these basic needs of physical and psychological health were addressed, the community also began to focus on longterm recovery with the Paradise Long-Term Recovery Working Group. While Paradise is a community destroyed by disaster, it is also a community with a desire to rebuild. FEMA notes the need to plan for long-term recovery, or “ the need to re-establish a healthy, functioning community that will sustain itself over time.” It outlines 13 important steps to long-term recovery: Assessing the Need The assessment for this project focuses on establishing the “long-term impact of damages sustained by a community,” looking specifically at the housing, infrastructure, environment, and economy sectors. In Paradise, the immediate needs that were identified included site clean-up, infrastructure improvement, and funding sources for the rebuild. Meeting these needs is seen as the precursor to rebuilding a new, more resilient Paradise. At the site level, information became quickly and readily available to residents and those attempting to help: Cal Fire ArcGIS. Selecting a Leader and Outlining a Long Term Community Recovery Program FEMA states that leadership is a critical step in recovery, noting “a good leader will serve as a beacon for community and government involvement and will convey the importance of the recovery process to local, state, and federal officials.” To help with the long-term recovery, a number of supporting organizations listed joined with the Town of Paradise and Urban Design Associates (UDA) to create a Long Term Recovery Plan.
3b) Defining and Implementing Recovery Securing Outside Support Because of the nature of disaster, recovery facilitated solely through one organization is impossible. Creating partnerships with local, state, and federal agencies, as well as private and non-governmental organizations, can make the recovery process more effective. The Town of Paradise found partnerships with several public and private agencies across the spectrum of needs it identified. These include organizations that focus on economic development, schools and youth, utilities, arts and culture, academia, and housing. Because support from these agencies must be coordinated, frequent meetings at a range of scales have been held, and the input from all groups has been noted in order to best create a plan that meets the desires of the town. A fund has been formed, titled Butte Strong, which focuses on addressing long-term recovery needs. Further work is yet to be done to engage support beyond this source, including funds from PG&E, the State of California, the federal government, and other sources. UDA hosted several outreach meetings to engage the community, and their desires for the future of Paradise after the devastation of the Camp Fire have been heard. Establishing a Public Information Campaign The long-term success of a recovery program is largely determined by the extent of community involvement. A public information campaign helps get community members involved and focused on long-term planning for the community. This can be a challenge when the long-term circumstances of community members may be unclear. Residents are scattered across the country, but with an anticipated 51% of residents planning to return to the town to rebuild, sharing information to involve the community is critical and allows the community to take back ownership of their town. The Town of Paradise has since hired an agency, Blue Flamingo, to help with communication. Reaching a Consensus Paradise is currently at this stage, where stakeholders are making decisions that will allow the long-term recovery program to move forward. While stakeholders may be diverse, and there may be tensions between different groups, these groups can be continuously re-oriented toward common goals that better the community and town as a whole. Paradise has many steps ahead, and the recovery process likely will not end for many years. The Paradise community has strong leaders and community members that are dedicated to rebuilding, and their progress thus far in establishing a plan illustrates their willingness and excitement moving forward toward a more resilient town. Marcy Douglas, city administrator of Northwood, North Dakota, a community of 1,000 that was leveled by a category 4 tornado, believes that the recovery mindset was vital to the rebuilding of her city, explaining, “If you respond to a disaster with recovery in mind, recovery will happen� (Douglas as quoted by Becker, 7).
3c) Wildland Urban Interface
In California, the number of housing units in Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) has gone up from 3.3 million units in 1990 to 4.4 million in 2010 (Cal Fire). WUIs are communities surrounded by natural areas at risk of wildland fires. Roughly 50% of Butte County, California, and the entire town of Paradise are characterized by Cal Fire as being located in a very high fire hazard severity zone. However, the purpose of the WUI standard is meant to inform communities on materials for buildings that can preserve life. The State Fire Marshal states that protecting a building from a wildfire requires two things: 1) removing flammable materials from around the building, with fuel modification to 100 feet (or the property line), and 2) constructing the building of fire-resistive materials. Removing flammable materials from around the building, with fuel modification to 100 feet (or the property line) Zone 1(0’-30’) 1. Tree branches 2. Shrubs 3. Dead plants grass and weeds 4. Prune/remove plants and shrubs near windows 5. Overhanging vegetation from roof/chimney 6. Under deck vegetation Zone 2 (30’-100’) 7. Horizontal space between shrub and trees 8. Lawns trimmed to 4” 9. Remove fallen branches 10. Remove all branches below 6’ above ground from tree 11. Fire resistant accessory structures and fencing Construct the building of fire resistive materials 1. Roof coverings, 2. Fire resistive wall and ceiling-floor assemblies, 3. Noncombustible or fire resistant decking 4. Fire doors, 5. Tempered glass 6. Noncombustible wall finish materials and cladding 7. Fire dampers, enclosed under floor areas 8. Shield gutters, fire and non-fire related hardware, electrical appliances and devices For reconstruction, there is an opportunity to leverage existing on-site resources and improve fire resistivity in newly built structures. Materials listed such as solid wood and cross-laminated timber (CLT) are now recognized nationally (and by code) as sustainable methods deemed to have a very appropriate performance in a fire (up to 90 minutes). Unlike steel, solid wood and CLT remain structurally stable in a fire up to 400 degrees by creating a charred layer.
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PLANNING FOR RESILIENCY
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Diverse Livelihoods
Support Mechanisms
Supported Pivoting
Long term Livelihood
Various industries for job opportunity.
Systems to catch people if they fall.
People can adapt to changes.
Translates to savings + secure income.
Designing for Resiliency involves considering the social, economic, and physical aspects of the site when determining design goals. Integrating these three major aspects when thinking about city design can yield a community that is flexible, reflective, integrated, robust, and resourceful.which are all qualities of resilience. Resilience can also be defined as the ability to adapt and thrive efficiently 05 and effectively. Resiliency can be measured by looking at the City Resillience Index, established by Arup, which categories resiliency into dimensions, goals, and indicators to establish a measurement of relative perfomance.
3d) Resiliency
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Resiliency is defined as the ability of a place, and all aspects that makes unique, toGive recover after a disaster. This Community Support that place Create Trust People Platforms Community Identity Secondly, paradise needs Paradise, CA economic broad idea of resiliency is broken down into three major categories: social, economic, and physical. In order for design abase. todiverse fully Though this town has been struck by of Living support its user 02population, it03 should seek to provide resilience in allCost three of these categories. The intersection of different types of an extreme tragedie, 01 04 it will recover. The people of this town are resiliency compounds the ability of the environment to prevent and recover from Hurricane disaster. dedicated to the place Katrina: A local catholic priest, with the support +
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The cost of living indices are based on a US average of 100. An amount below 100 means Paradise is cheaper than the US average. A cost of living index above 100 means Paradise, California is more expensive. updated in September, 2018
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they call home and their Cali, Colombia: The residents of Cali fo history shows that their grassroots campaigns to help prevent flo economy will recover. These groups would report degr The future of paradise Support Mechanisms Supported Pivoting Long term Livelihood Diverse Livelihoods infrastructure to the local governments to will be a form of financial People can adapt to changes. Translates to savings + secure income. Various industries for job opportunity. Systems to catch people if they fall. fix them. The actions of these campaigns resiliency by creating led to passive surveillance of the public s diverse livelihood and Paradise California already has a to prevent illegal dumping into the • very strong and united community, employment, inclusive 05 06 07 08 as evident by the multitude of events labour policies, relevant they host every year. This is one of the 107 107102 104 cornerstones of being able to rebuild 101 100 skills and training, local 98 infrastructure 96 improved water and integration into the built environment 93 100 and restart, which puts them at a great business development advantage. This community can be • Water and energy can be optimized with the collection of rainwater, strengthened even more by creating and innovation, and long architecture that fosters congregation. managing sewage on site, maintaining water sources and creating 50 term protection.Diverse Architecture would like this would livelihood opportunities m help the town of Paradise feel the love onsite energy. a Community Support Create Trust Give People Platforms Community Identity and passion their community has. wa inte and support mechanisms • Communication can be optimized by creating strong, fast internet, Studio White | out. WinterTrusting 2019 | Amanda Radner | Secure individuals leads to secure Citizens can trust each other and theirStacey 0 communities form unique Let people be heard and speak te na Overall Grocery Health Housing Utilities Transportation Misc. r s nc allow citizens to communities. government. identities. maintaining functional radio signals, creating fast warning signs as well as a ou e Pacific Austin | Michelle Huang | Zoey Fox proactively respond to rc on es way for community leaders to reach out to its members. changing conditions • When designing for physical resilience in regards to the built environment, within their city without etheir asy undermining Hurricane Katrina: A local catholic priest, with the support we have to consider the utilization of appropriate construction and acc of community leaders and evacuated people, led the wellbeing. Access to th toe inessibilit Cali, Colombia: The residents of Cali formed environmentally focused city planning. community in rebuilding their neighborhoods physically tern y grassroots campaigns to help prevent flooding. finance, skills training et and social structures when it was evident the government These groups would report degrading • Appropriate construction includes proper building codes and zoning for the couldn’t help. The community was urged to barter their and business support infrastructure to the local governments to help skills to one another to help collectively rebuild. The Mary fix them. The actions of these campaigns also location of the project, and building non-combustible construction types to enables individuals to Queen of Vietnam Community Development Corporation, led to passive surveillance of the public spaces pursue a range of options which aided in the reconstruction, is still in the community create more fire resistant buildings. to prevent illegal dumping into the levee. and provides social services, training for alternative to secure the fast critical • Environmental response consists of incorporating passive strategies and Firstly is well managed emergency livelihoods and care where these programs are absent. assets