On May 24th, students gave their final presentations which capped off the 2015-2016 Greater Bridgeport Chapter’s ACE Program year. Our 14th year involved in the program, this year was a little different than previous years as the Wednesday Team (Trumbull/Shelton Team) faced off against the Thursday Team (Bridgeport/Shelton Team) for the Annual Christiano Emeritus trophy. The leaders of both teams decided on a final project which consisted of revitalizing Seaside Village in Bridgeport, CT. Each team broke off into two groups to create their design for a multi-family dwelling to tie into the historical area of Seaside Village.
During the school year, the ACE students met every other week to discuss various applications of Architecture, Construction, and Engineering. Students were taught the basics of each field and incorporated what they had learned into their final projects; from HVAC systems, to utilizing a Gantt chart to demonstrate how their project will stay on schedule and on budget.
All four groups had vastly different designs and ways of conveying their material. There was mixed media utilized between the groups, from hand drawn plans and elevations to 3D computer models. One of the Bridgeport groups went as far as having interior finishes, (i.e. wood, tile, and carpet samples) to show the judges their ideas for bringing Seaside Village into the 21st Century, while still paying homage to the historical features in the neighborhood. Alternatively, the other group constructed a physical 3D model from materials they had on hand.
All in all, the four groups did a great job battling through nerves of presenting as well as the constructive criticism from the panel of judges. Alas, there could only be one winner and this year it went to one of the Wednesday Teams. However, after talking with the underclassman students, they are excited to come back in the fall for a chance to redeem the trophy for the Bridgeport/Stratford Team.
By Philip Stevens, Associate AIA
Architectural Designer / ACE Mentor