Generating Alternative Designs Method

Generating Design Alternatives: (Mission and Philosophy)

After the field studies were conducted and the information was gathered, determining the functionality of the local existing interventions was crucial to this stage of the project. After extensive background reviews of the SUDS literature and talking with Dr. Winter, the three main interventions used to redirect water that appeared to be feasible included; soakaways, swales, and infiltration trenches. Other interventions, such as piping, were determined to be impractical for an environment such as Monwabisi Park, due to the possible misuse and improper management of such a system. Soakaways, swales and infiltration trenches are located on the surface of the ground and provide easy access for cleaning and upkeep, which our team agreed would allow these systems to function the most efficiently considering the conditions of the area. The team also determined that a wetland behind the houses at the end of the road would be an appropriate option for the final collection of water.

Obtaining the community’s input on the different interventions was critical to building and managing these interventions. Therefore, we went back to the hot spots with a new set of questions to interview the residents about their thoughts on the selected SUDS interventions that we were interesting in implementing. Using SolidWorks, Button prepared computer-generated drawings of each intervention to show to the residents while conducting interviews  in order to help them visualize the final, finished product. We were also able to point out where the interventions would be placed using the floorplans that Muniz created, so that we could obtain feedback from the residents regarding an appropriate location that everyone involved could agree on. In addition, our team was able to work outside of the houses and use stones as place markers to show the residents exactly where the intervention would be placed.  This allowed the residents to engage in an interactive conversation with us, and they were able to physically show us what their thoughts were and which plans would be the most beneficial to them.

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