necessary to meet response using design to create energy on site. Design decisions such as providing public finances. Paradise their basic needs. Longneeds affordable, safe venting in the roof and other innovative strategies to make the building term, secure livelihoods houses with a strong allow people to accrue disaster resistant. foundation that can personal savings that • When designing for physical resilience in regards to location, we must ioâ€? resist future disasters, will support theirger “rad incorporate improved mobility and an effective city layout. and provide comfort tron ignals development, as swell s Data from U.S. Census Bureau, updated in May, 2017effective public transportation, increased in interior spaces. A • Improved mobility includes as their survival during basic level of wellbeing times of crisis. This is walkability and multiple inlets and outlets throughout the road infrastructure. also allows people to ic pr facilitated by access to bl Greater accessibility will lead Grade school to less of a reliance on vehicles creating a deal ov pu tion with unforeseen Some high school finance, ability to accrue 2.7% ive ta Others 5.8% more green and beautiful community. circumstances. This is ct por ce e savings, skills training, 7.7% eff ans ervi Degree master inlets and outlets creates centralized public areas and only possible once their • Creating multiple business support, and tr s 2.4% physiological needs are social welfare. ensures multiple exits in case of an emergency. When designing for physical met through a basic level resiliency through considering of provision of food, water resourceenergy utilization, factors to and sanitation, consider are how to ensure that and shelter. This relates communications technology to the extent to which everyone’sand basic water needs infrastructure are met. are improved and properly High school Degree 4 years grad only When designing for physical integrated into the built 23.3% 32% resiliency when it comes to When designing for physical environment. When thinking location, factors to consider resiliency through considering are the proper implementation about designing for improved resource utilization, factors to of improved mobility and a consider are how to ensure that energy or water infrastructure, Degree 2 years more efficient city layout. We communications technology 16.2% Some college planners might incorporate designated improved mobility and water infrastructure 9.9% in a location to considering the collection of rainwater, are improved and properly implementing accessibility integrated into the built management of sewage on through effective public environment. When thinking transportation, increased site, maintenance of water about designing for improved walkability throughout a city energy or water infrastructure, sources, and the creation plan, and through ensuring that planners might incorporate there are multiple inlets and of on site energy. Improving the collection of rainwater, outlets throughout the road management of sewage on communication technology When designing for physical infrastructure. Implementing a site, maintenance of water requires that it be made resiliency in the built• P greater accessibility amongst sources, and the creation When designing for physical resilience in regards to resource utilization, we a resilient city plan would more accessible. Improving environment, factors to consider of on site energy. Improving lead to less of a dependence a communication technology When designing for physical have to consider multiple factors including communications technology, communication technology for are the utilization of appropriate on cars in cities and promote requires that it be made resiliency in the built other forms of transportation accessibility can be obtained construction methods as well is improved water infrastructure and integration into the built more environment accessible. Improving environment, factors to consider 01 02 03 04an internet like the addition of a bus communication technology for are the utilization of appropriate by ensuring that w as careful consideration of system or an increase in Water and energy can be optimized with the collectionaccessibility of rainwater, can be obtained construction methods as well pedestrian paths. Increasing connection is quickly and easily environmental response when b ensuringcreating that an internet as careful consideration of managing sewage on site, maintaining water sources by and walkability for physical connection is quickly and easily environmental response when available, ensuring radio signals it comes to city planning. When resilience would consider the Livabilityavailable, ensuring radio signals it comes Housing fo to city planning. When Paradise is a place of onsite menergy. m and warning signals are able ce considering the utilization design of more pedestrian a and warning signals are able ce considering the utilization a ian with an friendly infrastructure like the natural beauty wa inte wa inte to quickly spread and reach Communication can be optimized by creating internet, pl of appropriate construction c to quickly spread and reach pli strong, fast of appropriate construction te na te na m integration of a network of om r s nc the boundaries of the city, and recreation incoboth natural methods it is important to r s nc ou e ec the boundaries of the city, and • P methods it is important to safer sidewalks, and pedestrian d maintaining fast warning signs asemergency well as aestablish the proper building ou e rc on functional radio signals, creating that there is a faster co de es and urban r on updated in May, 2017 and bike paths. Planning that there is a faster emergency establish the proper building su co environments. with multiple Data from U.S. CensuscBureau, codes and the proper zoning es way for community leaders to reach out to its members.response for physical resilience when The entirety of Butte plans in place. Improving for the location of the project response with multiple codes and the proper zoning easy designing for multiple inlets and c communication Technology a and ensure that those codes e When for physical resilience in regardsAmenities to the built environment, is committed Crime to th ccessdesigning outlets in the road infrastructure plans in place. Improving assiv for the location of the project e in ibility should also require that there are followed all the way Support Mechanismscounty Supported Pivoting Long term Livelihood of p easDiverse Livelihoods tern would ensure that cities have use tegies Educational services to protecting and e et y ac is a willingnessand for cooperation through in order to provide for we have to consider the utilization of appropriate communication Technology and ensure that those codes st stra construction 7.6% c s safer travel and emergency can adapt Translates to savings + secure income. Various for job opportunity. Systems to catch people if they fall. enhancing itsPeople to amongst community members a safe environment for the city sibil assiv to changes. agriculture the eindustries p T f should also require that there are followed all the way disaster routes. A more efficient it o in environmentally focused city planning. s e and leaders. occupants. When implementing tern y Others Construction layout would be indicated as the backboneusoftrathe tegie et is a willingness for cooperation through in order to provide for h appropriate construction 7.9% 20.5% s by establishing appropriate Appropriate construction includes proper building codes and zoning for the economy, making Butte methods, it is also critical fast emergency implement amongst community members a safe environment for the city D proximities, creating centralized Manufacturing to build in non-combustible response innovative designs location of the project, and building non-combustible types to county a beautiful place 3.5% public areas, and ensuring that Cost ofconstruction Living and leaders. occupants. When implementing Employment construction types in order to 05 Administrative, support, 06 07 and work. 08 building on disaster prone areas to both live remain compliant with proper fire create more fire resistant buildings. appropriate construction is is avoided. Retail trade waste management services codes. Environmental response This is slightly different 13.5% 3.6% methods, it is also critical fo Environmental response consists of incorporating passive strategies and fast emergency implement consists of implementing â€? crea adio te within paradise. Paradise “r r e passive strategies and relying on nerg to build in non-combustible a response innovative designs nge ls using to create energy on site. Design decisions such as providing designing for buildings to create stro signadesign site y on is a quaint small town construction types in order to• C on site to decrease the Professional,scientific, venting in the roof and other innovative strategies to make the building energy that many residents technical services remain compliant with proper fire Education reliance on off-site energy and pr ap Weather 4.2% p lic ox pr b e move to for retirement. ensure the built environment can r y u n disaster resistant. ov codes. Environmental response to a ach inimitie opria l e p tatio Public administration incorporate a way of systems e iv t r Moving forwards, d mphysical resilience an fas s w te 5.5% ed in regards ec spo ice consists of implementing in z â€? d When effdesigning for to location, we must thinking to be self-sustaining. it t i c r v reate n r n ho uc hin obili a adio g economic resilience tu “r tra se m r It is also important to consider r t o e y passive strategies and relying on a e re nerg nge als incorporate improved mobilityreand an effective city layout. how designers can implement y on will be a product ofsitthe stro signAccommodation, food services designing for buildings to create p e innovative design strategies, like Community Support Create Trust Give People Platforms Community Identity 6.9% Improved mobility includes effective public transportation, HISTORY increased application of many Health care and social assistance designing to provide venting in energy on site to decrease the Secure individuals leads to secure Citizens can 26.8% trust each other and their Trusting communities form unique Let people be heard and speak out. roofs, that consider the nature different factors. walkability and multiple inlets and outlets throughout the road infrastructure. communities. government. identities. reliance on off-site energy and pr ap of the site in order to ensure that ic pr bl n ea oxim pro ensure the built environment can aspects of the built environment Greater accessibility will lead to less of a reliance on vehicles creating a y u o p tio Inhabited by Maidu Tribes can resist disaster. la ch in ities priate ve incorporate a way of systems ive ta more green and beautiful community. dm an fas w ct or e ed z d thinking to be self-sustaining. ffe nsp rvic tru ith i e n h o Creating multiple inlets and outlets creates centralized public areas and a om ctu in bility g tra se r It is also important to consider o e re re ensures multiple exits in case of an emergency. how designers can implement innovative design strategies, like designing to provide venting in 1849: Gold is discovered in the American roofs, that consider the nature River, first white settlers search in the of the site in order to ensure that Feather River along the way and settle in aspects of the built environment Butte County • Paradise California has a very strong and united community, can resist disaster. 300
of community leaders and evacuated people, led the U.S. average community in rebuilding their neighborhoods physically California and social structures when it was evident the government Paradise couldn’t help. The community was urged to barter their skills to one another to help collectively rebuild. The Mary 200 Queen of Vietnam Community Development Corporation, 169 which aided in the reconstruction, is still in the community 147regards to resource utilization, we When150designing for physical resilience providesin social services, training for alternative 136 and have to consider multiple factors including communications technology, livelihoods and care where these programs are absent. 111
Physical Resiliency
Social Resiliency A socially resilient place has a strong sense of community that is developed through community events, classes, and architecture that fosters congregation. Paradise was able to maintain this type of community through several different churches as well as popular community events. Such a community is able to come back together in the aftermath of a disaster in order to + + = organize and create a recovery plan.
