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2007 Committee On Design Ideas Competition "A Fountain
of Use"
"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to
front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not
learn what it had to teach…."
“I did not need to go outdoors to take the air, for the
atmosphere within had lost none of its freshness. It was not so
much within doors as behind a door where I sat, even in the
rainiest weather.”
—Henry David Thoreau, Walden
PRESENTED BY
The American Institute of Architects
Committee on Design
In conjunction with the AIA conference, "The Rejuvenation of
American Cities on the Water", April 12–15, 2007
COMPETITION JURY
Julie Sinclair Eakin CITE Magazine Houston
Raymond Jungles, FASLA Miami
Peter Magyar Florida Atlantic University Fort Lauderdale
Chad Oppenheim, AIA Oppenheim Architecture + Design Miami
ABOUT THE AIA COMMITTEE ON DESIGN
The AIA Committee on Design was founded to promote design
excellence among members of the AIA and the broader design
community, both nationally and internationally, and with the public
at large. In realizing this mission, the committee promotes a range
of activities intended to encourage a dialogue on the art of
building.
2007 AIA COMMITTEE ON DESIGN SPONSOR
USG Inc.
COMPETITION ORGANIZERS/CONFERENCE COCHAIRS
James Bowen, AIA Bowen Architecture Sarasota, FL
Roberto Espejo, AIA Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects Miami
Michael Ross, FAIA HGA Architecture | Engineering | Planning Los
Angeles
CHALLENGE
Fountain of Use is a design ideas competition exploring the
meaningful use of water as a component of urban planning. As the
COD convenes in Miami to examine the rejuvenation of cities on the
water, the competition entries will contribute to the general
discussion by illustrating concepts about the responsible use of
water within a developing urban design framework along a
waterfront. The challenge is the identification of the myriad
potential roles of water in sustaining the contemporary waterfront
city and the design of elements that fulfill those roles.
The competition title suggests a traditional fountain or the
legendary Fountain of Youth as a source of rejuvenation.
Competition participants are encouraged to be mindful of the
extraordinary importance of water, its use, and consumption by our
current society and in particular the built environment.
Participants are encouraged to consider the sustainable design
opportunities in relation to the scale of this site and the
potential rejuvenation of the city of Miami.
PROGRAM
In keeping with the primary purpose of idea generation, the
traditional design program is substituted by a thesis or
proposition. The thesis should be clearly developed and briefly
described. The thesis shall generate the particular program for
each participant’s entry. The participant is responsible for
determining the necessary information to convey both the thesis and
to describe the design of the elements of the plan, project, or
system.
SITE
The site consists of the open space along the Downtown Miami
Waterfront extending from Museum Park on the north to Bayfront Park
on the south, Biscayne Bay to the east and Biscayne Blvd. on the
west. Museum Park is the future site for the Miami Museum of Art by
Herzog & de Meuron, which is currently under design. The AA
Arena is home to the Miami Heat and serves as a venue for cultural
events. Bayside Marketplace is a small outdoor shopping center
built in the mid-1980s with a marina. Bayfront Park is Miami's
first waterfront park, established in 1924. Bisecting this site is
Port Boulevard, bridging to the Port of Miami. Further to the north
is the Carnival Center for the Performing Arts, completed in
October 2006 by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and featuring two
structures flanking an oval Arts Plaza bisected by Biscayne
Blvd.
CRITERIA
Design Excellence: Entries should exhibit a compelling and useful
strategy for the role of water within this specific urban condition
and emphasize the ecological importance of water as a natural
resource.
- Acknowledgement of Place: Cities on the water
have a distinct history and physical relationship. Miami is a
unique place, environmentally, culturally, and socially. Entries
will be considered for their responses to these
characteristics.
- Sustainable Design: The prevalence of water,
shallow groundwater, storm water treatment and retention, as well
as storm surge from hurricane events are primary issues for the
application of appropriate sustainable design strategies in
Florida. How should evolving and redeveloping urban areas address
these issues?
- Design Process: How do innovative design
methods promote creativity and generate great design? Collaborative
and interdisciplinary teams are encouraged to participate.
COMPETITION WINNERS (listed in alpha
order)
La Nueva Costanera de Miami (The New
Miami Waterfront)
Mike Mense, FAIA and Ron Andersen
 "We propose to
strengthen Miami’s relationship with water by bringing
downtown Miami back to the waterfront by bringing the waterfront to
downtown Miami." - Competition Team
Jury Comments
Exuberance and wit characterize the Mywater concept and it
ultimately proved irresistible among a few other entries that also
made a canal of Biscayne Boulevard. The vision proposed here is one
we would actually enjoy experiencing—a return of wildlife to
its habitat, for instance, together with the recognition of and
respect for the site’s urban bones. Taking the opposite
approach from the carefully considered PALM, the sheer scale of
unbridled ambition and optimism here was refreshing. Not
“How?” but “Why couldn’t it work?” is the
question we couldn’t ignore.
PALM (Planting in the Aquifer for a
Livable Miami)
Wendy Evans Joseph, FAIA
Farzana Gandhi
Jonathan Lee
Thruston Pettus Jr.
"PALM introduces a micro-approach to desalinating the Biscayne
Aquifer, providing Miami with a sustainable source of potable water
and a cohesive scheme for waterfront infrastructure." - Competition
Team
Jury Comments
Notably, PALM was the only project that specifically mentioned
sustainability in its description.
The designers’ original approach to thinking about the
city’s (and specifically this site’s) future won us over.
They identified a genuine need and, in proposing this
desalinization initiative, interpreted the competition’s
program challenges in a meaningful way. The technology is appealing
in its simplicity—we felt that some version of the idea could
actually be made to work.
By focusing their energies on a very particular, useful aspect of
water, they were able to deliver a comprehensive proposal in very
little time.
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