REBIRTH IN NEW ORLEANS
Presentation by: Cari Lowe + Caroline Nance
TABLE OF CONTENTS new orleans, louisianna
+ history
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+ architecture - styles - traditional ironwork - ironwork today - color - security as architecture - attention to detail
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+ hurrican katrina, rita
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+ neighborhoods, elevations
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+ storm aftermath -security -national response
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+ episcopal diocese - who they help - rebuild process - steps - homeowners
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+ historic preservation
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+ modern movements
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HISTORY New Orleans, Louisiana is one of the oldest cities in the United States, founded in 1718 by the sieur de Bienville. The city is known for its crescent shape and subtropical climate. The land is surrounded by bodies of water including Lake Pontchartrain, the Mississippi River, three levee systems, and the Intercoastal Waterway. Industrialization has flourished in New Orleans with major rail and river ports and nearby oil and chemical plants.
Rebirth in New Orleans
The land was inhabited by slaves, American Indians and French immigrants who migrated there. The diversity from their cultures, along with strong influences from the Spanish, Cubans, Italians and Germans, continues to distinguish New Orleans from other southern cities. The cultures combined to give New Orleans the architecture of the The French Quarter, the oldest and most well-known part of the city.
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ARCHITECTURE
The French Quarter, or Vieux Carre, is the oldest neighborhood in New Orleans and is located on higher ground nestled close to the banks of the Mississippi River. Architecture in the French Quarter is a conglomeration of American, Creole, French and Spanish descent with vibrant colors and unique architectural details.
Rebirth in New Orleans
St. Charles Avenue, one of the main thoroughfares of the Garden District, has paved the way for the upper class citizens of New Orleans since the 19th Century. The street car that runs through the median gives passengers a tour of Colonial, Greek Revival, and Itailianate style mansions. New Orleans’ design styles are also represented in the churches and synagogues throughout the area, Audubon Park and Tulane and Loyola Universities are also situated along St. Charles Avenue and are fashioned in the same styles of architecture.
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ARCHITECTURAL STYLES [1790 - 1850] A Creole Cottage is a single story stucco or wood exterior house built on a slab at ground level. The houses have a steeply pitched roof and are located near the property line in the French Quarter. [1820 - 1250] American Townhouse is a three story building built on a slab near the property line, usually found in the Central Business District or the Lower Garden District. The facade wall is usually asymmetrical with a second story balcony and is constructed of brick or stucco.
Rebirth in New Orleans
[1788 - 1850] Creole Townhouse is a two to fourstory structure built on a slab at ground level in the French Quarter and some surrounding areas. The townhouses have second and sometimes third story wrought iron balconies with a pitched gable roof and consist of a brick or stucco exterior structure.
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ARCHITECTURAL STYLES
[1803 - 1870] A Raised Center Hall Cottage or Villa is a one and a half story house built on brick piers above the ground level. A front gallery door is centered between the windows and usually has six columns supporting the entablature. The exterior is constructed of wood and has wood French Colonial details.
[1820 - 1850] A Double Gallery house is a two story house constructed on brick pillars. The house has a wood, brick or stucco exterior with columns supporting the entablature around the double gallery porch and balcony.
Rebirth in New Orleans
[1850 - 1910] The Shotgun style house is usually represented as a one story house approximately ten feet wide. The floor plan allows one to walk from one room into the next. Sometimes there is a second story, called a camel-back, and it is located near the rear of the house. The structure is raised on brick pillars and is embellished with wooden Victorian details and a gabled roof.
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TRADITIONAL IRONWORK Two major fires in the late 18th Century left nearly all of New Orleans’ public buildings, homes, and businesses except those fronting the river burned down or badly damages. As tragic as it was, the results of the fire were essential to shaping the architecture of the French Quarter. In place of wooden homes with shingled roof structures and courtyards, were now thick brick walls, and wrought iron balconies. This became the style the French Quarter is now known for.
Rebirth in New Orleans
Traditional ironwork came about because of its ability to withstand corrosion, an important feature for hurricane-privy New Orleans. Most of the ironwork of the city is located in the French Quarter, and dates back to the 1850s when ironwork was an extremely popular architectural adornment. It was used instead of wooden pillar and porches. However, traditional decorative ironwork is difficult to maintain and keep painted. So once mild steel was introduced, with its ability to be mass-produced, wrought-iron began to disappear.
