From the AIA Newsletter:In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina we are hearing from two distinct groups of people: our fellow architects in the Gulf States who have lost or sustained considerable damage to their homes and offices and those AIA members seeking to provide assistance to their colleagues in need. Funds are needed to help sustain people over the next 4-6 weeks so that payrolls can be met, food and clothing can be purchased and staff can be retained for the work ahead.
( Read more... )These are not the only efforts underway.
From humanitarian aid to assisting with structural assessments, AIA is working to focus the generosity and prolific skills of our members to the greatest benefit. When it is time to consider the future of the hardest-hit places, these communities will need the help of everyone, but especially the architect. Who better than the architects from New Orleans, Gulfport and elsewhere to play a leading role in shaping things? To do that, they need to be back up on their feet. You can help them today.
Below is an email from one of the displaced architects in New Orleans. He writes in response to an email from an AIA staff member, Jennifer Barry, inquiring to see how he is and if there is anything we can do to help. In reading his response you will sense how we can help – how we must help.
-----Original Message-----
From: Ron Blitch
Sent: Sunday, September 04, 2005 3:15 PM
To: Barry, Jennifer
Subject: Re: Let me know if there is anything we can do to help
Jennifer - thank you so much - we are all safe and opening an office in Baton Rouge next week, next to Skipper Post's office. Skipper has "adopted" our firm and we will be under his wing for a few months. (God bless Skipper and his staff!) I know my office survived the wind and flooding, but we don't know about the looting yet, or when we can return. The critical thing for all of our New Orleans firms is going to be cash flow - we need work to sustain our staffs - all of our current projects locally will be in suspension for months, and our accounts receivable won't start to pay again for several months, until a city and its basic services can be restored. My largest client - Memorial Hospital at Gulfport - has been devastated and all of the staff has no homes left! The magnitude of all of this is incomprehensible.
I hope that you can forward this to Norman Koonce - I think that AIA should immediately take the lead in the rebuilding of New Orleans. Who better than architects to put their arms around a complex problem, understand it, listen well, study hard, and develop solutions?
The city will need:
Stabilization - stop the water and drain New Orleans
Restore services - probably to the CBD first - where the wind and water was least - and the only damage was looting
Master Plan - develop an inclusive planning structure to start to identify the problems, prioritize the needs and decide what to do next
Implementation - Coordinate with federal, state, and local authorities the roll-out of the solutions and the plan to pay for it.
I am still traumatized by all this - it has been horrific and terrifying, and many other AIA minds can certainly improve on this start - but we need to move quickly - we need to find emergency funding for basic needs for our staffs.
Please know that our firm is ready to help - needs to help - has to help, the best way to avoid complete collapse in this catastrophe is to work and work hard. Please pass this along - Ron Blitch FAIA
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