A team led by Daniel Daou (DDes 15) has won the 1st place in the 16th Arquine International Architecture Competition with the entry “Umbral de las Américas.” Collaborators include Elizabeth Añaños, Adriana Chavez (MArch II, MDesS 14), Oscar Malaspina (MAUD 13), Gabriel Morales (AA MArch 11), Nicolas Rivard (MAUD 12) and Einat Rosenkrantz (MAUD 13).
Attracting 410 teams from 22 countries, the competition addresses the Tijuana and San Ysidro transit point between Mexico and the US, where “twin phenomena, migration and tourism, endow the busiest border crossing in the world with a unique and unprecedented permanence.” The competition brief called for a pedestrian bridge above the Tijuana River for immigrants crossing the border to and from San Diego.
The winning scheme eschewed a bridge in favor of a slanted plaza that merged into a constructed wetland. The team suggested this approach could be replicated along the river replacing the existing dam upstream with a series of smaller terraced dams that could help renew the river’s ecological services. In the official announcement, the jury recognized the proposal for the simplicity of means with which it addresses not only local architectural and urban concerns but ecological and infrastructural aspects regionally.