Frances Peterson, ASLA and MF Architecture's Design Associate Ian M. Ellis, have received two AIA Design Excellence Awards in New York City for their collaborative research and proposal regarding autism, landscape architecture, building design on North Brother Island. The proposal includes a School + Habitat as an adaptive reuse project for an inclusionary learning facility for Autistic children, including supplementary public landscapes, research buildings and wildlife conservation areas. It is a necessary resource for New York City, which is heavily underserved in terms of schools addressing Autism Spectrum Disorder.
With an equal focus on buildings and landscapes, the project is designed with the intention to dissolve the negative history and stigma of the island, stabilize its naturalized growth as a habitat for protected birds nesting there, and introduce research and education programs to provide a comprehensive, innovative learning environment.
For details on the research and design, read more at Archdaily: http://www.archdaily.com/314629/north-brother-island-school-for-autistic-children-competition-entry-ian-m-ellis-frances-peterson
