the mit simmons hall housemasters, with the blessing of architect steven holl (designer of the ultimate sponge on campus!) and in coordination with mit’s senseable city laboratory, are launching the following design competition:

/eligibility. the competition is open to all residents of simmons hall. all students at mit and harvard university, especially those in the school of architecture and planning, are encouraged to participate by creating teams that include at least one simmons hall resident. the simmons hall resident must have an active role and will be responsible for presenting the projects to the jury. people with family or professional links with members of the jury may not participate to the competition. news 31march 2005: groups are strongly encouraged to team up with simmons hall residents but this is not anymore a strict requirement to enter the competition.

/aims. the competition addresses two sets of issues. first, some practical issues: a) the need to make changes to the 8th floor terrace and add an additional fire escape so that it can be more accessible and host groups larger than 49; b) the necessity to create a physical or digital infrastructure for internal communication among residents of simmons hall. second, the competition is a unique opportunity to suggest any other change of or addition to the building, such as improvements to the multi-purpose room seating, the other terraces of the building (including the roof, which is currently not accessible) or the internal lounges. proposed changes can include both the building and its furnishings.

/submission. one or more 11x17 boards with sketches and/or plans and/or images, accompanied by text. the presentation techniques should not discourage anyone from participating -- the jury will evaluate ideas more than the way they are represented.

/evaluation. criteria for evaluation. how well the design responds to the first set of practical issues, giving consideration to implementation cost. it is expected that they will be implemented after the design competition, subject to approval by the house committee and mit’s housing department. the jury will also strongly take into account all other visionary aspects related to the use of simmons hall that might be proposed – although they might be implemented at a later stage.

/prizes. the winner of the competition will receive 500 dollars. two honorable mentions will also be awarded.

/timeline. teams should express their interest in participating to the competition by 7 april midnight (they should send an e-mail to <drill-a-hole@simmons.mit.edu>). designs should be submitted as printouts and in electronic form (on a CD) by 14 april midnight (news 31 march 2005: the new submission date is 20 april 2005 midnight; the public jury session will be held in simmons hall on 22 april afternoon). a public jury session will be held in mit simmons hall afterwards. team members, including the simmons hall resident, will be invited to present their projects.

/jury. see the ‘jury’ link on the webpage senseable.mit.edu/competition.

/additional. more information, including the plans of the whole building, can be found online. for questions, please send an e-mail to <drill-a-hole@simmons.mit.edu>.