Touring New Haven’s Contemporary Architecture - by Bike!
On Saturday, June 29th, as part of the final day of the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, Elm City Cycling organized an architecture tour that lead participating bikers to architecturally significant houses located across New Haven’s neighborhoods. Since 1989, first-year Yale architecture students have participated in an annual competition, held during their spring semester, for which they must design an innovative, affordable, and livable housing scheme. One winning design is selected, and the architecture students (and some faculty members) construct the house over the course of the summer. Along with Habitat for Humanity, Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven has frequently partnered with the Yale School of Architecture for the annual Building Project; NHS funds the project and sells the house to a first-time homebuyer.
The tour biked along a 10-mile route to visit 12 of these projects, all houses with the exception of the first completed project, which was the East Rock Park gazebo. There was no better way to view some of New Haven's best architecture sights! At tour's end, the 28 participants biked to 20 King Place in the Hill neighborhood. There, the homeowner greeted them with refreshment and a spread of snacks for the weary bikers. The real reward for many of the visitors was getting to see the inside of the contemporary-styled house and having a discussion with the homeowner about her experiences residing in it.
To read more about the Yale Building Projects that Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven has collaborated on, click here. To read more on the history of the Yale Building Project and more from the Yale School of Architecture, click here.
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