FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 3, 2011
Contact: Daniel Groce Tel. 478/742-5084 E-mail: dgroce@historicmacon.org
COMMUNITY INVITED TO DESIGN NEW HOUSES FOR MACON’S HISTORIC DISTRICT (Macon, GA) When most people think of “moving up,” they think bigger. A new movement called the “small house” movement is contradicting this paradigm by promoting better-designed smaller spaces. Historic Macon Foundation, a national leader in neighborhood revitalization, is pioneering the small house movement in Middle Georgia by hosting a community design charrette on Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 6pm at the Cox Capitol Theatre, 382 Second St. in historic downtown Macon. The charrette is being sponsored by the College Hill Alliance. Members of the public, especially those who have considered moving downtown, are invited to attend this free event to give advice and actually perform design work on three new small houses. The charrette is being led by Bob Brown, AIA, of local architecture firm Brittain Thompson Bray Brown. Mr. Brown is noted for his sensitive additions to historic Alexander II school on College St. and his design work for the hip, modern and funky rehabilitations at Francar’s, Ingleside Village Pizza and Jittery Joe’s in Mercer Village. President and Chair of the Board of Trustees Jeff Logan noted, “Bob Brown’s architecture honors the fabric of historic buildings while mixing in modern design and a college-town-cool aesthetic. He has received numerous awards for traditional historic preservation projects and new construction.” The audience will be able to participate in the charrette by using brand new technology from the Knight Neighborhood Challenge at the Community Foundation of Central Georgia. Credit-card-sized voting devices will be used to poll the audience for such questions as “How much time do you spend cooking?” Answers to these questions will be displayed live on the big screen and will be used to create floorplans for these new small houses. “Every inch matters in a small house and we want to design spaces that people will use and love. We need to know how people in Macon live to create the best small house possible,” said architect Bob Brown. Brown continued, “Small houses are inherently more energy efficient and focus attention on the quality of space rather than quantity.” Historic Macon Foundation continues to lead the nation in finding new life for historic urban neighborhoods. “Because the Beall’s Hill neighborhood has so many empty lots, some new construction is required,” said Executive Director Josh Rogers. “If we have to build new, we want these houses to have exceptional quality in design, construction and energy efficiency to last as long as their historic neighbors and engender the same respect.”
The designs created in collaboration with audience members will be constructed immediately in Beall’s Hill as part of Historic Macon Foundation’s neighborhood revitalization program, funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Hills and Heights Development Corporation. “This is one case where attendees’ contributions in this charrette will immediately take shape as the houses are built in Beall’s Hill. I hope everyone interested in downtown Macon will come lend their ideas and advice for an hour at 6pm on March 3 at the Cox Capitol Theatre,” Josh Rogers said in closing. Historic Macon is a nonprofit organization that advocates for Macon’s historic and architectural heritage and facilitates preservation efforts in the community, revitalizes Macon’s neighborhoods and interprets the Sidney Lanier Cottage. For more information, visit www.historicmacon.org or call 478.742.5084. ###