On the Boards: Office/Warehouse

MG'er Rey Zamora, Architect, has designed an office/warehouse for a development firm in McAllen. The 10,000 SF facility is a part of the second phase of a master planned office/warehouse complex owned by the firm and contains several sustainable features to optimize working conditions.

Texas Southmost College - Architecture Department - Student Design Work on Affordable Housing

Our own Chris Collins, AIA and Hector Rene Garcia, Architect/Partner took part in a design review session for the students of Murad Abusalim, Ph.D., at Texas Southmost College in Brownsville. Their project was single family affordable housing. Other jurors included:  Jesse Miller of BCWorkshop; Oscar Atkinson of the Brownsville Housing Authority; John Pearcy of Megamorphosis Architects; Mick Mitchell Bennet of the Community Development Corporation of Brownsville (CDCB); Ramiro Gonzalez of the City of Brownsville Planning Department and Erick Darbo Diaz of Orange Made Architects.

Juan Ramon Cantu (left), Wilbert Lopez (second from right) and Jesus Hernandez (right) present their class research on affordable housing and the sites selected for their projects. 

Jesus Hernandez present his design, a compact plan with a wrap-around porch, highlighted by the use of clearstory windows and exposed structural elements.

Juan Ramon Cantu's concept had a functional floor plan with his main emphasis on the manipulation of the angles and various orientations of the roof 

 Oscar Olvera divided the public and private areas of his house into pods that opened up to patio areas, a modular plan that can be adapted into various layouts.

Pedro Rodriguez based his concept on an H-Plan that separated public and private areas.

Armando Sosa's concept was based on a C-Plan; all rooms having access to a central courtyard.  Clerestory windows and sliding glass doors deliver light to the interior.

Jose Gonzalez designed a compact plan that featured two deck areas, one public, one private.  The main feature was a clerestory window that would bring natural lighting into the interior of the house.

Diana Melissa Andrade presented a design that will dictate a different lifestyle for the inhabitants of the house.  The public areas (living, dining, kitchen) have their own unit while the private spaces (bedrooms and bathrooms) are in a separate unit.  The two units are joined by porches.  Clerestory windows bring daylight deep into the interior spaces.

Wilbert Lopez provided conceptual sketches and models of his design.

An excellent presentation by the students of Texas Southmost College - Architecture Program.  These second year students (first year design studio) are on track to transfer at the end of their second year to Texas Tech University in Lubbock.  Continued success to all!

Sustainability - Permaculture Design

The University of Texas - Pan American's Office of Sustainability (led by Marianella Franklin and her staff) offered Part One of a two part series - Permaculture Design Intensive Workshop - October 30th through November 2nd.  Mata+Garcia's own Hector Rene Garcia attended this fascinating workshop.

The course covered sustainable living systems for a wide variety of landscapes and climates. It included the application of permaculture principles to food production, home design & construction, energy conservation and generation, and explored the social and economic structures that support a culture that cares for the planet and all its inhabitants. Part I: October 30th to November 2nd, 2014. Part II: January 8th to 12th, 2015.

Topics included in the first workshop were:  Permaculture Ethics and Principles; Observation and Pattern Understanding; Concepts, Themes and Methods of Design; Climate; Landform and Earthworks; Measuring Tools, The Backyard Farmer; Water  & Keyline, Access and Circulation; Vegetation & Wildlife; Plants, Gardening and Farming; Seed Saving; Plant Propagation, Grafting; Gardening & Farming Systems; Plants and Trees; Plant Walk, Plant Guilds; Health use of Animals in Permaculture Systems. 

The funding for this workshop was provided by an anonymous donor. Many thanks to the foundation and the Office of Sustainability for offering this workshop, course material and meals at no cost to the attendees. Garcia said: "Everything was top notch and I met some incredible people that are practicing a sustainable lifestyle right here in the Rio Grande Valley."