Porchdog [Tyler Residence]

Biloxi, USA

Photo © Timothy Hursley

Architects: Marlon Blackwell Architects

Location: 251 Holley St, Biloxi, USA
Year: 2009

The Porchdog house is a new affordable prototype for the Biloxi Model Homes Project sponsored by Architecture for Humanity. The program provides design services and financial assistance for families in East Biloxi whose houses were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. The Porchdog house addresses these challenges while complying with new environmental, structural, and FEMA regulations. The proposition of raising a home 11 feet above the ground introduces several issues that challenge the typology of the Gulf Coast streetscape and its urban identity. Among these is the traditional concept of having a porch that is an extension of the interior space.

The Porchdog house is a transformation of the traditional shotgun house. It retains the social and spatial relationship to the street, while providing the requisite protection from a potential Category 4 storm surge event. The house is raised above the ground and is essentially open at the street level, yet it still incorporates a stoop helping to form a porch. In addition, a steel entry stair with open stair risers (allowing the influx of storm surge water) and an enclosed concrete block storage room define the porch. Parking space for two cars is located behind.

Primary materials include steel construction up to the first level (wood structure above), exterior metal cladding, and bamboo flooring in the interior. Operable perforated metal shutters provide light control and storm security for window banks in the east and west elevations.