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IRONWORK TODAY
Today, ironwork is making a comeback in New Orleans architecture. However, instead of as a decorative feature, it’s being used in the form of security “cages” around the front porches, windows, and doors of houses to keep others out. Although security is a necessary precaution in the City of New Orleans, this particular approach gives the homes of New Orleans an unapproachable feeling. Front porches are symbolic in the South for welcoming guests and the iron cage additions completely remove any sense of openness and approachability to a home.
Rebirth in New Orleans
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NEW ORLEANS COLOR
One of the most noticeable features of New Orleans buildings are their bright colors. This is due to the heavy Spanish influence incorporated into the city and the distinct Creole style that indirectly accompanied it. The Creole style mixes African, French, Spanish, and Caribbean styles. Traditionally, the French Creoles, who initiated the style, avoided architectural embellishments because they viewed them as pretentious and typical of Americans. They saw themselves as a lively, vibrant culture and usually painted their homes in bright colors to reflect that.
Rebirth in New Orleans
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SECURITY AS ARCHITECTURE
As a result of the hurricanes that annually devastate New Orleans, new architectural features have developed to keep up with damage protection. One in particular is the roll-up hurricane shutter. These have been developed to assist in protecting houses from further storm damage to windows from high winds and flying objects that are associated with hurricanes.
Rebirth in New Orleans
Traditionally, shutters are made of wood slats and serve the purpose of damage protection as well. The difference is the traditional shutters (sometimes called Bermuda shutters) are an integral part of the building’s design aesthetic. There are several problems with these new shutters. Not only are they unattractive in themselves, but they also don’t compliment the vivid architecture that New Orleans is famous for. Secondly, some of these shutters completely block the light into houses and the view looking out. They also give neighborhoods the appearance of being much more damaged and insecure than they actually are.
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ATTENTION TO DETAIL
In the historic areas of New Orleans, including the French Quarter and the Garden District (developed in the 18th and 19th centuries), there are many original details that have remained in tact to this day. One of the details that remains in use are the gas light fixtures that are used both as street lights and porch lights. Other details that have remained, serve as decorative reminders of the cities’ historic past.
Rebirth in New Orleans
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HURRICANE KATRINA + RITA
On August 27th, 2005 the National Hurricane Center contacted New Orleans, Louisiana Mayor Nagin for a mandatory evacuation of the city and a State of Emergency was issued. Hurricane Katrina became a Category 5 storm pushing 160 mile per hour winds on August 28. The Superdome was opened as a refugee camp and Regional Transit Authority buses were used to evacuate citizens out of New Orleans. On August 29th, 2005, Hurricane Katrina, a Category 4 storm with 145 mile per hour winds, stormed just east of New Orleans, hitting landfall in St. Bernard Parish and Plaquemines. The catastrophic winds of the eye of the storm created a tidal surge and caused the city to flood. The levee system in the Lower Ninth Ward breached and floodwaters washed through the neighborhood 6 to 8 feet deep. The National Guard was called in and FEMA directed 1000 employees to New Orleans immediately. In conjunction, Coast Guards rescued 1200 flood victims. On the next day, the second levee broke and covered 80% of the city in water, some places received 20 feet. FEMA activated a National Response Plan and waited for National Guardsmen to secure the city. An estimated 50,000 to 100,000 citizens were stranded helplessly on rooftops, at the Superdome, and the convention center with no way to leave the city. At 6:30 pm on August 30th, Mayor Nagin issued an urgent bulletin announcing that the water levels would continue to rise 12 to 15 feet. Several hours later the 17th Street levee began to fail.
On September 24th, 2005, Hurricane Rita touched land between Sabine Pass, Texas and Johnsons Bayou, Louisiana. Hurricane Rita was a Category 3 storm and hit landfall several days after Mayor Ray Nagin reopened New Orleans on September 19th after Hurricane Katrina had passed through. Even though Hurricane Rita traveled southwest of New Orleans, the storm surge caused the 17th Street levee to flood the Lower Ninth Ward again.
Rebirth in New Orleans
The Astrodome in Houston, Texas opened its doors to refugees on August 31st. The Pentagon sent four Navy ships packed with emergency supplies and launched a search-and-rescue mission for the city. The focus tried to remain on emergency rescue but, there was an exponential growth of looting and violence that also had to be prevented. The London Avenue canal breached at 12:30 pm.
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NEW ORLEANS, LA NEIGHBORHOODS
The city board divided New Orleans into 13 planning districts and 72 distinct neighborhoods for governmental and zoning purposes. In the scope of the drawing, all the outlined neighborhoods make up New Orleans proper. Most neighborhoods are named for New Orleanian generations. Families usually tend to live in the same neighborhoods generation after generation and sometimes the generations’ houses are side by side. Most neighborhoods are grouped by race, or social class.