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Economic Resiliency Designing for Resiliency involves Creating a place with economic resiliency ensures that it can recover after economic downturns and also have a financial considering the social, economic, base to aid in natural disaster recovery. Planning for and inviting diversity of business and industry enhances resiliency and also aspects site when helps create incomeand for aphysical town or city. Prior of to the the Camp Fire, the Town of Paradise was in fiscal decline, which has created hurdles determining design goals. Integrating for rebuilding efforts. Moving forward, Paradise is working to design a more vibrant town that provides for its residents’ most basic these three major aspects whenopportunities for the residents to enjoy. Building this type of economy will needs and creates diverse livelihood and employment thinking about city design can yield afinancialPopulation provide residents with head-of-household jobs that provide securitybyfor families and individuals alike. Education community that is flexible, reflective, PHYSICAL Physical Resiliencyintegrated, robust, and resourceful. which aretoall resilience. Of special importance thequalities Town ofof Paradise and other communities that reside in the Wildland Urban Interface is physical Resilience can also be defined resiliency. This form of resiliency focuses on designing a built environment that is defensible against disaster. In Paradise, this as the ability to adapt and thriveor non-combustible materials. Other considerations include the local involves designing buildings composed of fire resistive efficiently and Resiliency availability and embodied energy of effectively. materials. Paradise must also redesign its communications, water, and energy infrastructure can be measured by looking the foundation for new residents and future generations, these new or to sustain its anticipated future population. To build aatstrong Resillience Index, should established by renovated water andCity energy infrastructures be regenerative. Arup, which categories resiliency into dimensions, goals, and indicators to Steps to Building Social Resiliency establish a measurement of relative perfomance.
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3e) Learning from Others New Orleans The Ninth Ward, which was funded by the Make It Right Foundation, is an example of architecture that failed to properly address the community it was serving. These houses failed to account for the environment of New Orleans, they didn’t fit into the surrounding neighborhood, and they weren’t built in a way to help prevent major damage to them if another hurricane were to hit. However, Musicians’ Village exemplifies a successful Post-Katrina development. This neighborhood stuck to the traditional style of architecture found in the area and kept the prices of these homes at an affordable rate so families could move in and have property with which they could accrue wealth. While visiting Waggoner and Ball, their associates presented some of their projects in New Orleans and how these projects address the very prominent issue of flooding. Their projects also had a large focus on contributing to the beautification of the neighborhoods in which they were situated while still conforming to culture of the areas. These communities exemplify the importance of understanding the community itself, the needs of it and the people who inhabit it. Without this understanding, the design of the project starts to become less about the residents, which results in a weaker project that seems out of place in the surrounding context. This understanding is fundamental to the design process, and when it is analyzed meaningfully, it results in a project that is both valued by the community and used by the community. It’s also important to take into consideration the risk that comes with building in a certain area and appropriately adapting the building to mitigate or prevent damage. Urban Build, which is a program run through Tulane University, allows students to fully design and build houses in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods. These houses are then sold at market rate for the neighborhood in which they are built. The purpose of these projects is to help increase the value of the surrounding neighborhood and to attract people into moving into them to help culturally revitalize the community. Programs like this show the importance of not only designing a project that fits into the surrounding community, but one that also actively contributes to the community culturally. It has to improve the community as a whole and help make it a desirable place in which to live.
Newburn, Alabama The town of Newbern and the Rural Studio also provided some insight on how to properly design projects that feel like part of the communities they’re serving while remaining architecturally stimulating. All these projects achieved a balance between modernity and modesty, giving them a unique feeling of innovation and comfort. A lot of these projects used similar building materials found in other existing projects in the community but combined them with a more modern and contemporary take on architecture. The importance of finding a balance between this drive as an architect to create a visually and experientially stunning project and a project that appropriately addresses the needs and feeling of the surrounding town is tough. However, finding that middle ground is essential to a successful project. Atlanta In Atlanta, BNIM had a design charrette session that provided a lot of valuable information. While they echoed some of the lessons stated above, they also stressed the importance of having a project respond to its immediate surroundings either by using a building to frame certain views or move and highlight important features of the site. They also focused a lot on how the facade of a building can really impact how people at the street level experience it, because this is the only way people will experience the project. While it may look good from a bird’s-eye view, if the project feels massive or domineering, it won’t feel welcoming. The whole trip was an extremely helpful experience being able to collaborate briefly with professional architects and pick apart successful and unsuccessful projects. These projects and people had a lot of valuable lessons that are essential to being able to design a project that appropriately responds to and addresses the people and community it is meant to serve.
Chapter 4: Visions and Goals
4a) Outreach and Common Themes
Before establishing a set of goals and objectives, it was necessary to extend beyond tertiary resources to real and interpersonal interactions. The first three weeks of studio primarily concerned itself with research of the Town of Paradise and Butte County. The data was then compiled into a series of assessments that were displayed during the different outreach sessions with Chico and former Paradise residents. These reports included resiliency palettes, precedent studies, asset maps, and informational posters regarding Paradise’s demographics, climate, history, etc. The outreach was divided into many sessions that allowed diverse interaction with many audiences ranging from Chico State students and faculty, Paradise residents, and disaster recovery organizations. These sessions served more as forms of interactive listening meetings to gain feedback and develop a personal understanding of Paradise before proceeding with a recovery plan. In order to achieve this, different activities took place within the meetings such as interactive boards where attendees were able to mark our assessment reports, a “how might we” station where people can brainstorm and write on sticky notes, and one on one interviews where Paradise residents can share their personal experiences as “Day in the Life” descriptions. There were many recurring topics discussed during these listening meetings. Coming from the faculty of Chico State, many addressed that Paradise was a “bedroom” community, a town many go to for retirement. Between the different audiences met with during these sessions, many agreed that Paradise needed improved fire safety and evacuation routes through an improved network of roads and communication between residents. However, many expressed Paradise’s strengths such as proximity to nature, it’s small town culture, the spirit of the people within the community, and access to healthcare. Finally, there was discussion about the future of Paradise to look to opportunities of an improved wastewater system, more businesses, a walkable downtown, a safer street network, and much more.
4b) How Might We...Brainstorming and Outcomes
In the initial phase of re-imagining Paradise, gathering information and opinions beyond online resources took priority. The second week of studio - the week prior to the first trip to Paradise - concerned itself primarily with empathetic listening and preparing to better listen to the needs of Paradise residents without the hindrance of personal biases. In small groups, students shared research from the prior week about the town. During the in-class activity, a variety of researched information turned into educated assumptions about both the current state of the town and possible future needs of future residents, which then became a set of concise insight statements that took a more specific stance on the themes discussed. Without providing direct solutions, these insight statements acted as building blocks to propel the class’s initial design efforts forward. For the next few class sessions, the studio walls were engulfed in multi-colored sticky notes and desks were covered in unused post-its with remnants of past iterative ideas. General themes gathered during the first activity session written on large postits—such as transportation, sense of community, lifestyle, and city planning—were lined up along the top of each wall with enough room below to hold a plethora of sticky notes with ideas as to how to tend to these themes. During the final step of this activity, the insight statements and proposed ideas were rephrased as “How Might We” questions. In reframing ideas and challenges into questions, a more direct and creative way of seeking innovative solutions by breaking down problems into themes, focused issues, and commonalities ensued. Because this project tackles a large issue, gaining insight through interpersonal activities with displaced residents of Paradise proved to be a crucial step in the class’s overall approach to re-imagining a more resilient urban forest. The third week of the double quarter welcomed the first class trip to Paradise and Chico where we were able to speak with college faculty, practicing engineers, and displaced adult and child former residents. The “How Might We” activity followed the class to Butte County in the form of a station where students engaged in dialogue with individuals who are passionate about the future of their town. Although the previous few weeks were dedicated to in-depth research about Paradise and its residents pre-and-post fire, speaking directly with people who experienced the fire and are still dealing with the loss proved to contribute to and further develop the objective assessments that were initially brought along on the trip.
The iterative processes that came with the in-class activity instilled confidence in the research and insights developed through both that research and the class discussions that concerned themselves with sustainability, flexibility of spaces, an urban core, and walkability amongst a multitude of other topics. While different groups in class focused their attention on varying topics, common themes found in each group’s brainstorming sessions made it evident that certain topics such as architectural resiliency, designing with understanding, re-urbanization, and walkability were main areas of concern that should be tactfully addressed through project designs. In the case of pedestrian movement through the town, research shed light on the effects Paradise’s rural sprawl had on its residents. This prior research instilled unwavering confidence in the statement, “Make Paradise more walkable through articulating more pedestrian-friendly roads.” However, with a lack of realization regarding how pedestrians could experience walking through the town with the sprawl on its existing topography, learning about the experiential quality of being a pedestrian in Paradise during conversations with former adult and high school residents shed light on how to re-approach this design question. The initial research phase posed the question: “How might we make Paradise more walkable?” With the knowledge generated through community outreach sessions conducted in Chico and Paradise, it became evident that walkability and the implementation of arbitrary pedestrian walkways are not exactly synonymous. Instead, walkability was articulated as an issue that could be addressed and mediated through re-evaluating, re-organizing, and re-establishing a denser mixed-use downtown. Comments from adults and high school students alike articulated that distance between points of interest in the town made walking to and from work or school to a cafe difficult due to the distance and slopes between the locations exceeding the range of pedestrian comfortability. While posing these “how might we” questions did not yield direct design solutions, they greatly contributed to the development of designs and ideas. These insightful conversations shared between the class and the community of Paradise allowed students to step back from the objectivity of online research and facilitate their design conversations by integrating both objective assessments and gained personal insight to further develop projects with the wellbeing of Paradise and its residents in mind.
