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Change face of housing in downtown Kgn
Change face of housing in downtown Kgn
Published: Thursday | June 9, 2011 0 Comments
THE EDITOR, Sir:
IT IS good to see the Government doing something about the housing situation in downtown Kingston. Best of all, this is going to be used as a model. In order to get the bigger developments right we must get this model housing solution right. So what problems can we use this model to solve?
Space: Build up five storeys for five families - make the garage underground or ground floor and use the soil excavated to make berms and a roof garden. Berms double your gardening space and prevent your vegetable and produce gardens from getting flooded
Lack of green areas: Divide the land saved proportionately for the five families and give them a model garden that will satisfy some basic family needs - food, recreation, beauty (plant a few moringa trees - this tree supplies almost all nutritional needs and some medicinal needs).
Water: Harvest the rainwater to use for domestic purposes; install
dry toilet(s) to save water; recycle used water to the garden.
Electricity: Give them solar electricity - you know how inner-city residents hate to pay bills; get students to design solar ovens for cooking.
Disaster protection: Make the foundation strong and wider than the building so an earthquake won't topple it; anchor the building to the foundations so it will sway and fall back into position; make the roof light and strong so it will hold in an earthquake and support a roof garden.
If rainwater from the roof goes into storage it is also likely to prevent flooding - and, of course, the trees and vegetation will help to absorb and give off water. A full-grown tree can hold up to 84 gallons of water!
Let housing solutions be real housing solutions, not just ad hoc shelters so ugly they make you cringe, or so different from the style of the buildings around them they stick out like a sore thumb.
And for the Lord's sake, stop! Stop listening to the same old advisers, using the same old designers; the reason we are still poor is that they have no new ideas and the current ideas are not solving our problems in housing, crime, education or health! AMEN!
Elaine Hope avideducator@hotmail.com
Published: Thursday | June 9, 2011 0 Comments
THE EDITOR, Sir:
IT IS good to see the Government doing something about the housing situation in downtown Kingston. Best of all, this is going to be used as a model. In order to get the bigger developments right we must get this model housing solution right. So what problems can we use this model to solve?
Space: Build up five storeys for five families - make the garage underground or ground floor and use the soil excavated to make berms and a roof garden. Berms double your gardening space and prevent your vegetable and produce gardens from getting flooded
Lack of green areas: Divide the land saved proportionately for the five families and give them a model garden that will satisfy some basic family needs - food, recreation, beauty (plant a few moringa trees - this tree supplies almost all nutritional needs and some medicinal needs).
Water: Harvest the rainwater to use for domestic purposes; install
dry toilet(s) to save water; recycle used water to the garden.
Electricity: Give them solar electricity - you know how inner-city residents hate to pay bills; get students to design solar ovens for cooking.
Disaster protection: Make the foundation strong and wider than the building so an earthquake won't topple it; anchor the building to the foundations so it will sway and fall back into position; make the roof light and strong so it will hold in an earthquake and support a roof garden.
If rainwater from the roof goes into storage it is also likely to prevent flooding - and, of course, the trees and vegetation will help to absorb and give off water. A full-grown tree can hold up to 84 gallons of water!
Let housing solutions be real housing solutions, not just ad hoc shelters so ugly they make you cringe, or so different from the style of the buildings around them they stick out like a sore thumb.
And for the Lord's sake, stop! Stop listening to the same old advisers, using the same old designers; the reason we are still poor is that they have no new ideas and the current ideas are not solving our problems in housing, crime, education or health! AMEN!Elaine Hope avideducator@hotmail.com
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