UW students win design contest in New Orleans

A team of architecture graduate students from the University of Washington won the 2007 Design/Build Challenge in New Orleans for an interactive, tiered structure they designed for a New Orleans park.

Entrants were given 44 hours to find a client in recovering neighborhoods of the city, determine need, propose a design, raise money, build the project and present it to the independent jury.

The UW students designed a small chest of drawers for the Freret Park, a public park in the 13th Ward of New Orleans that needed seating, according to participating student Carl von Rueden.

Called "Push/Pull," tiers slide in and out of a cedar box structure for adjustable seating. A butterfly roof also helps rainwater drain, and waters a magnolia tree, planted to provide shade. Freret Park lost most of its trees due to Hurricane Katrina, according to von Rueden.

Projects for the mid-March competition were judged on how well they fulfill client needs; design and creativity; use of materials, including salvaged and reused sources; and completion of the project within the time frame. The UW project cost about $600.

The architecture team included students Travis Anderson, Gia Mugford, Andre Taybron, von Rueden, and Adrienne Wicks.

Nicole Tsong,

Seattle Times staff reporter