Power Art
Design Competition

The City of Dallas received nearly 50 submissions for the Power Art Competition. A competition designed to generate ideas to help us rethink about how we view and address public infrastructure. The neighboring community had the opportunity to view and give their input on the ideas submitted at a stakeholders meeting held at the Bataan Center. Residents, business owners and property owners attended the meeting to give their input. The community deeply enjoyed the opportunity to view so many different and creative ideas. After a full morning of our selection panel reviewing and voting, three winners were selected. These winners will be given a monetary stipend to expand upon their ideas and present their concepts to the public. Additionally, three projects were also chosen for honorable mention.

Winners:

1st - Scott Armstrong  |  view design  |  Site Specific  |  Video
2nd - Brandon Smith & Eloy R. Cavazos  |  view design  |  Site Specific
3rd - Michael Beene  |  view design  |  Site Specific  |  Video

Honorable Mentions:

Community Choice, Mohamed Ahmed  |  view design
Sustainable Approach, William Roberts & Laura Satin  |  view design
Creative Technology, David Levitt & Samantha Randall  |  view design

Thanks to all those that submitted.

Design Competition: Call for Ideas

when:

Online entries can be uploaded starting June 1, 2011 at 8:00 am and must be uploaded no later than Friday, July 8, 2011 at 11:59pm.

fees:

There are no fees associated with this competition.

what:

As a part of the National Endowment for the Arts Mayors' Institute on Community Design 25th Initiative (MICD 25), the City of Dallas, CityDesign Studio and Oncor have partnered to help re-imagine the external appearance of the power substation seated prominently at the western foot of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, a signature bridge designed by Santiago Calatrava scheduled to open in early 2012. The opening of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge and the re-opening of the Continental Bridge as a pedestrian only bridge a year later will bring a heightened awareness to the area, including the substation, with thousands using these bridges daily.

This design competition seeks to engage students and professionals in architecture, design, arts and other creative disciplines to begin to re-imagine potential visual appearances of public infrastructure. Public infrastructure such as water and power utilities such as substations provides much needed services. While the thought of having a substation in a community, close to our computers, ovens or televisions, is not appealing for most residents, this infrastructure plays a very critical role in our everyday life. In areas where these currently exist, how do we begin to integrate art and design into these key infrastructure elements to enhance the public realm?

The objective of this competition shall be to examine creative, economical design solutions that enhance the arrival experience into the community while not compromising the sensitive engineering, safety and functional requirements fo the substation. . Future re-development efforts in this community supporting a truly livable, sustainable, attractive, and walkable community must include improvements to the public realm surrounding the substation. Design interventions may be planned in one or all three (3) distinct project zones (see Proximity Map) the visual field of arrival into West Dallas. Structural solutions may be proposed in the public realm (project zone 1) and on top of an 8' concrete retaining wall (project zone 2), however any solution within the substation itself (project zone 3) must not interfere with the equipment or the operation and maintenance of the substation.

Design interventions may be planned in one or all three (3) distinct project zones (see Proximity Map) the visual field of arrival into West Dallas. Structural solutions may be proposed in the public realm (project zone 1) and on top of an 8' concrete retaining wall (project zone 2), however any solution within the substation itself (project zone 3) must not interfere with the equipment or the operation and maintenance of the substation.

Three to five individuals/teams will be selected and provided a stipend of $5000-$8000 to provide site specific designs ideas as well have their design idea featured in a public show.

This competition is designed to generate ideas to re-imagine the potential for public infrastructure in Dallas. Implementation is not within the scope of this competition.

background:

The competition is made possible through a grant from The National Endowment for the Arts Mayors' Institute on City Design 25th Anniversary Initiative (MICD 25) awarded to the City of Dallas, CityDesign Studio. The MICD25supports creative place making projects that contribute toward the livability of communities and help transform sites into lively, beautiful, and sustainable places with the arts at their core. Twenty-one grants were awarded under the initiative. Each of the projects takes a problem, such as isolated neighborhoods or a neglected waterfront, and uses the arts to solve that problem. The aesthetic and communal qualities of art make them excellent construction materials for transforming physical spaces. The grants focus in four specific areas: reuse of abandoned space, commissioning public art, cultural district planning, and new ways of designing infrastructure.

The CityDesign Studio is an office of the City of Dallas created in October 2009 from a grant from the Trinity Trust Foundation through a generous donation from Deedie and Rusty Rose. The CityDesign Studio works to connect all of Dallas through thoughtful design by engaging communities in city planning, urban design and the arts. The Studio's first initiative was the development of the Urban Structure & Guidelines for a 475 acre area in West Dallas. Adopted by the Dallas City Council in March 2011, the Studio convened over 40 community meetings to craft the Urban Structure representing a collaborative vision for future redevelopment for the area.