Rebirth in New Orleans
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ELEVATIONS
As the map indicated, New Orleans is surrounded by bodies of water. The landscape in the red zones is between .5 meter and 4 meters below sea level. The neutral areas range from 0 to 2 meters above sea level. The crescent shape above the Mississippi River is between 3 and 8.5 meters above sea level. This land is probably the highest ground protected from the river by a hill. The other grounds that make up New Orleans and the surrounding area are flat and straight horizon lines. Currently, the city is working to make the lowest elevations non living neighborhoods.
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STORM AFTERMATH + SECURITY
- Katrina devastated over 90,000 square miles in Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi on the morning of August 29.
- After the hurricane moved away on August 30, 2005, some residents of New Orleans who didn’t evacuate began looting stores. Many were in search of food and water, in addition to non-essential items, that were not available to them through any other means. - There were news reports of carjacking, murders, thefts, and rapes in New Orleans post hurricane. Several news media later determined that most of the reports were based on unproven rumors. - About half of the police force was believed to have fled mid-storm, there were reports of police looting, as well as stealing vehicles, and brutality. 67 of 1700 officers were later fired for abandoning their posts during the storm. - 350 officers had to be rescued from the storm before other citizens could be rescued
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Rebirth in New Orleans
- The police force that remained was at a huge disadvantage because they were cut off from resources they were accustomed to. For example, there was no power to plug in walkie talkie batteries for communicating.
STORM AFTERMATH - NATIONAL RESPONSE
- President Bush signed $10.5 billion of relief within four days of the hurricane - Within 1-2 days, approximately 58,000 National Guard personnel were activated to assist with relief of food, water, and medicine, and also to participate in security and rescue operations - Out of the 60,000 people stranded in New Orleans, the Coast Guard rescued over 33,500 people - The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) began preparations for disaster relief before the storm began. And after the storm hit, FEMA provided housing assistance (rental assistance and trailers) to over 700,000 families and individuals. - FEMA also paid for hotel costs of 12,000 additional people who were displaced by Katrina. After a few months evacuees were still eligible for federal assistance, to be used towards either apartment rent, additional hotel stays, or fixing ruined homes.
1. Stay in their home. 2. Purchase another home in Louisiana. 3. Sell their home and choose not to remain a homeowner in the state
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Rebirth in New Orleans
- Road Home Program: a program designed to provide compensation to Louisiana homeowners affected by Hurricanes Katrina or Rita for the damage to their homes. The program affords eligible homeowners up to $150,000 in compensation for their losses to get back into their homes. Homeowners have three compensation options:
EPISCOPAL DIOCESE - OFFICE OF DISASTER RELIEF (ODR) The program started in January 2006 as a volunteer house gutting operation. The program has successfully gutted out more than eight hundred families’ homes, with the help of thousands of volunteers. In March of 2007, the rebuilding phase was launched with funding from the National Episcopal Diocese. Twenty-eight houses were completed in 2007 and another eleven houses have been finished this year so far. The goal for 2008 is to finish a total of thirty houses, making for a total of fifty-eight rebuilt houses.
The work at each house is led by crew chiefs – trained interns who work for 2-9 months. Most volunteers who help are relatively unskilled, though sometimes fortunately professional contractors or other experienced volunteers come. For licensing reasons and to help the local economy, local professionals are hired for any plumbing or electrical work that needs to be done. Through donations and funding from Episcopal Relief and Development, the program has gotten enough tools and vehicles to work on 4-8 houses at the same time.
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Rebirth in New Orleans
Through every step of the rebuild process, they keep in close contact with the homeowners to make sure they know how it’s progressing and have as much input as possible into what their finished home will look like. On average it takes about 3 months to rebuild a house for a little more than $30,000, far less than what most homeowners would have to pay general contractors.
ODR - WHO THEY SERVE + HOW
The first year, they worked mostly with homeowners who were waiting for money from the Road Home, the federal grant program designed to help homeowners rebuild their houses. Most of these homeowners eventually received their money and happily reimbursed ODR for the expenses. This year, more homeowners have gotten their federal money, which has helped a lot of people get started but has also led to rampant contractor fraud. Most of the homeowners they work with now have spent all of their money already. Sometimes, homeowners didn’t budget well enough or weren’t given enough money in the first place and ran out of funds before the house was completed. Usually, though, they paid a lot of money for work that either didn’t get done, or got done so badly that it needed to be done again. For these folks, there isn’t much hope of getting more money. There is no do-over program to replace stolen Road Home funds and most of them can’t borrow the money from a bank, especially with the current national tightening of the credit market. This means that ODR has to cover the majority of the costs for the houses they’re rebuilding.