4c) Community Vision and Goals
Through in-class efforts, community outreach sessions, and lessons from industry professionals helping to rebuild Paradise, articulating the generated goals and visions of the community became a medium to further class design efforts overall. Fueled by personal and online research, the class as a whole developed a series of goals to augment the basic assumptions of the project, which were to design a town that: - Is economically, socially and physically resilient; - Attracts new residents to Paradise; - Attracts students to return to the area after attending college in other areas; - Allows citizens to age in place; - Is resource regenerative (water, energy, wastewater). Along with generating insight from personal interactions with the Paradise community members, students were able to reference the corresponding work of Urban Design Associates (UDA), the architectural firm leading the redesigning efforts for the town. In UDA’s “Community Recovery Plan” (April 19, 2019), authors discuss their agenda, elaborating on what they heard through their own community outreach activities and how that translates into their long-term community recovery plan. Despite not working directly with UDA, being able to both speak with and listen to Paradise residents for design insight allowed the class goals and those of the firm to have some levels of synonymy. In their document, UDA noted the population of attendees of community outreach meetings held in the county. As stated in their long-term community recovery plan, of the over 1,000 people who attended community meetings, 78% were Paradise residents. With such a high percentage of the population in attendance having a direct association with the town, it became evident that engaging with and listening to the community would be crucial in understanding how best to design for a new resilient Paradise that would respect traditions while fostering change that would allow for a thriving future community. In their published report, UDA identified that when asked, 51% of Paradise residents surveyed said they would return to the town after it was rebuilt, while 34% were adamant about not returning. This leaves 15% of residents surveyed still undecided at the time. The portion of the UDA report that presents this data sheds light on a primary concern that fueled a lot of the goals established in class. Although a lot of time in class was spent learning about the cultural assets that made Paradise a town treasured by its community, acknowledging the significant percentage of people that would not return to Paradise informed the need to assess why and find design solutions to make Paradise more attractive to future residents. During the first community outreach session at Chico State University, hearing from the school faculty and local engineers informed the class that Paradise is considered a “bedroom community” (i.e., a community that serves as a place to sleep as opposed to one that provides a thriving job economy which individuals have to seek elsewhere). In treating this as a priority, the group projects in this studio course collaborate in that they are located in the proposed downtown. With the implementation of a diversity of building typologies and programs within this mixeduse urban center, there is, then, a simultaneous proposal for a multitude of retail and varying employment opportunities that could contribute to an economically thriving community.
In terms of promoting physical resiliency, UDA proposes to make Paradise greener by investing in sustainable design. While that is the premise of this studio’s concern ras well, egarding physical quality of the buildings, these group projects address the challenges Paradise faces from their lack of regenerative resources. Among the nine projects designed in class, there are proposals for a diversity of rainwater catchment systems with beneficial uses for recycled water, an anaerobic digester to turn waste into energy, and opportunities for people to learn about and experience, through both education and use, fire-resilient building materials.
4d) Creating a Replicable Model
As evident in the California Climate Adaptation Strategy from 2009, climate change will continue to affect Northern California with lower precipitation levels and a dryer future, resulting in a greater risk for wildfires. By 2050, average temperatures will rise an additional 1.8-5.4 °F with inland areas, like Paradise, warmer than coastal regions. Climate change will be affecting the future of California for years to come, and with $2.5 trillion in real estate assets at risk due to extreme weather conditions (including wildfires), the consequences are dire. Last November, Paradise was the victim of these extreme weather conditions and it’s only a matter of time until another town, like Colfax, Nevada City, or Kings Beach, are next. These towns are small, like Paradise, and possess similar rugged terrains, with tall trees and thick brush, in addition to little defensible space or green buffers between the towns and nature. These characteristics, combined with windy weather, could create a deadly combination for wildfires to strike. In order to prevent or reduce current risks for wildfires in Northern California, a replicable model should be created. A replicable model is a model that can be re-created or produced again based on positive or successful results, and Paradise could set the standard with how towns in California respond to wildfires. These standards should include a detailed short-term and longterm recovery plan as well as procedures for how local and state partnerships can aid in the rebuilding process. To be successful, this model should focus on recovery planning and affordable housing, physical, economic and social resiliency, as well as an integration of architecture within the local community context. In terms of recovery planning and affordable housing, many lessons were learned while examining the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. On the one hand, housing projects like the Ninth Ward failed by not addressing residents’ needs as well as creating a close community. On the other hand, projects like Musicians’ Village focused on shared community spaces, units constructed specifically for the acoustical needs of musicians, as well amenities for practice spaces. These affordable houses also were close in proximity, which created a density that influenced a tighter sense of community for nearby residents. Relating back to Paradise, although not all residents will be able to afford rebuilding or returning to the town after the fire, affordable housing projects focused on the specific needs of residents will encourage people to move to Paradise and, in turn, create a sense of community.
In addition, physical, economic, and social resiliency are key in creating a replicable model for towns like Paradise to overcome tragedies such as wildfires. In terms of physical resiliency, new construction projects should use fire resilient materials, such as fiber cement or terracotta, and city officials should identify structures that are currently at risk. When Paradise burned, the fire spread more rapidly from roof to roof than it did from vegetation or trees, demonstrating why fire resilient materials were needed. With social resiliency, a community of residents who trust each other and can provide support in times of crisis are more likely to recover. By finding ways to integrate current and new residents that have dealt with similar tragedies, community relationships will strengthen and result in increased trust. Lastly, creating a replicable model for towns recovering from wildfires involves contextual integration of site, place, and community identity. Observing the Rural Studio in Hale County, Alabama, it was evident that the students considered themselves residents of the town and the reason their projects integrated so well with the natural surroundings, from materiality to space use, was because the structures were designed for the specific needs of clients and incorporated local and recycled materials. The Rural Studio gave a modern spin to southern architecture while respecting the local aesthetic, which enabled the countless structures they built over the years to seamlessly fit within the town and rural fabric of Hale County. The Camp Fire makes clear that a replicable model, composed of recovery planning and affordable housing, resiliency, and contextual site integration, is needed for towns like Paradise to thrive after a similar tragedy. This replicable model should be rooted in preserving a community’s identity while using modern technology and innovation to encourage sustainable practices that will better a given town or city. By creating a model like this, towns at risk may be able to prevent or diminish damages from wildfires and stay protected for years to come.
Chapter 5: Constructing a Downtown
5a) General Plan Update The New Proposed Paradise Plan aims to create a more navigable, fire-responsive, and self-sustaining future for Paradise. The density of the town has been spread out radially from the central downtown villages (East Village and West Village), which are generally zoned as commercial mixed use. Immediately adjacent to these villages are residential zones of medium density with lower density the farther they sit from the downtown villages. The two main N-S roads are Skyway Road, Clarke Road, and Pentz Road, which have been maintained as the main town entrances and exits. The main existing E-W roads, Wagstaff Road and Billie Road, have been maintained as the major E-W roads with the addition of Elliot Road, which has been extended to meet and continue past Pentz Road. The new town includes infrastructure placement that will promote a self-sustaining town. This means including facilities that make use of Paradise’s natural resources to create more locally sourced water, energy, and building materials. A CLT (cross laminated timber) plant is included in the plan as well as a utility zone near the West Village, which will house a water treatment facility for rainwater recycling and an anaerobic digester for energy production. Specific proposed projects are located in the West Village and East Village as well as on Skyway Road and within neighborhood centers near the West Village. A total of four cultural centers, over 408,000 square feet of added community space, nearly 400 housing units, over 450,000 square feet of commercial space, and a projected 750+ new jobs exist within these proposed projects.
Community Land-use The new town plan is organized into the following zones: Residential (of varying density), Commercial, Institutional, and Green Space. Much of the plan is labeled as medium-density housing to accommodate the 15,000 dwelling units needed to house an expected population of approximately 30,000. Two commercial downtown villages (West Village and East Village) have been proposed to sit along Pearson Road, a secondary road running between Skyway and Clarke, two of the major thru N-S roads. These Villages would consist mostly of mixed-use zoning and become the retail hubs for the town, providing places for shopping and enjoying entertainment as well as living and working. This zoning also responds to the topography and location of dry brush. While the entirety of Paradise sits on a generally consistent 3% slope, the town is bordered with steeper, undevelopable topography. The steeper topography has been zoned as green space, with low-density housing as the next closest zone to allow for ease of evacuation. Infrastructure (Roads, Water and Wastewater, Rainwater, Solid waste, Energy) Paradise, California, before the Camp Fire essentially was comprised of two main roads and a series of winding cul-de-sacs that navigated through private residences. The new plan categorizes all roads as main, secondary, and bike roads. To improve navigability, all cul-de-sacs have been reoriented into secondary roads (red) that run perpendicular to main roads (blue). These roads are organized to support multi-modal transportation including bus, bike, and vehicular travel. Bike lanes run parallel to all main roads as well as some secondary roads running E-W near the proposed downtown villages. Three different types of roads are proposed for the new downtown: the main Street (located on Almond Street), vehicularaccessible streets, and pedestrian-only streets. The main street and vehicular-accessible streets will include a bike lane each way as well as a vehicular lane each way. Main street also will include a center left-turn lane. Many of the blocks in the existing downtown area are currently split by E-W running mid-block alleys accessible to vehicles. The current downtown plan employs one of these on each of the nine blocks and has reclaimed them as pedestrian-only mid-block alleys to further promote the walkability of the downtown. The proposed downtown was modeled to be self-sustaining and renewable in its energy and water consumption and production. Two blocks below the southwestern corner of the West Village lies the proposed Utility Zone, which will house a proposed water treatment facility and anaerobic digester. The water treatment facility will take advantage of the abundance of rainfall in Paradise to collect rainwater and convert it to usable water for the entire town to use. The anaerobic digester will be used to create energy by processing waste that is delivered to the facility by truck, hence the close proximity to the town center.
Transit The new plan proposes to expand bus transit in Paradise with more routes and increased service. Aside from the expansion of existing routes, a new downtown-specific route will be added and will include multiple stops on Skyway Road adjacent to the west border of the West Village. No stops are planned to exist within either of the villages, including the transit center. This is intended to maximize the accessibility of the downtown to Paradise residents without congesting the interior of the downtown. Trails The Paradise Memorial Trail is the main existing trailhead that follows a historical railroad. In 2018, the Paradise Memorial trail was renamed to Yellowstone Kelly Heritage Trail to honor Luther Sage “Yellowstone” Kelly, a historic American hero that settled permanently in Paradise after the Philippine–American War. This trail is an important component of the Downtown Plan as it promotes walkability and bike-ability for residents. Two proposed projects, the Paradise Recreation Center and the Commons (Center for Safety and Well-Being), utilize the trail as integral to their design and programming. In these projects, the Yellowstone Kelly Heritage Trail becomes an integration of the Recreation Center’s green roof while the Commons activates the trail with their programs. Parks and Greenways Many people have been attracted to, visited, and moved to Paradise due to the close proximity of accessible nature . Within the Downtown plan, the existing Paradise Community Park becomes important as the Memorial Trail runs through the park and allows for an increase in community events and gatherings. Walkability From the Downtown plan, each block consists of one horizontal alley that becomes a pedestrian-only lane through the dense multi-use zoning. Within each pedestrian-only street, the zoning allows community and commercial mix-use buildings to exist on each block and allow pedestrians to experience a safer commute on foot.
