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“Can an Architect Save the Great Lakes from Asian Carp?
Mark Boyer. Jan 2, 2012
The Great Lakes are facing an invasive species crisis. Asian carp, a group of foreign invaders with no known predators and a voracious appetite, are threatening one of the greatest fresh water resources in the world. Elected officials and the Army Corps of Engineers have failed to act, and the situation is dire. But architect Jeanne Gang sees an opportunity to clean up the river, to improve Chicago’s water treatment system, and to revitalize a neighborhood.
Just weeks after becoming the first architect in more than a decade to win a MacArthur genius grant, Gang released a slender book outlining her vision of how to fix the Chicago River. Reverse Effect, which is the result of a yearlong collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council, advocates completely separating Lake Michigan from the Mississippi River basin and restoring the natural flow of the Chicago River. Not only would the separation prevent carp and other invasive species from traveling between the Mississippi and the Great Lakes, Gang’s proposal would use a physical barrier as a catalyst to reimagine an urban neighborhood and to introduce green infrastructure to Chicago’s South Side.”Via: The Atlantic
Image: Jeanne Gang’s vision for carp-free Great Lakes/ Gang Studio Architects
The project is located at East 156th Street and Brook Avenue and is a 20-story, 222-unit building for working-class people. But what is unusual and unique about Via Verde with many other public housing projects is its emphasis on improving the quality of the health of its residents. And unlike the Soviet-style brutalist style of architecture, the planners of Via Verde, who were selected in an architectural competition, placed an importance on aesthetics and quality design not often seen in low-income housing projects, which often prioritize maximizing the number of apartment units.
Unlike so many public-housing projects, Via Verde rethinks the mix of private and public spaces to encourage residents to spend time outside, in the fresh air. It breaks the mold of subsidized housing whereby clinics, low-income rentals and home ownership are all conceived, financed and regulated separately. Piecing them together, it takes the healthier, holistic tack. Healthy design comes down to fundamentals in this case: air, light, places to stroll, things to look at.