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Rebirth in New Orleans
They help homeowners from all over the New Orleans area. While there are no specific qualifications the homeowners must meet, they aim to serve homeowners who, for financial, physical or mental health reasons, can’t rebuild their homes themselves.
ODR - THE REBUILDING PROCESS
“We do whatever is necessary to get residents back into their homes. We start with their gutted home, and work with them to hire reputable plumbers, electricians and mold remediators. We then use volunteers to insulate, sheetrock, tape and float, paint, floor and install the trim and cabinets.� Step 1: Gut house, hire necessary plumbers, electricians, and mold remediators Step 2: Sheet Rock Crew Chiefs lead volunteers to insulate and sheetrock Step 3: Mud Crew Chiefs lead volunteers to tape and float sheetrock Step 4: Floor Crew Chiefs lead volunteers to install laminate and tile floor Step 5: Trim Crew Chiefs lead volunteers to install doors, cabinets, counter tops, trim, paint, stain and any other finishing details
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ODR - THE REBUILDING PROCESS daily procedures:
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Rebirth in New Orleans
+ meet at warehouse and make sure van / truck has all materials for the day + meet and orient volunteers - learn names/skill levels - give home owner and home background info - give directions to site - give rough outline of day - tell leaders when breaks will be + arrive at house and unpack - describe unique features of house - pick central spot for an “equipment room� + unpack tools/materials - set up power, saws + break volunteers into groups, assign tasks - vary by group size + room number/size - find even mix of abilities - give demonstrations for each task + float between groups to ensure quality of work + good pace + clean up - end of day sheet/walk through job site - pack up all tools - give volunteers directions for next day + return to warehouse, pack truck with supplies for the next day
STEP 1 - GUTTING
+ protective gear - eye wear - face masks - gloves + hazardous materials - separate, collect + dispose of properly + soiled materials - use crow bars, shovels to gut - place in wheelbarrow - place in dumpsters
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STEPS 2 + 3 - SHEETROCK / MUDDING
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Rebirth in New Orleans
+ wall prep -nails -framing + insulation -safety - proper fitting + drywall orientation - ceiling first - overlapping runs - factory edge to factory edge - shimming - toe kick demo + measuring marking and cutting - how to use tape measure correctly - using the T-square - scoring and snapping drywall - measuring for outlet boxes + proper dry wall positioning - emphasize re-cutting rather than forcing + screwing - how to hold screw and drill for a straight run - proper screw depth - not sticking out - not through paper - dimple - correct screw size - ceiling vs. wall + mudding -cover screws and joints -five swipe technique -sand, repeat until smooth
STEP 4 - TILE
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Rebirth in New Orleans
+ prep floor + measure floor - mark the center - dry lay cement board - cut cement board to fit + mix thinset + apply thinset to sub floor - trow excess + place cement board - drop at 45 degree angle - press down while pushing side to side + measure floor - mark the center - lay dry tile - use T-square + apply thinset to cement board - wet tile with a damp sponge - drop tile at 20 degree angle - press down while pushing side to side - pull up tile with margin trow - 80% coverage of thinset to procede - cut tiles to fit perimeter + grouting - mix grout - grout, clean tile - seal grout lines
STEP 4 - LAMINATE
+ prep area - sweep - nails + apply tar paper - padding + measure boards - cut
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Rebirth in New Orleans
+ application - make sure positive and negative fit together - snap horizontal - snap vertical + prevent gaps - tap boards toward the center of the floor - leave only 1/8� at drywall edge
STEP 5 - TRIM
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Rebirth in New Orleans
+ hanging doors - check level and plumb - shim evenly - check door swing - nail gun, caulk + putty + trim, baseboards - measure lengths + angles - check for tight fit - nail gun, caulk + putty + installing cabinets, vanities - screw adjoining cabinets together - check level and plumb - screw into studs at several heights - for upper cabinets, use a 2 x 4 as a guide, remove after - install counter tops, cut holes for sink - stain + attach veneers to sides and toe kick + paint - use edgers or tape - paint w/ the wood grain - wash brushes immediately + stain - clean surface with steel wool - wipe dust off - stain with rag, going w/ the wood grain + thresholds - cut wood to desired length and angles, check for fit - use liquid nails to adhere - wipe away excess glue w/ damp paper towel - place heavy items on top until glue dries
HOUSES + HOMEOWNERS
MARQUEZ FAMILY
The floor crew and the trim crew were working on this house in the same week. At times, it was hard to work around each other but, overall the work seemed to go efficiently. The floorers tiled a vertical shower and tiled the floors. The trim crew added doors, trim, cabinets, vanities, closet shelving, and paint.