5b) The West Village Layout One of the main goals with the West Village was to create a layout that would encourage walkability and allow the people of Paradise to get to places in an effective manner by grouping the commercial mixed use by the downtown area and community parcels around it. The West Village is ultimately designed to bring a new main street (Almond Street) to Paradise. This new main street will include retail space, commercial offices, and housing, all of which is intended to increase walkability and vibrancy. The West Village begins from Skyway Road to Black Olive Drive, and from First Street to Pearson Road. The lots above First Street are envisioned to become a medical campus. Community buildings and commercial mixed-use buildings will weave through the entire West Village, with the existing Paradise Park as a green buffer to the residential area. [insert downtown concept plan here] The West Village is expected to transition into a pedestrian-friendly, walkable area with concentrated parking structures in several locations and with other structures of two to three stories built to the sidewalk. The downtown area will be a concentrated combination of community based and mixed-use buildings. The Streetscape and Its Connections During the design of the West Village, heavy consideration has been placed on promoting a walkable environment with an emphasis on public transportation. One particular goal of the downtown plan is the reduction of the automobile dependence. As such, in the design of all streets, bike lanes and bus lanes have been included, with widened sidewalks to encourage pedestrians to get around town without automotive use. Since previously there were only two main roads, Skyway Road and Clark Road, the West Village will now be designed to allow for both vertical navigation with Almond Street, Black Olive Drive, and Foster Road and horizontal navigation with Birch Street, Pearson Road, Cedar Street, and Fir Street. Since these streets are situated within the part of town that will contain the densest human traffic, pedestrian walkways have also been designed across the West Village between the roads that run horizontally to promote walking around the town. Skyway Road also will be widened to increase safety, public transit, and safe bicycle circulation along this important thoroughfare. Overall, the newly built neighborhood of the West Village is designed to foster social, economic, and physical resiliency for the next generation of Paradise.
(RE) IMAGINING PARADISE, CA DOWNTOWN CONCEPT PLAN
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Our downtown plan is based on the idea of having a main street (Almond Street) that includes mixed use housing and commercial. In addition, we decided that Skyway should become a public transit hub, with an increased number of lanes. There are some streets that cut through the blocks horizontally in order to become pedestrian ways. We strive to create resiliency within the downtown and foster a community setting, that is bustling but still feels like Paradise.
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WHAT IS PARADISE’S CLIMATE LIKE? Temperature
PROPOSED DOWNTOWN RENDERINGS
Architectural Character and Massing Within the West Village, most commercial mixed use spaces will vary between two to three stories while parcels with community associated buildings will be around three stories tall. The materials used within the town will most likely be glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC) to create a town that fits the personality of Paradise with a material that isn’t too flashy in color, style, or price. GFRC offers a wide variety of colors, so if certain businesses want to erect a building in line with their specific style they will be able to do so while simultaneously allowing for one important factor: GFRC will encourage physical resilience since it is fire resistant. Built to Thrive (Responding to climatic conditions, economic conditions, and resiliency) Because Paradise is a smaller town, a denser, suburban-type downtown might benefit its development and encourage economic growth as well as community growth. In short, the aim is creating a downtown that allows for the town’s residents and visitors to gather and support its businesses. In order to fulfill the requirement of architecture 2030, most of the community buildings in this plan will implement daylighting and natural ventilation strategies to minimize energy use throughout the buildings. With high precipitation levels throughout the concept plan of Paradise, an anaerobic digester is envisioned to be in the outskirt area of downtown as an energy supplier. To revive and learn from the Camp Fire, it is necessary for the town of Paradise to build resilience socially, economically, and physically. According to the downtown zoning concept plan, most buildings are mixed use with an emphasis on providing gathering spaces for Paradise community members and therefore the concept plan is expected to increase job opportunities as well as the town’s capability to generate enough revenue to thrive economically. The town of Paradise is anticipated to attract various demographic groups with its economic and social potential. The medical village will be placed in the northern portion of the downtown area with the intention to boost the emergency services of the town. The process of redesigning Paradise is to face the scar brought by nature, to figure out the fatal flaw that caused such disaster, and to prevent the catastrophe from happening again. Social, economic, and physical resiliency were the three foci of this project in hopes that the future community of Paradise will thrive. It was imperative to understand the economic pace of the town prior to the fire, create new opportunities for businesses to be successful, and increase residents’ involvement with the overall economic status of the town. While acknowledging and preserving nature and prior vegetation was a goal while we moved forward in the redesign process, being mindful of specific species that are fire resistant was the other path on which we are focused in order to promote physical resiliency. In regards to social resiliency, it is understandable that the Camp Fire caused a lot of trauma, which has made it difficult for some residents to feel safe and comfortable returning. The hope is that the redesigning process will give former Paradise residents the opportunity to work alongside the design process, to be involved and to create a town that could heal some of their scars and encourage their return to Paradise.
Chapter 6: The Built Environment 6a) Designing Resiliently
As mentioned in the previous chapters, designing resiliantly can mean a lot of different things, but when it came to these projects preventing the facades from catching fire and transfering it to neighboring buildings was of upmost importance. A lot of projects utilized terracotta cladding and semi rigid insulation to achieve this fireproofing and all the projects used heavy timber, which is fire resistive. All the projects attempted to solve the problem of social and economic resiliency by including either retail in their projects or some sort of gathering space in their projects to try to bring the community together. They tried to use the already existing closeness the people of Paradise in conjuction with these meeting spaces to create this social resistance.
6b) Project Connections
Potential Projects Initial brainstorming of potentially catalytic projects to be invested in early phases of the rebuilding process were as follows (in alpha order). - Retail - Animal Shelter - Maker Space - Aquarium - Bath House - Bicycle Recreation - Library - Community College Campus (Nursing, Medical, - Public Safety Technical Education (IT), Vocational, etc.) - Fire Station - Camp Fire Memorial - Police Station - Community Center - Hotel - Elementary School - Courthouse - Exploratorium - Golf Center - Emergency Response - Performing Arts Center - High School - Mailing Center - Homeless Shelter - Preschool - Hotel - Entrepeneurship Center - Indoor Farmer’s Market - Skatepark - Mental Health Recovery Center - YMCA - Middle School - Teen Center - Museum - Food Bank - Nature Discovery Center - Senior Center - Performing Arts Center - Hospital - Planetarium - Recreation Center Further iterations based on peer community comparisons and from community members themselves further reduced the list in a more focused manner for further study. - Community College Fire Training Center - Community College Vocational Training Center - Community Center - Courthouse - Emergency Response and Fire Logistics - Entrepreneurship Center - Exploratorium - High School - Library - Medical Service Center - Nature Center - Public Safety (Fire and Police) - Recreation Center - Retail / Restaurant - Wellness Center
6c) Paradise Public Library
Project Purpose To foster interaction with the planned Butte county college expansion and the residents through a space which has a library space, arts gallery and community gathering spaces. Project Program Half of the project is a traditional library with reading nook, tables, chairs, stacks, a classroom, study space, etc. The other half is a dedicated gallery space for local artsits to displace their art. Attached to the gallery space is a children’s library with reading nooks and reading spaces for children. In the center of the courtyard is an amphitheater and access to the underground theathers and the storage room is accessable through the backwall of the amphitheater. Performance Goals and Accomplishments This project utilizes PV panels placed on the roof of the building. There are breaks in the facade to allow wind to penetrate into the building and naturally ventilate the spaces, which is aided by the high ceilings on the second floor. The sloping roofs allow for the building to capture and store rainwater for use on site and there are also green walls facing the inside of the courtyard, which improve air quality and mitigate heat transfer. Formal Influence This building is designed to be of the place, and for its people. Being that Paradise is a small mountain town, there is a very strong connection to the trees. On our selected site all of the preexisting buildings burned to the ground but amazingly, the trees survived. These trees exemplified a form of physical resilliency and as a result our form was developed around these trees in an attempt to showcase them and preserve them. Our cladding material choice of Terracotta was selected for multiple reasons. The color of the panels mirror the color of the dirt found in Paradise, attempting to have this building be an extension of the site it sits on. When driving through Paradise, fields of chimneys stretched across the landscape, surrounded by piles of rubble that once made up houses. These chimneys were all that remained, they too were a symbol of resiliency, and are represented on this building with the use of terracotta.
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Integrated Sections
Mullion Detail Detail showing the intricacy’s of a mullion connection in a curtain wall
East-West Section
Terrocotta Wall Assembly Detail showcasing the connection of the terrocotta, the insulation and the structure
Heavy Timber Framming A glulam heavy timber system will be used as the structure for both the floors to provide a natural, warming feel.
Air Ducts
Due to the natural of the program, large ducts are required for significant amounts of ventilation.
Fan / Mechanical Room Space for hydronic and heat pump echanical systems
Hydronic System
The light blue color represents cooler spaces as well as the rise, and movement of hot air within the interior spaces due to its hydronic system
Photovoltaic Panels
Solar panels are positioned on the roof to gain sun exposer throughout most of the day.
Heavy Timber Roof Assembly A glulam heavy timber system will be used as the framing to allow to larger spans to emphasize community and allow the material to give a comforting feel.
Natural Ventilation
Openings in the envelope allow for the building to use natural forces to assist cooling the building and air circualtion
Concrete Wall Assembly Detail showcasing the connection of the Concrete, the insulation and the structure
North-South Section
Building Diagrams Summer Sun 75 Degrees
Winter Sun 25 Degrees
Elevators Exterior walkways
Circulation Diagram
Stairs Movement from entrances
Sun Diagram
Movement of water due to roof slope Water catchment basement
Water Runoff Diagram
Children’s Program
Retirement Community Program
Community Gathering Program
College Program
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Courtyard Render
Children’s Library Render
Reading Room Render
Building Elevations
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East Elevation
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Building EUI
While the building’s EUI doesn’t meet the architecture 2030 standards, this number could be improved by utilizing more passive systems such as more natural ventilation. This, in conjuction with a increase of passive heating, like using concrete floors to store and radiate heat at night to keep the building cooler in the summer.
