SINGLE speed DESIGN has turned the garbage from a big headache into an example of infrastructure reuse. The the construction of the Big Dig and the demolition of the old elevated highway through Boston, the state was left with a lot of material waste. Rather than pumping this back into the environment, SsD constructed an entire house out of the items. Built in Lexington, MA, as a prototype, the project was planned and executed to demonstrate the benefits this type of construction could provide.
Most importantly, the project demonstrates an untapped potential for the public realm: with strategic front-end planning, much needed community programs including schools, libraries, and housing could be constructed whenever infrastructure is deconstructed, saving valuable resources, embodied energy, and taxpayer dollars.
Tags: big dig, environment, infrastructure reuse, lexington, single speed design