Rebirth in New Orleans
A mother, father, and nine kids were living in a rental apartment in the Lower Ninth Ward prior to Hurricane Katrina. Rental properties, damaged by Hurricane Katrina were lost in the aftermath of the storm, with no one to fund any rebuilding. The Marquez family used their savings to buy a house, but didn’t have enough money to renovate it. Since the lot was too small to house a trailer, they all moved into the houses’ unairconditioned, shower-less, 300 square foot garage in the Gentilly area. This house was our first project we worked on, with the priority to finish quickly so the kids could go back to school.
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HOUSES + HOMEOWNERS SIMS FAMILY Mrs. Sims is an older lady who lost her husband shortly after the storm due to health complications. Her husband was a contractor who built their house so she wanted to preserve much of the original structure that he had created. The house has bright caribbean blue, yellow, green, and coral and is located in New Orleans East where the damage from the storm was much greater. The rebuilding process in this area was slower than the rest of the city.
The trim crew hung doors, cabinets, vanities, closet shelving, window sills, trim, and painted.
Rebirth in New Orleans
The floor crew tiled the kitchen, bathroom and laundry room floors. Laminate was constructed throughout the rest of the small house. The plain white wooden siding was preserved on the outside of the house survived the storm and was repainted.
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HOUSES + HOMEOWNERS
THOMAS FAMILY The story of this family was published in the newspaper about Alvin, a mentally ill son who had been separated from his family after the hurricane and was squatting in his families’ home. He died of a stroke while ODR was rebuilding the house, so it holds a lot of meaning for the family. The house had twelve foot ceilings, ornate trim around the windows and several stained glass windows.
Rebirth in New Orleans
Laminate floors were installed through the living area, dining area, and a bedroom. The kitchen, laundry room and bathrooms were tiled. The additional bedroom and hallway was laminate. The trim crew ran into complications installing the doors, kitchen cabinets, vanities, baseboards, and closet shelving because the house was so old and nothing was square.
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HOUSES + HOMEOWNERS LEWIS FAMILY The Lewis family was a ninety year old grandmother and her children who had families of their own. They were living in 3 FEMA trailers outside of this shotgun duplex house in the Seventh Ward. The floor crew started to tile one side of the house. Laminate was constructed in both sides of the house because there were plenty of volunteers to work at an efficient pace. The house was constructed with a true shotgun floor plan, with rooms aligned in a row.
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HOUSES + HOMEOWNERS UPCOMING PROJECTS + squatters in the homes - clean out belongings - get police involved if necessary + assess damage, scope of work to be done, any foreseeable building dilemmas + hire plumbers, electricians,+ mold remediators if necessary
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HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Rebirth in New Orleans
The houses were initially gutted after the storm with hopes to preserve as much of the existing structure and frame as possible. A building inspector justifies the percentile of damage to the house. The rebuilding phase can only begin if the damage is estimated to be between 40 and 60 percent. The neighborhoods were regulated by the Historic District Landmarks Commission for the approval to rebuild which caused a lot of delays. Some neighborhoods, such as the Lower Nineth Ward, restricted rebuilding areas due high percentage of damage rates. Many residents chose to demolish their houses instead of rebuilding them because it was cheaper. Rental homes were usually abandoned because they are funded collectively and no one can afford to rebuild. After a building permit is received, a structural engineer inspects the existing structure for strength and stability. Most of the houses we worked on had the orginal windows, very few had existing walls in good condition. Plaster was crafted to replace gaps in the existing structure. New windows were framed to mimick the existing window. Next, the house was put back together based on the wishes of the homeowner and whatever inexpensive supplies were available, not architecural accuracy. [31]
MODERN MOVEMENTS Modular homes are available as a rebuilding option because they are less expensive and faster to construct. The structures are factory built to comply with state, local, and regional building codes. These structures are also energy efficient and often cost effective, around $90 per square foot. It makes it easier to place a modular home on an existing foundation or newly constructed raised foundation.
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Another rebuilding optionis to rebuild on raised pilars to withstand hurricane winds in the future. Architects have designed a modular version of the shotgun house to relate to the classic New Orleans style house. Tin roofs and siding provide durability to resist damage from storms. Caribbean colors are still used to relate new homes to old neighborhoods.