Chapter 7: The Future
7a) Where Do We Go From Here?
If it’s not Paradise, then it’s New Orleans. If it’s not New Orleans, then it’s the Gulf of Texas. If it’s not the Gulf of Texas, then it’s anywhere else in the world. There is no way to mitigate the amount of damage and destruction the people of Paradise have been through, but there are countless examples when humans have tried to fight against nature, and nature always wins. Through research, experimentation, and trips to Paradise and similarly affected cities, this studio has attempted to understand how to work with, instead of against, nature, in order to build socially, physically, and economically resilient cities that can withstand natural disasters. In order to do this, it is inherent that future projects be strategic in how they are built, where they are built, and with what they are built. Moving forward, the hope is that this project can serve as a map for future design of towns. As a result of this studio effort, Paradise will receive research about similarly affected cities; custom weather data; and downloads of street sections, town plans, building plans, building sections, elevations, physical models, Revit models, and comprehensive projects that can serve the town as a whole. The hope is that the town can utilize this work to begin to rebuild in a constructive way. Because this is a systemic issue, the work also may be utilized in other contexts. If it’s not Paradise, then it’s New Orleans. That is to say, there will be other fires and there will be other disasters. The projects and work resultant from this effort may be transferred into other settings and give others who have been affected by natural disasters a sense of hope in dark times.
Implementation Begins Vacant Property Given the varied sources of funding for the rebuilding of Paradise, there is a likelihood that there were will be undeveloped parcels in previously complete neighborhoods. Care should be taken to ensure that density goals are achieved and not undermined during the development process. As rebuilding occurs, there also will likely be vacant properties interspersed among others. A plan should be developed, through consultation with property owners, to maintain these properties over the course of their evolution. Some strategies to be considered when managing this potential issue are as follows: - Focus on the Core: Where possible, redevelopment efforts should be focused on the proposed downtown core and built concentrically outward. While individual property owners may want to rebuild on their existing property or may even desire to locate further from downtown, a general fund should be established to fiscally incentivize concentration near the town core that gradually moves outward. Concentrated growth will help create a complete appearance in downtown which can then be built out from there. By focusing on the center and working outward, Paradise may rebound more quickly and may be served more affordably by utilities and services. A Kickstarter campaign for this effort could include CALReUSE and Proposition 1 (amongst others). - Park Space and Community Gardens: As an interim use, once remediated, vacant lots should be considered as part of the larger open space network of the community. The town may consider identifying strategic parcels as neighborhoods serving pocket parks or community gardens. Thoughtful maintenance of these properties will turn potential “missing teeth� into assets. - Land Bank: It may be necessary for Paradise to land-bank vacant properties. By acquiring strategic properties, the town may be better able to control development and take on appropriate maintenance. In this way, the community can better control the rate and type of development in different parts of the town, expedite development of certain types in certain areas of the town, and partner with academic institutions or other nonprofits on development. Focusing on Long-Term Economic Viability Social, economic, and physical resiliency are key to the re-imagination of Paradise. Following a way to spur social resiliency, it is also important create economic resiliency. The proposed future plan for Paradise includes a medical campus, which will provide countless job opportunities, basic access to healthcare, and educational opportunities. Not only will a medical campus help foster social resiliency, then, but also the medical campus will create a flourishing and strong economy in Paradise, California. Lebanon, Oregon, developed a similar community based around health care. Following Lebanon’s example, Paradise can incorporate economic resiliency to strengthen the town as a whole.
7b) Strategic Investments
Prior to the fire, the town of Paradise lacked a developed wastewater treatment system and complete road network. In order to properly rebuild Paradise with a viable, walkable downtown, the implementation of a well-built infrastructure must come first. After these two crucial investments, similar projects should then begin to be built around a centralized downtown. The downtown will include mixed-use housing, retail spaces, public services, and other commercial mixed-use projects to create a diverse urban center. It will have a strictly pedestrian path to encourage walking as the primary mode of travel instead of vehicles, and it will be easily navigable. Through strategic investment, the centralized downtown will support a flourishing community. In order to rebuild a town after such a devastating event, a sense of community needs to be re-established. The tight knit community in Paradise is inspiring and essential to both its identity and success as a town. Residents of Paradise engage in festivals together and celebrate its rich history, regardless of their backgrounds or differing personal perspectives. Rohn Grotenhuis and Gretchen Holy from BNIM suggest that the first building type in which a re-imagined Paradise should invest should be one of a civic nature, like a school. A school allows a place for community meetings, it may incentivize people to return, and it can be easily converted to serve whatever programmatic needs must be met. This necessary investment will spur social resiliency first and foremost.
7c) Incentivizing Rebuilding Right
A challenge of this project has been the inherent need and want from Paradise residents who “just want to go home.� Given the sensitive nature of this project, it has been of the utmost importance to attempt to understand the pain former residents have been and continue to go through. Architects are meant to serve the community, and to do this, empathy is key. So, while the temptation to return and rebuild quickly in Paradise is understandable, this project aimed to display how re-building right can lead to long-term success for the town. Since 1999, there have been 13 large wildfires within the footprint of the Camp Fire. A long history of wildfires necessitates the need for design that acknowledges such a natural environment, not one that ignores it only to suffer the consequences later. Specifically, there is a need for better infrastructure to be put in place before any rebuilding can happen. Also, choosing to build out of sustainable materials that don’t fight with the fire (like cross-laminated timber) will create physically resilient buildings. In addition, prior to the fire, Paradise did not have a centralized downtown or walkability. The fire provides a unique opportunity to redesign the town in way that improves the lives of those who live there and encourages a new generation to be involved in the community.
7d) Next Steps
While this studio’s primary focus was on the architectural and urban planning needs of Paradise, other steps must be taken before new buildings or a centralized downtown can be developed. As mentioned above, investment in infrastructure is critical to the future success of Paradise. A new wastewater system, road network, and energy production will create a stable foundation upon which the town can rebuild. Providing water catchment systems for future builds provides an alternative water source to back up the main water supply and creates more sustainable and self-sufficient projects. Backing this framework will ensure that Paradise can grow as a self-sustaining town that is resilient in the face of disaster and tragedy. Following this, and as Paradise looks to rebuild, a series of surveys must first be initiated. This surveying can be done by students from Cal Poly, Chico State, Sacramento State, etc. Not only will students learn from hands-on experience, but also the survey will be of no cost to Paradise residents. Paired with surveying, brownfield sites should be identified in order to receive state investment from the Cal Reuse funds. These funds will help to push forward the re-building of the town and the construction of civic projects. Investment in key building typologies, like the high school and medical campus, and a centralized downtown, will serve as catalysts for change and will spur regrowth in the town of Paradise. For the medical campus specifically, bringing together key organizations like Butte Community College, Western University of Health Sciences, and Adventist Health Care will help start the conversation about establishing such a campus. Alongside this, the development of sustainable and affordable housing will allow former residents to return home and will attract others to relocate to Paradise. To help with rebuilding and designing, a staffed local office that provides free/low-cost design services (likely by students) can be set up. It should follow the successful examples of URBANBuild at Tulane University and Rural Studio from Auburn University. The design office could also offer free on-site building workshops for DIY builders. More research into, and the execution of, a fire-resilient building palette that provides material suggestions for future builds in Paradise is likewise a potential next step. Easy access to this resource will encourage conscious and resilient re-building. With time and well thought out planning, new construction and urban planning that is focused on creating social, economic, and physical resiliency will help to re-imagine a thriving Town of Paradise. And as Paradise rebuilds, it should serve as a model and learning opportunity for others on successful disaster recovery and what steps can be taken now to create more resilient towns of the future.
