Mayor White Unveils Model of Affordable, Sustainable Houston House

In September 2007 Rice Design Alliance (RDA) and AIA Houston organized a competition to design the home; 182 entries from 16 countries were received. On October 31, 2008 Mayor White helped turn the first dirt, marking the start of construction. Mayor White, RDA and AIA board members, and representatives from the Land Assemblage Redevelopment Authority (LARA) initiative, which donated the lot in the Fifth Ward, now hosted the June 16 ribbon cutting ceremony.

Organizers hope the house, designed by the winning team of Seattle architects Hybrid / ORA, will help rejuvenate the neighborhood, a goal of the Mayor’s Houston Hope program for struggling neighborhoods. The Tejano Community Center arranged the sale of the winning house.

The house is 1,200 square feet and has three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and an energy-efficient geothermal heating and cooling systems. The design is easily adaptable to any location. Organizers hope it will become a prototype for future affordable and sustainable housing in Houston. More details about the house and design competition are at http://www.the99khouse.com or http://rda.rice.edu.