Waterman Gardens

DCE and Hyphae Design Laboratory are working together on an incredible project for the San Bernardino Housing Authority, which could serve as a great model for Green Infrastructure in Oakland. We are working with Pyatok Architects, to convert old Army Housing into LEED certified affordable housing, doubling the density of units. Aging and under-built city infrastructure is a particularly important design constraint, in regards to both wastewater and stormwater. In consulting with City engineers and reviewing water infrastructure, a doubling of the both stormwater and wastewater flow might cause capacity issues downstream of the site. Instead of agreeing to the conventional solution of removing streets and upsizing pipes, our strategy has been to not only maintain but actually decrease the off-site stormwater and wastewater flows, while doubling Waterman  Gardens’ population.

Location: San Bernadino, CA