Bibliography --
Rural Studio and the Architecture of Decency, Dean and Hursley, Introduction (1-13)
Chapter 1: Introduction - Introduction: McDonald, L. H. (2000). This Paradise we call home. Paradise, CA: Gold Nugget Museum. - California, S. O. (n.d.). California Statewide Fire Map. Retrieved from http://cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/incidents/incidents_details_info?incident_id=2277 - http://www.ontheridge.com/paradise.html - http://www.usacitiesonline.com/cacountyparadise.htm#history - https://www.townofparadise.com/index.php/visitors/about-paradise Chapter 2: Community Overview History - http://www.ontheridge.com/paradise.html - http://www.usacitiesonline.com/cacountyparadise.htm#history - https://www.townofparadise.com/index.php/visitors/about-paradise Culture and Community Assets - https://www.paradiseprpd.com/index.html - https://www.townofparadise.com/index.php/9-uncategorised/93-gold-nugget-days - http://www.paradisechamber.com/johnny-appleseed-days - http://www.seecalifornia.com/festivals/paradise-johnny-appleseed-days.html - http://chocolatefest.us/ Economics - U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics *NB: Census data is tagged to residential address, not a work address; some residents may live in Paradise and work elsewhere - “Paradise, CA.” Data USA, 2019, datausa.io/profile/geo/paradise-ca/. Prior and Anticipatory Demographics - “Paradise, CA.” Data USA, 2019, datausa.io/profile/geo/paradise-ca/. - UDA. “Paradise, California.” Paradise, California, 2019, makeitparadise.org/. - U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics *NB: Census data is tagged to residential address, not a work address; some residents may live in Paradise and work elsewhere Ecosystem Understanding - Climate Consultant - “Paradiso Series.” USDA, October 2006. Web. 16 May 2019. https://soilseries.sc.egov.usda.gov/OSD_Docs/P/PARADISO. html. - “About Paradise.” Town Of Paradise. Web. 16 May 2019. https://www.townofparadise.com/index.php/visitors/about-paradise. - “Climate Paradise - California.” U.S. Climate Data. Web. 16 May 2019. https://www.usclimatedata.com/climate/paradise/california/united-states/usca0836 - “Butte Valley Wildlife Area.” California Department of Fish and Wildlife, 31 October 2018. Web. May 16. 2019. https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Lands/Places-to-Visit/Butte-Valley-WA. - California Native Plant Society. Web. 16 May 2019. loc-39.7596,-121.6219(Paradise, California). - “Mountainside Settlements.” Architecture 2030 Palette. Web. 17 May 2019. http://2030palette.org/mountainside-settlements/ - “Choosing the Right Plants for Northern Nevada’s High Fire Hazard Areas.” Living With Fire. Web. 17 May 2019. https://www. unce.unr.edu/publications/files/nr/2017/sp1701.pdf - “Building.” Architecture 2030 Palette. Web. 17 May 2019. http://2030palette.org/building/
Chapter 3: Resiliency and Disaster Recovery Defining and Implementing Recovery 1. Becker, Christine. “Disaster Recovery: A Local Government Responsibility.” ICMA, ICMA, Mar. 2009, icma.org/sites/default/ files/4718_.pdf. 2. “Community Recovery Plan.” Make It Paradise, UDA, 18 Apr. 2019, issuu.com/makeitparadise/docs/2350pres190418_final_ rev_. https://calfire-forestry.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=5306cc8cf38c4252830a38d467d33728&extent=-135478 10.5486%2C4824920.1673%2C-13518764.4778%2C4841526.1117%2C102100 3. “Long-Term Community Recovery Planning Process: A Self Help Guide.” Fema.gov, FEMA, Dec. 2005, www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1538-20490-8825/selfhelp.pdf. 4. Vujanovic, Anka A, and Matthew W Gallagher. “Psychological Impact of Natural Disasters in Adults.” Psychological Impact of Natural Disasters in Adults - University of Houston, University of Houston College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, 12 Sept. 2017, www.uh.edu/class/news/archive/2017/august-september/natural-disasters-impact-adults/. Wildland Urban Interface - http://www.fire.ca.gov/fire_prevention/fire_prevention_wildland_codes - https://makeitparadise.org/brochure - Fire, Defensible Space, and You: https://www.sandiegocounty.gov/pds/fire_resistant.html - Designing Your Home to Survive Wildfires: http://www.energy-design-tools.aud.ucla.edu/FIRES.html
Chapter 4: Vision and Goals - Designers—Think Big!: https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_brown_urges_designers_to_think_big?language=en Chapter 5: Paradise (re) Imagined - Happy City, Montgomery, The Mayor and the City as Happiness Project (1-43) - Retrofitting Suburbia, Urban Design Solutions for Redesigning Suburbs, Dunham-Jones, Williamson, Chapter 4 (5994) - Suburban Remix, Creating the Next Generation of Urban Places, Beske and Dixon, Chapter 2 (33-81) - The Image of the City, Lynch, Chapter 4 (91-117) - The Rise of the Creative Class, Florida, (280-303) - The Walkable City, Speck, The Ten Steps of Walkability (65-72) Chapter 6: The Built Environment Chapter 7: The Future - California Recycle and Underutilized Sites (CALReUSE) Program: https://www.treasurer.ca.gov/cpcfa/calreuse.as - California Wildfires Statewide Recovery Recourses: http://wildfirerecovery.org/ - California Action Plan for Disaster Recovery: http://www.hcd.ca.gov/community-development/disaster-recovery-programs/cdbg-dr/docs/HCD-CDBG-DR-AP-01Nov18-Full-English.pdf - Paradise Recovery Plan: https://makeitparadise.org/ - Town of Paradise, Butte County Recovers: http://wildfirerecovery.org/
Appendices a) Noteworthy Precedent Research Zanghi Alessandro Part 1: Case Study
https://bit.ly/2XOXQpr
https://bit.ly/2VjHyr1
https://bit.ly/2Vvkbuk
Project: Howard University Interdisciplinary Research Building Location: Washington D.C. Construction Completed: 2014 Architect: HDR, Lance Bailey & Associates Contractor: Turner Construction Manufacturer: Shildan Terracotta Rainscreen Facade
Project: Dubuque Intermodal Transportation Center Location: Dubuque, Iowa Construction Completed: 2016 Architect: Neumann Monson Architects Contractor: Conlon Construction Manufacturer: Boston Valley Terra Cotta
Project: 215 East 68th Street Location: New York, New York Renovation Completed: 2013 Architect: FXFOWLE Consultant: Forst Consulting Contractor: Brisk Waterproofing Co. Manufacturer: NBK Terracotta
https://bit.ly/2XKMS45
Terracotta Panel Assembly System
b) Design Iterations
This was one of the projects that was a part of the first 18 projects. It was functioned as another campus for Chico State that focused on teaching people vocational trades and also had a makerspace for the residents of the town. The project also had housing for the students and the teachers and a central courtyard that functioned as a gallery for the makerspace.
chico state vocational school and makerspace ALESSANDRO ZANGHI_ARCH 352_STACEY WHITE
EXTERIOR RENDER
PROJECT DESCRIPTION What is the purpose of this project?
My project is a vocational school/makerspace that is a branch of Chico State situated in the what will be the new downtown for Paradise, California. It is intended to teach students how to become licensed electricians, roofers, carpenters, plumbers, or anything that can aid in the rebuilding of Paradise. While vocational schools do require traditional classroom settings, they also require shops and places to actually practice the craftsmanship needed later on in their career. So these shop will also serve as a makerspace for the public of Paradise to innovate and create. These galleries will help make this space a community center and a place for the creatives of Paradise to gather and see what their contemporaries and making and producing. The building also provides housing for the students and teachers as well, ensuring that they have a place to live that is near the downtown and also in the same building that they work and learn in.
Who is this for?
With the people of Paradise looking to rebuild their town for a more vibrant future, there must be a place where they can learn the necessary trades and skills to make that dream a reality. As the town begins to rebuild, experienced craftsmen will be needed to help construct the new Paradise. Those who have lost their means of economic security or those looking for an alternative to college can turn to this center. Which provides them with the opportunity to involve themselves in a new endeavour that will not only benefit them, but the people of this town. They will come together with the community and help their neighbors rebuild their homes. Make sure their homes are safe, secure and well built and make the transition back to regular life a bit easier. Not only is this place meant to educate the people of Paradise, but it is meant to attract and foster the creative class. These people will be the ones to revitalize Paradise, the ones who reshape the town, and make it an epicenter for innovation. Not only will this school have workspaces for these people but it will facilitate social interaction between these creatives through the use of plazas and galleries, where finished work created by the creatives who use this space, will be on display. Spaces like these will allow people of both the school and the makerspace to interact with each other and share their ideas and tips, which in turn will help develop a creative spirit in the town. With this makerspace situated in the downtown of the new Paradise it will be near a lot of residential and easily accessible to them.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN
FLOOR PLANS
SCALE: 1/32”:1’
N
Downtown I decided to pick my site in our new downtown and near some residential and commercial buildings, because I wanted the students to have easy access to the facilities and also give the public easy access to the makerspace and plaza. I wanted to locate it near a high traffic area so people could pass by and check out the gallery located in the building and also give the students access to food and entertainment.
COMMUNITY CENTER
CHICO STATE VOCATIONAL SCHOOL
WELLNESS CENTER
PARADISE PUBLIC INNOVATION MARKET ENTREPRENEURIAL CENTER
Key Commercial Mixed Use Office Mixed Use Residential
Community Serving Parking
Plaza
N ARCH 352: Citizen Architect Name Your Project
FLOOR 3
Space Needs ARCH 352: Citizen Architect Classroom Spaces Name Your Project Lab Classrooms Regular Classrooms Open (Lively) Study Spaces Space Needs Large Classrooms Classroom Spaces Quiet Study Spaces Lab Classrooms Regular Classrooms Meeting Rooms Open (Lively) Study Spaces Offices Large Classrooms Quiet Study Spaces Makerspace Meeting Rooms Makerspace Offices Woodshop
Metalshop Sewing Lab MakerspacePrint Making Shop Makerspace Storage Woodshop Reception Public SpaceMetalshop Sewing Lab Service Desks Print Making Shop Indoor Gallery Storage Reception Public Space Service Desks Indoor Gallery Residential
No.
Seats
ASF per
Total ASF SF per Seat
4 8 1 No. 1 3 4 8 4 1 1 1 3
110 64 133 Seats 81 21 110 64 12 133 35 81 21
2640 1290 4000 ASF per 1636
33,624 10,560 10,320 4,000 Total ASF SF per Seat 1,636
4 1 1 1
12 198 35
600 15097 2818
630 2640
1290 600 4000 2818 1636 630
33,624 1,890 10,560 10,320 2,400 4,000 2,818 1,636 1,890
24 20 30 20 30 24 20 50 30 80 20 30
17,843 2,400 15,097 2,818
50 76 80
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
198 20 1
15097 2596 150
1 200 20 1
160 4000 2596 150
1 1
1 200
160 4000
29 2
1 4
545 1090
15,805 2,180 17,985
545 272.5
29 2
1 4
545 1090
15,805 2,180 73,612 122,687
545 272.5
Outdoor Space Outdoor Plaza
1
200
4000
4,000
20
Outdoor Space Outdoor Plaza
1
200
4000
4,000
20
Residential Single Apartment Residential Single Family Residential
Residential Single Apartment Residential Single Family Subtotal (ASF) Total (GSF)
Subtotal (ASF) Total (GSF)
17,843 15,097 2,596
150 4,160 160 4,000 2,596 150 4,160 160 4,000 17,985
SPACE LIST AND PROGRAM SUMMARY GROSS SQUARE FOOTAGE: 122,687
76 129 150 160 20 129 150 160 20
73,612 122,687
FACADE STUDY
FLOOR 2 I chose to use a terracotta and fritted glass curtain wall panel as the facade of my building, because of its easy assembly and also because terracotta is January 2018 a fireproof material. I also chose terracotta because of its earthy tone which I wanted to use as a way to relate the building to the natural setting of the park next to the site. I felt the mixture of the glass and the curtain wall would help January 2018 convey a sense of modernism, while not out right ignoring the surrounding environment. I chose to use fritted glass on the facade to create a textured look on the glass and also maximize my heat absorbtion so I could passively heat my building.
