Architecture & Design: Rebuilding The Gulf Coast

Of the many stories you will be hearing, seeing, and reading this week regarding Katrina and her destructive aftermath, one of the most heartbreaking--and yet hopeful--involves the shape of the rebuilding effort. I think it's fair to say that we haven't seen a need for this level of reconstruction in my lifetime. The scope of the project is almost too mindboggling to comprehend, and the stories being told are at times positive and depressing, and sometimes both.

For example, in the focused media coverage on New Orleans, the damage to Mississippi has been glossed over or altogether forgotten, and as the Detroit Free Press reminds us, the Ole Miss is still suffering greatly under the yoke of bureaucracy, frustration, and despair. The state's economy is becoming almost wholly reliant on big-ticket casinos to bring in revenue, but at what price to its character, culture, and tradition?

The expertise of architects and designers can be found all over the place in the rebuilding effort, as in the case of Thom Mayne and his maverick designs. Mayne's argument is a good one--play to the strengths of the city and rebuild its potential as an environmental and social landmark, rather than becoming yet another glitzy City-Walk style tourist trap for rich folks.

But the devastation remains terrible, and the conspiracy of silence that falls over the rebuilding effort must be broken, particularly if that silence is due to a bored and ADD-addled media.

The rebuilding will continue. The Gulf Coast will rise again. But it will take far longer, cost far more, and force many to endure heartbreak and frustration for years to come. There is no quick fix. We need to accept that, and not let this American tragedy slip from our minds.

Our fellow Americans who suffered Katrina's wrath deserve no less.

Posted at August 29, 2006 02:21 PM

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Of the many stories you will be hearing, seeing, and reading this week regarding Katrina and her destructive aftermath, one of the most heartbreaking--and yet hopeful--involves the shape of the rebuilding effort. I think it's fair to say that we haven't seen a need for this level of reconstruction in my lifetime. The scope of the project is almost too mindboggling to comprehend, and the stories being told are at times positive and depressing, and sometimes both. For example, in the focused media coverage on New Orleans, the damage to Mississippi has been glossed over or altogether forgotten, and as the Detroit Free Press reminds us, the Ole Miss is still suffering greatly under the yoke of bureaucracy, frustration, and despair. The state's economy is becoming almost wholly reliant on big-ticket casinos to bring in revenue, but at what price to its character, culture, and tradition? The expertise of architects and designers can be found all over the place in the rebuilding effort, as in the case of Thom Mayne and his maverick designs. Mayne's argument is a good one--play to the strengths of the city and rebuild its potential as an environmental and social landmark, rather than becoming yet another glitzy City-Walk style tourist trap for rich folks. But the devastation remains terrible, and the conspiracy of silence that falls over the rebuilding effort must be broken, particularly if that silence is due to a bored and ADD-addled media. The rebuilding will continue. The Gulf Coast will rise again. But it will take far longer, cost far more, and force many to endure heartbreak and frustration for years to come. There is no quick fix. We need to accept that, and not let this American tragedy slip from our minds. Our fellow Americans who suffered Katrina's wrath deserve no less.