B-60: Brownwood Reborn

STUDENTS:
APARNA PRABU, ALFRED RIVERA, AND EDWIN TOVAR

PROFESSOR:
RAFAEL B. DURAN OF FERAL DELTA II STUDIO

GERALD D. HINES
COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

“There were several projects that addressed similar issues, and this one was the clearest as far as presenting a building which was believable but also had a social agenda at the same time. There was a logic to the presentation that was compelling. It told a story; it illustrated a story; and it gave it an architectural grounding throughout.”

—Michael Cadwell, FAIA

This speculative design proposal envisions a resilient, post-disaster future for the Texas Gulf Coast in 2060. In the aftermath of Hurricane B-60—a fictional Category 5 storm that permanently submerges the Brownwood Peninsula—the project reclaims the drowned landscape as a site for ecological and social renewal. At its center is the Gaia Device, a network of 16 floating modules that act as both refuge and regenerative infrastructure. Eac unit supports flexible living with sleeping pods, communal kitchens, wet labs, and climate-resilient safe zones. The system merges architecture with ecology through the cultivation of Gracilaria seaweed for insulation, filtration, and facade systems. Over time, the Gaia Device transforms from active shelter into a living reef, dissolving gradually into the seascape.