1|1
1|1
Images https://bit.ly/2Nh0IqL Terracotta and Glass Curtainwall
FLOOR 1
Fritted Glass
SECTIONS
PROGRAM STACK DIAGRAM SUMMER SUN ANGLE
Residential Housing - 540 ft2 Classroom - 1290 ft2
WINTER SUN ANGLE
Indoor Gallery - 4000 ft2
Workshops/Makerspace - 2000 ft2
Lab Classrooms - 2000 ft2 Meeting Rooms - 600 ft2 Staff Office - 2600 ft2 Lively Study Space - 4000 ft2 Quiet Study Space - 600 ft2
NORTH-SOUTH SECTION
Makerspace Storage - 1600 ft2
SCALE: 1/16”:1’ Stairwells
EAST-WEST SECTION
SCALE: 1/18”:1’
This was an early iteration of the Paradise library that was still focused around responding to the existing trees on the site and having a central courtyard, but formal wasn’t developed. The general realtionship of the program had been established, but was still wonky and didn’t relate well to the surrounding program.
Large Exhibition Open Study Space
Cafe
Scale 1/16”:1”
N
Small Exhibition Large Exhibition
Staff Offices Children’s Space
N
Scale 1/16”:1”
Backstage
Amphitheater
Scale 1/16”:1”
N
c) ARCH 307 Lab/Project Submissions 2030 Baseline
https://tool.zerotool.org/iframe/#/
LAB 1: EUI Targets, Climate Analysis
Target EUI is 32 based on a 70% reduction
and Design Strategies
BASELINE 104 EUI 100 Zero Score TARGET 32 EUI 30 Zero Score
2030 Baseline
https://tool.zerotool.org/iframe/#/
ALESSANDRO ZANGHI
100
80
60
40
-20
20
BUILDING SUMMARY
Target EUI is 32 based on a 70% reduction YOUR BUILDING
BASELINE 104 EUI 100 Zero Score TARGET 32 EUI 30 Zero Score 100
80
60
40
(kBtu/ft²/yr) (kBtu/ft²/yr)
-20
20
(metric tons CO₂e/yr)
0%
70%
N/A
100
30
N/A
104
32
N/A
236
71
N/A
434
131
N/A
BUILDING SUMMARY
Paradise is a Hot Summer Mediterranean-like climate (Csa) and with varying seasonal temperatures. It lies on the 36.67 latitude line. The 5 passive strategies I found worked best were sunshading of windows, direct evaporative cooling, two stage evaporative cooling, internal heat gain and passive solar direct gain. (kBtu/ft²/yr) (kBtu/ft²/yr)
(metric tons CO₂e/yr)
1 of 1
YOUR BUILDING 0%
70%
N/A
100
30
N/A
104
32
N/A
236
71
N/A
434
131
N/A
1 of 1
1/14/2019, 1:18 PM
1/14/2019, 1:18 PM
Both direct evaporative cooling and two stage evaporative cooling utilize evaporting water at the top of the stack to draw cool air down into the space. This cool air that enters the building is dependent on the humidity of the air, height of the tower, and the amount of water that evaporates. The tower needs to be a minimum of twice the height of the space it’s cooling and 64ft2 for commercial buildings.
Utilizing shading devices can help reduce the amount of heat that enters the building during the warmer months of the year. These devices can actually reduce solar heat gain by 80% and these can be used in tandum with solar gain for climates that have seasonal temperature changes.
Using solar glazing allows direct sunlight to enter a space to heat the building during the winter. This glazing should be facing towards the equator and the glazing should be big enought to heat the space for 24 hours with an average amount of winter sunlight. The amount of glazing needed for Paradise would be 10% of the floor area to be heated.
By utilizing internal heat gain, you can capture heat given off by people or objects inside your building and use it to heat it during the winter or at night. In order to store this heat walls, floors and/or ceilings have to be made out of masonry with a minimum thickness of 4 inches. The ratio of exposed surface area to solar glazing area should be 3:1 to 9:1.
ALESSANDRO ZANGHI
ATRIUM
COURTYARD
FINGER BUILDING
STACEY WHITE PARADISE, CA
EUI 60,000 S.F.
FLOOR-TOFLOOR HEIGHT
100 32
BASELINE TARGET WINDOW TO WALL RATIO (WWR)
50,650 S.F. 15’-0”
36
.6 WWR
50,650 S.F. 15’-0”
36
.6 WWR
50,650 S.F. 15’-0”
36
.6 WWR
DAYLIGHTING
STRUCTURE SUMMARY
30’ X 60’
30’ X 40’
30’ X 60’
MAX. BAY SPACING MAX. BAY SPACING MAX. BAY SPACING Heavy Timber Steel beam-girder system Heavy Timber Thanks to the atrium scheme, I was able to add a fair amount of light into the inner core of the building and help light the inside even more. However, this still didn’t provide a lot of light to the deepest parts of the floor plate so I would consider doing the same alteration that the courtyard required. Making this skinnier and longer would help with daylight penetration. Also adding some solar shading and reducing the glazing would help lower the ASE of this building.
The courtyard space in the center of the building, like the atrium, allowed a good amount of light to enter the core. Its also really nice for the residents to have a space connected to the outdoors thats still in the perimeter of the building. However, this plan didn’t provide adequate amount of daylighting in the center so I would consider making this building longer and skinnier to allow more light to penetrate in. Also adding some solar shading and reducing the glazing would help lower the ASE of this building.
This option created a more interesting floor plate than the other two, however it suffered from the same problems. Daylight penetration to the cores of the building was still and issue and making this floor plate longer and skinnier would aid in its success. Also adding some solar shading and reducing the glazing would help lower the ASE of this building.
LAB 3: PART 1B
When it came to playing around with the shading devices on my building I managed to decrease the EUI of building, but it was very minimal, 33.7 to 33.3. On my north facade I had no shading on my building, on my south I had a large horizontal shade that was 0.5 and on my east and west side I had vertical fins that were 0.6 and external venetians that focused on reducing my solar gain, with a threshold of 5.6W/ft2.
LAB 3: PART 2
After going through all the different types of mechanical systems for my building I found three that got me pretty close to my EUI and one that actually helped me achieve it. By using a Heating and Ventilation only system it allowed me to lower my EUI to 29.3. This system really helped me lower my EUI, because it helped cut out the energy usage tied to cooling my building and my AHU when it came to heating. While they weren’t the biggest consumers of energy in my building they did prevent me from achieving the target. Using the heating and ventilation
d) ARCH 342 Lab/Project Submissions
Iteration 4 - Optimized Space
With this optimized space, I dropped the ceiling to bring the lights closer to the occupants and I also tried to make more of the surfaces lighter in color to help brighten up the space, so I didn’t need to light the space as much. I also used lights similar to those used in iteration 3, however these were fixed to the ceiling. I also made sure the illuminance fit within the range of 20-100 and the LPD wasn’t more than 1.1 W/ft2.
PARADISE LIBRARY
ALESSANDRO ZANGHI_ARCH 342-05_STACEY WHITE SCALE: 1/2”:1’
CL
CL
BUILDING ELEVATIONS 15'-0" 0 3/4" 5" 2" 1 5/8"
Glulam Joist
Terracotta Panel
1'-6"
5 7/8"
Glulam Beam with Pine Decking 28'-0"
7'-6" 1'-6"
Terracotta Panel Clip
Air Gap
EAST ELEVATION Wool Insulation
Vapor Barrier
Plywood Sheathing
Pine Decking Glulam Beam
1"
Glulam
WEST ELEVATION
Glulam Beam with Pine Decking 14'-0"
EAST ELEVATION SECTION SCALE: 1/2” = 1’-0” Alessandro Zanghi Stacey White 4/25/2019
39
65
Glulam Girder 6 3/4" x 30 1/4" Glulam Beam 6 3/4" x 30 1/4"
VAV Air System Terrart MID 1 1/2" Air Gap 2 1/8" Semi Rigid Insulation 5"
F - 40 40' - 0"
Plywood Sheathing 3/4" Glulam Column 10" x 10"
1' 18W Suspended Lighting Summer Sun: 74
Winter Sun: 27
Wood Decking 1 1/8” D - Level 2 15' - 0"
Curtain Wall 1" Mullion 7"
PEX Tubing 1" Concrete Slab Foundation
B - Ground Level 0' - 0"
PARADISE LIBRARY GROUND TO ROOF SECTION
11
ALESSANDRO ZANGHI_ARCH 342-05_WHITE SCALE: 1’:1/2”
65
39
PARADISE LIBRARY GROUND TO ROOF SECTION
65
ALESSANDRO ZANGHI_ARCH 342-05_WHITE SCALE: 1’:1/2” Glulam Girder 6 3/4" x 30 1/4" Glulam Beam 6 3/4" x 30 1/4"
VAV Air System Terrart MID 1 1/2" Air Gap 2 1/8" Semi Rigid Insulation 5"
F - 40 40' - 0"
Plywood Sheathing 3/4" Glulam Column 10" x 10"
1' 18W Suspended Lighting Summer Sun: 74
Winter Sun: 27
Wood Decking 1 1/8” Concrete Slab 1’
D - Level 2 15' - 0"
Curtain Wall 1" Mullion 7"
PEX Tubing 1" Concrete Slab Foundation
B - Ground Level 0' - 0"
South Elevation East-Facing Section
Plywood Sheathing
Waterproof Membrane Semi-Rigid Insulation
Glulam Column
Air Gap
11
Terracotta Cladding
Section Plan
65
Section Axon