The Materials Book
234 situation further exacerbated by flooding during the rainy season. Different strategies were applied in an effort to rebuild the isthmian towns as quickly as possible, some of which ended up being more damaging than helpful. Short-sighted approaches neglected to plan for a long-term rebuilding process, dumped debris into local rivers, and reconstructed houses with cheap materials, disregarding traditional building methods that provide natural light, ventilation, and open spaces. Juchitán has a population of 74,825 and is located in the state of Oaxaca in the southeast of the country. It is one of four towns located along the Los Perros River. The flatness of the land, a high rainfall (900 millimeters a year), and an underdeveloped drainage system lead to flooding in the urban areas during storms. Additionally, the isthmus is extremely vulnerable to earthquakes; in 2018, there were 30,350 tremors in Mexico, and 65.7 percent of them occurred in the state of Oaxaca. Reconstruction after the September 2017 earthquakes meant not only rebuilding lost homes and public buildings but also addressing issues of flood prevention, debris disposal, construction efficiency, and the reuse of materials. The demolition of buildings had polluted the Los Perros River and the sewer infrastructure was highly damaged, provoking drastic health problems, especially during floods. The scarce number of public spaces in town, which are necessary for community cohesion during times of crisis, lacked basic maintenance. Taller Capital was approached by the Mexico City office of MK Illumination, an Austrian lighting company, to refurbish a particular damaged public space in Juchitán with the aim of benefiting children. The local architecture firm Root Studio had been working on the reconstruction process in Juchitán. They led us to the Children’s Recreational Center Hidalgo (CRI Hidalgo), which was partly reconstructed after having been severely damaged in the earthquake but still lacked a plan and money to refurbish the entire public space. Together with Nadyeli Quiroz, who had been researching the effects of debris in the river and the region, Taller Capital formulated a hypothesis: public spaces in Juchitán should function as alternate water management infrastructure as well as resilient spaces that are prototypes of efficient and sustainable construction systems. The plan for CRI Hidalgo includes an outdoor cistern that collects rainwater, which is then filtered into an underground water storage. Outside of the rainy season the space can be used as a playground as well as an auditorium, with the brick steps that separate the cistern area from the basketball court functioning as seating. For teenagers, there is a small
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