With the main goal of facing the challenges of recovery in the coastal urban neighborhoods of the Rockaways, the 'Resilient Rockaways' proposal by Brennan Baxley takes precedents from dune formation and creation. In doing so, their concept provides a local opportunity to defend the coastline while aiding in the recreational and participatory design of dunes. Building with nature, small infrastructure, and community effort, the design encourages social resiliency as well as promote a healthy shoreline. More images and architects' description after the break.
Focusing on the recovery, this constitutes reconstructing thinking, deciding the importance of scale, action and intervention. Feasibly the design for the rockaways will address coastal green infrastructure, and establish new working relationships within the community. The proposal called for an investigation of natural ecological systems that are present in the barrier peninsula because the Rockaways are part of the coastal plain, which studies include the ecosystems of coastlines and land use management.
Taking precedents from the dunes, oncoming waves should be absorbed, and water distributed by the geo-morphological terrains. Natural coastal ecology has large part aiding in coastline defense. Vegetation has the ability to stabilize a dune, by structuring shape through roots, which prevents wave inundation as well as wind forces. Additionally, wetland buffers (or agricultural fields) may be implemented since they can serve as retention, permitting landward flooding.
Public involvement can help generate new ideas, iterate proposals through elaboration and refinement, and assess alternative strategies for reconstruction of the Rockaways. The redesign can help for a greater rate of communication in resiliency. This methodology and implementation is intended for future events including sea level rise, and high stress phenomena such as hurricanes and storm surges. Re-planning and modifying the community will encourage more spaces to become ecologically sensitive and contribute to adaptability by creating participatory territories within the grid.