Oncor is a regulated electricity transmission and distribution company and operates the largest transmission and distribution system in Texas, delivering electricity to approximately three million homes and businesses and operating more than 118,000 miles of transmission and distribution lines.

who:

Professionals and students in architecture, design, arts and other creative or related disciplines are invited to take part in this competition. Individual or group entries are permitted. The indication of a team leader is required. Your entry in the competition constitutes your agreement to allow your idea, team name/organization/company, city and state of residence to be published on websites or in printed and promotional materials owned and/or produced by The City of Dallas and Oncor.

registration:

Registration closed.

awards:

Stipends ranging from $5000-$8000 will be awarded to the top 3-5 projects.

selection process:

A panel comprised of representatives from Oncor, City of Dallas-CityDesign Studio, City of Dallas-Office of Cultural Affairs, professional designers, architects, and key stakeholder groups will review the designs. The panel will judge the designs based on the evaluation criteria based on visionary potential, artistic/design merit, compliance with safety criteria and implementation.

Three to five individuals/teams will be selected to provide a site specific design based on a thorough investigation of the site. Stipends of $5000-$8000 will be provided.

A public show of this work will occur in West Dallas and/or a downtown Dallas venue.

schedule:

submission criteria:

This is a digital competition. Hard copy proposals will not be accepted. Online entries can be uploaded to the FTP site starting June 1, 2011 at 8:00 am and must be uploaded no later than Friday, July 8, 2011 at 11:59pm. FPT site, user name and password will be provided via email upon registering. The attachment, packed in a ZIP file, should include 1 board (24x36) and a technical/written summary.

BOARD: in 24X36 portrait orientation with the principal image of the entry useful in showing in its entirety the concept of proposal saved as follows: (xxxxx_01.jpg).

TECHNICAL/WRITTEN REPORT: in 8.5X11 vertical format maximum 2 page of useful text to explain the planning proposal saved as follows (xxxxx_description. doc)

Entry ID numbers, issued upon registration, must be positioned in the upper right corner with the following required dimensions (.5" X 1.5"):

All files should be packed in a ZIP file labeled with your Registration Number, as follows: xxxxx.zip. The file names should quote the entry ID number followed by an underscore and number of the board as follows: xxxxx_01.jpeg. The same system is to be used for the technical report (xxxxx_description. doc).

Entries are encouraged to include all necessary information to clearly explain the proposal. Board resolution should not be less than 300 dpi, RGB color mode in JPEG format. The entry ID number, issued upon registration, must be included on the top right hand side of all layouts. No other form of identification is permitted.

The choice of the graphic representation is completely open to the entry team. Refusal of any entry may occur if the mentioned guidelines and methods are not met.

evaluation criteria:

Entries will be judged based on the following criteria:

1. Visionary potential: Originality, sustainability, and the innovative character of the proposal.
2. Consistent with Oncor site requirements including the sensitive engineering, safety and functional requirements of the substation . See Safety and design guidelines. (i.e. ability to creatively work within Oncor regulations).
3. Potential for accommodating a two phase implementation approach to design proposal within designated budget.
• First phase. Temporary and incremental approach with potential for a fast implementation.
• Second Phase. Long term creative/permanent solution that builds upon and completes first phase approach.

legal conditions:

Oncor, sponsors or interagency partners ("Sponsor Group") from any liability, claims, losses, expenses, judgments, causes of action or damages ("Claims") arising out of or incident or related in any way to, directly or indirectly, the competition, including, but not limited to, Claims arising out of or resulting from (1) any condition of the premises, (2) separate operations being conducted on the premises, or (3) the imperfection or defective condition, whether latent or patent, of any material or equipment furnished by the Sponsor Group; and further, IT IS THE EXPRESS INTENT OF THE SPONSOR THAT, FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, CLAIMS, AND PARTICIPANT'S OBLIGATIONS TO DEFEND, PROTECT, INDEMNIFY, AND HOLD HARMLESS, WILL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RESULTING FROM SPONSOR GROUP'S SOLE OR CONCURRENT (1) NEGLIGENCE, (2) STRICT LIABILITY, OR (3) OTHER FAULT OF ANY NATURE.

By entering, participants warrant that his or her entry materials are original and do not infringe on any third party's rights. By entering, participants release and hold harmless the City of Dallas, sponsors or interagency partners from any liability. The City of Dallas may share your contact information with sponsors and agency partners of the project. All designs and work product submitted under this Design Competition including, but not limited to, Tracings, Drawings, Estimates, Specifications, Investigations, Studies and other documents, completed or partially completed, shall be the property of the City, to be used as the City desires, without restriction on future use; by execution of this Agreement and in consideration of the prizes to be paid under this contest, Participant hereby conveys, transfers and assigns to the City all rights under the Federal Copyright Act of 1976 (or any successor copyright statute), as amended, all common law copyrights and all other intellectual property rights acknowledged by law in the Project designs and work product developed under this contest. Copies may be retained by Participant.

This competition is designed to generate ideas to re-imagine the potential for public infrastructure in Dallas. Implementation is not within the scope of this competition.

questions:

Direct any question about registration, submission, and criteria to: Chalonda Jackson-Mangwiro at chalonda.jackson@dallascityhall.com

View safety and design guidelines