AIA4SHELTER / Aletheia House DESIGN COMPETITION

Q & A
Provided below are answers to frequently asked questions about the competition. Please browse through the subjects to view questions and answers relating to your inquiry. Links throughout the answers will guide you to further information on the competition Web site. Please submit any further questions via email before 5:00 pm on January 11, 2008. Please email questions to aiabirm@aiabham.org with “design competition” as the subject.

Please note that you will not receive a direct response to this email. Answers will be posted on this page by January 16, 2008.

WHY DO I NEED TO REGISTER?
To ensure fairness, the competition jury will examine the submitted proposals anonymously. To make this anonymity possible, competitors will receive a unique Registration Number upon completion of the registration process. Registration also helps the competition organizers manage the juried competition more efficiently.

What additional information will I receive after I register?
After registering and submitting payment, you will receive a Registration Number, an email will follow with a link to the lot survey and photographs of the site. All additional information will be posted on this Web site.

Can competitors submit more than one entry to the competition?
Only one entry is permitted per Registration Number. Competitors who wish to submit more than one entry must register separately for each submission.

Are there any tours scheduled of the competition site?
No. Complete information, photographs of the site and neighborhood, and the site plan will be available from this website.

Can I access the site CAD file before registering?
Yes. All information will be available from this website prior to registering. Please keep in mind that if your registration is not received by registration deadline, your submission will not be accepted.

As a competitor, am I permitted to use the competition images on my boards?
Yes. The photographs provided on the Web site are provided for use on presentation boards if competitors so choose.

Could you please provide more details about the printing?
Submitted pdfs will be printed using a large-format digital inkjet printer at 150 dpi using CMYK inks on heavyweight paper. The boards will be mounted on foam core and laminated with a matte finish to protect them from wrinkles and fading.

Will I receive additional information in the mail?
No, all information is available on this Web site or by email to registered participant. There is no additional print information.

What scale should my submitted drawings be?
Your drawings and rendering may be presented at any scale, but the graphic scale should be noted on the drawing.

Can I write more than 250 words for the project description?
No, 250 words should be adequate to describe your project and should be included on your board.

What is the zoning and what are the setbacks?
The site is zoned R3. The front and back building setbacks are 25 ft.. The side setbacks are 5 ft. min. on one side, with a total of 14 ft. min. on both sides. In other words, you could have 5 ft. on one side and 9 ft. on the other or 7 ft. on both sides. The max. building height is 35 ft.

There is a word count specified for the essay, but does that apply to the board as well? We noticed there are some very specific requirements for titling (size, font, etc), would that also apply to the rest of the text on the presentation board?
The 250 word project statement is to be on the board (it can overlap graphics so long as it is legible) in addition you need to submit the same text on the CD as a separate word file (.doc) so that we can print it out and give the jurors each a copy of it – the only identification in the word file should be your registration number in the top right corner. The specific font sizes only refer to the registration number on the board

Is it assumed that most of the entries will be seeking various donors in order to meet the $100k construction budget, or is the $100k mark meant to be donation-free?
The 100K cost is intended to be the total construction cost of the house. It does not include the cost of the site (acquisition). I am sure that Aletheia House would welcome donations, but they will not be considered by the jury. -We assume site work like landscaping and plantings are included in the design team budget, but do we also need to factor in things like site excavation or infill? Yes, those would be part of the basic budget. But keep in mind you are not required to provide any documentation of the cost of the house. The jury will be evaluating each entry using a common sense approach. If your board shows an elaborate patio that looks like it might cost $50,000 to build by itself, that would probably be an indication that the total scheme could not be built for 100K. A similar question was asked by another competitor and I have included the question and answer below.

How are we supposed to demonstrate that our project can be achieved within the minimum budget requirements you have posted? I’ve looked at various websites online that use basic indicators to project building expense (sq.ft. and materials) – but this is really as close as I have been able to come. I was simply going to print this document and submit along with my written statement. Is this satisfactory? Will the judges themselves make this evaluation?
The judges will make this evaluation. It is probably a good idea to check your estimated cost as you mention, with the basic indicators, however, you do not need to submit it. The written statement is required to be included on the board, and I would not think you would want to waste precious space with a general cost summary which really doesn’t mean that much to start with. I think the judges will just be using practical evaluations such as if your design was a 1400 sq. ft. house with a dry stacked stone veneer on all sides and up into the gables, with a steep pitched roof and calling out slate shingles, it is probably not reasonable that that could be built for $100,000. On the other hand, if your design also showed how money was saved in other areas in order to use these more expensive materials and how this was a sustainable solution that fit the neighborhood context, then the jury might feel it still met the affordability requirements. (the stone and slate were just two expensive materials that I thought of off the top of my head to use as an example – don’t read anything into that one way or the other).