The New Faubourg Lafitte: New Orleans, Louisianna

NEW ORLEANS , LOUISIANA

In September of 2006, a process to rebuild Lafitte and provide 1,000 new homes within the TremĂŠ and Tulane-Gravier neighborhoods was begun.

Four years later, residents began moving back into the new Lafitte.

This is the graphic story of a long journey that started from devastation and succeeded through faith, collaboration, and perseverance.

– Urban Design Associates

Lafitte, five years ago. Boarded up.

Blocks of buildings betraying the surrounding pattern.

The New Faubourg Lafitte, as it is being constructed today.

Transformation realized by restoring the traditional fabric.

“

I want to see people coming back to something decent, something healthy. . . . There are a lot of people who think like

�

me who want something better than what they have now.

Miss Emelda Paul

Residents and stakeholders gave the design and development team rules...

5

1.

Create a Homebuilding Plan to Bring People Home as Quickly as Possible

2.

Build Homes to Build a Neighborhood

3.

Preserve Trees and Create a Village

4.

Respect Culture, Children, and History

5.

Offer Housing Choices

Rebuilding Lafitte was an opportunity to restore the historic block structure and reconnect the site to the adjacent neighborhoods.

{ Illustrative Site Plan }

The new block pattern and cross-sections respect the traditional manners of New Orleans’ streets and accommodate modern amenities of parking and servitudes for telecommunications and utilities.

Magic Street

N E W PA R K I N G ACC ES S D R I V E

NEW PUBLIC STREET

EXISTING PUBLIC STREET

RE- OPENED PUBLIC STREET

{ Street Types }

{ Lot and Building Types }

Tr e m ĂŠ P r e c e d e n t

Lafit te New Construction

Drawing on the vernacular house typologies and rich architectural traditions of TremĂŠ, Tulane-Gravier, and Marigny, designs balanced beauty, durability, and affordability.

Left

– Lafit te New Construction – Marigny Precedent

Opposite

Above

– HABS drawing of Girod House railing detail | Opposite – Detail sheet from schematic design set

SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL INVOLVED WHO HELPED BUILD THIS VISION

The Residents of Lafitte

Housing Authority of New Orleans Providence Community Housing

The City of New Orleans

Enterprise Community Partners

L+M Development Partners

Eskew+Dumez+Ripple LaQuatra Bonci Associates Michael Willis Architects Nicole Swerhun Schrenk & Peterson

PROJECT INFOR M ATION

When complete, this new mixed-income community on and around the 27-acre site of the former Lafitte public housing complex will feature 1,500 homes and apartments, representing a onefor-one replacement of all 900 subsidized apartments, and the development of an additional 600 homes for sale to working families and first-time homeowners. The first phase of 812 units is being built both on and off the former Lafitte site; 517 homes on-site and 244 in the surrounding community. The new development is being built to Enterprise Green Communities standards, incorporating healthy and energy-efficient building practices, materials, and systems. Š 2012 urban design associates site pl a n dr aw ings a nd m agic str ee t se c t ion designed w ith l aquatr a bonci a sso ci ates

faubourg, n { from French fauxbourg, perhaps a modification through folk etymology of Old French forsborc, from Latin foris outside & Old French borc burg } – a New Orleans district lying outside the original city limits