Philadelphia, PA (October 14, 2010)
The Philadelphia chapter of the American Institute of Architects
(AIA) has recognized a PHA rehabilitation project in West
Philadelphia with one of its 2010 Awards for Design Excellence.
The project is located on the distressed 800 block of Markoe
Street and represents the final phase of the Lucien E. Blackwell
development. Seventeen homes will be renovated while six new homes
will be built on infill lots. Work on the redevelopment is well
under way.
Jibe Design, a small Center City firm that won a PHA competition
among young architects to handle the design, received an Honor
Award for unbuilt projects. Schwam Architects, the architect of
record for T.N. Ward, the construction manager for the development,
was also recognized.
"The strategy of keeping and renovating old salvageable,
existing buildings, and filling the gaps between them with new
construction, we found to be a sound, sensitive and intelligent
solution," the AIA award jury commented.
Hundreds of projects were entered in the AIA contest, but only
16, including Markoe Street, received awards.
"Winning an award for design excellence and sustainability is a
much needed and appreciated shot in the arm to the folks at the
housing authority who are working tirelessly to sustain and
maintain the level of excellence in development in the City," said
Michael Johns, PHA's General Manager of Community Development and
Design.
Juliet Whelan, the principal architect of Jibe Design, is
thrilled to have the opportunity to revitalize a street that has
seen better days.
"What makes the project stand out is that it does combine the
preservation with the new construction. We're respecting what's
already there as well as filling in the gaps," she said.
Whelan added that the design of this project brings the block
into the 21st century. Her design uses the facades of
existing homes as much as possible and emphasizes reuse of existing
materials. The plan also redesigns the interiors of the homes
according to modern standards with better lighting, better layout,
and no loss of comfort or design excellence. It considers cost,
energy savings, and impact on the environment.
PHA will have invested approximately $6.7 million once the
redevelopment of Markoe Street is completed. Johns said stimulus
funds from the federal government made the project possible.
"Without the stimulus dollars, it's not a project that we would
have necessarily done right now. Because we had already done
preliminary planning, we were ready to go when the dollars were
made available," he said.
Completion of the project is expected in early 2011. PHA worked
with neighbors and community groups on the redesign of the
block.
Captions:
Juliet-Street View 03
The design for PHA's Markoe Street redevelopment uses the
facades of existing homes as much as possible and emphasizes reuse
of existing materials.
MarkoeStreet Sept2010 13
17 homes will be rehabilitated while six new homes will be built
on infill lots under PHA's award winning Markoe Street
redevelopment. Work on the project is well under way.
Jibe pha 2
Juliet Whelan of Jibe Design (3rd from right)
receives the AIA honor award for her design of PHA's Markoe Street
redevelopment. Also shown (from left) are: Gerald Schwam and Kent
Cooper of Schwam Architects, and Ziaur Rahman, Gamil Hall, and
Michael Johns of PHA, and Jason Flax of Jibe Design.
