“”I wanted to float it down the Mississippi River to New Orleans…You have to build a house for the environment, for the reoccurrence of hurricanes, but it can also be energy efficient.” Thom Mayne
Called the FLOAT House, the unique home aims to answer the challenge posed by the Big Easy’s flood risk, starkly illustrated by the rising waters of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Residents must qualify through the foundation to be eligible for the floating house or other homes being built by Pitt’s group. They must have lived in the Lower 9th Ward before Hurricane Katrina struck the area in August 2005. In case of a flood, the base of the house acts as a raft, allowing the home to rise on guide posts up to 12 feet as water levels rise. In the Lower 9th Ward, which saw some of the worst flooding in the city during Katrina, floodwater reached as high as 12 feet.
