DISSERTATION : MIGRATION 2018

1. INTRODUCTION
The phenomenon of human migration , defined as the “movement by people from one
place to another with the intention of settling temporarily or permanently in the new location
”.has been soaring steadily in the last century. According to the 2011 census internal migrants
in India reached a count of 400 million , over half the global figure of 740 million and almost
twice as many as China’s estimated 221 million these internal migrants comprise a third of
India’s population .
With more than 50% of the world’s population living in cities , the trend of migration is set to
rise exponentially .With it arise the problem of high density inadequate living .Estimates show
that one out of every three people in cities of the developing world lives in deprived and
unplanned squatter settlements .According to the UN Habitat’s, report ”State of the World’s
Cities 2008/2009 ”,the rate of growth of these unplanned parts of a city is way higher than the
visible ,planned parts. Society is born out of its inhabitants, their culture and traditions and this
forms the native identity of the area. ‘Migrants when travel down these areas in search of new
opportunities owing to different circumstances, find difficult to absorb themselves in the
atmosphere in short spans of time’.
1.2 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of the study was to built environment, both in terms of public space as well as
building to improve the perception of density,

1.2 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY”

• To design for the programs that offer long term solutions to the problem of survival for
a much broader base of creative talent..
• To promote the growth of vibrant and economically viable artistic community that has
the inherent capacity to create wealth and goodwill for itself and for the nation.
• To construct the whole buildings with the locally available material and low cost
material in order to make energy efficient and sustainable structures.
• To save our social heritage by preserving their culture and to create a comfortable
environment having basic facilities.
• To provide proper ventilation.
• To help the capital city to be one of the good city of the world.
• One of the main objective was to develop a method of construction which can ‘survive
without special discourse.

.
1.3 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

STRUCTURE :

Flexibility - Structure should allow flexibility.

Incremental - The structure should be designed so as to serve the steady
flow of immigrants into a metropolis and will essentially be inremental in nature.
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Selfhelping.

PLANNING –

Hierarchy of spaces - There should be a solution which should deal

with the proper flow of spaces.
Proper service layout
Multi functional layout - design of a module to fulfil required
Commercial spaces Of home based economies attached to residences.

SPACE ANALYSIS –

Volumentric analysis
Anthropometry

1.4 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

1.4. A The study is limited only to specific migrant group.

1.4. B The habit of avoiding the rules and regulations of the people..

1.5 LITERATURE REVIEWS

Density in architecture :-

An alarming rate of population growth teamed with the fast depletion of

resources creates an inescapable demand for high density architecture.

THE DUAL NATURE OF DENSITY –

POSITIVE –

- Rational use of urban land resources.

- Maintaining a compact urban and infrastructure development.

- Minimal impact upon surrounding rural and

Natural areas..

Efficient use of urban transportation systems

And fuel resources.

NEGATIVE-

- Congestion of urban landscapes.

- Reduction of urban green areas
- Occurrence of heat islands.

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- Deterioration of urban networks and traffic infrastructure by overloading.

- Increase in psychological stress for inhabitants.

PERCEPTION OF DENSITY –

Perception is the combination of social and physical characteristics of space , decisive

being the interaction between individual and the environment as a whole.

Dense and vital environment

1. Density through diversity of construction as well as activities, multiple functions.

2. A mix of building of different conditions and a high concentration of population
3. Supporting diverse action and interaction.
4. Small building component forming larger units.

URBAN MORPHOLOGY

URBAN STRUCTURE – it is the arrangement of land use in urban areas. It is also

concerned with the arrangement of Public and Private spaces and the degree of
connectivity and accessibility.

. URBAN FORM – it is defined as the physical design and layout of a city. It

essentially concerns with the physical infrastructure of city.

CASE STUDY - CULTURAL VILLAGE FOR MIGRANT

WORKERS.

3.1 INTRODUCTION
Migrant farm workers form the backbone of the US agricultural economy for labor
intensive crops such as strawberries and apples.
Every year farmers around the country, collectively hire hundreds of thousands of migrant
workers to manually harvest seasonal fruits and vegetables. In many cases the farmers provide
temporary housing (TH) for these workers during the picking season which can range from a
few weeks to several months. While the TH does fall under a regulatory code, this code is
drastically outdated and enforcement of its provisions is infrequent. The result is that the
majority of the farmer provided TH fails to provide humane living conditions, adversely
affecting the safety, health and welfare of the workers and their families. A local non-profit
organization (NPO) is attempting to provide a new model for migrant worker ; seeking funds
from state legislature and private foundations to enact this new vision.

In 2015, a student team partially brought the NPO’s dream to fruition by designing a model
“cultural village” for a local migrant community. A team of eight students of whom five are
currently EITs, under the supervision of four licensed engineers (2 Professional Engineers (PE)
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and 2 Structural Engineers (SE)) and a licensed faculty member, developed the civil-site design
for the cultural village, and the structural design for the housing and a community center for
migrant workers. Furthermore, the team incorporated sustainable features into their design and
completed a cost analysis for the implementation of the cultural village.

BACKGROUND AND THE NEED OF THE SITE

Figure 1. An Abandoned Migrant Housing Complex a) Housing Units, b) Inside

View

Figure 1 shows an abandoned migrant housing complex provided by the farmers.

Typically, TH consists of single room structures that sleep up to 14 people. Most
structures are uninsulated with corrugated metal roofs and plywood siding. Families
cook on propane stoves that are in the same room as where they sleep, therefore
off-gases are a serious health concern, compounded by the lack of ventilation
through either openable windows or fans. Communal bathroom facilities are
standard for TH compounds with a code mandated one shower per 30 residents and
one toilet per 15. Poor lighting around these communal bath houses often leads to
unsafe conditions for the residents.

The current code governing TH falls far below the standards set by the Residential
Code and has not been updated since the 1950s. Many key protections set up in the
Residential Code, such as insulation and ventilation standards, are absent from the
TH code, significantly reducing the quality of life for the migrant workers and their
families. The local office of an international NPO works with the migrant worker
community to improve their living and working conditions. This NPO is also
working with a legal advocacy group to bridge the gap between migrant housing
and the migrant housing code through proposed code revisions.

Complicating the issues, complex power dynamics exist because the farmers provide workers
with both their jobs and housing, both of which can be lost in a single action. In order to obtain
the federally mandated minimum wage for migrant workers, farmers set steep picking quotas.
Workers who do not meet this quota twice are fired, thereby also losing housing for their
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family. In a globalized economy, farmers too struggle for survival due to international
competition combined with high operations and maintenance costs associated with small farms.
This makes it particularly difficult to continue with farmer owned TH if higher standards are
expected or required.

PROJECT SCOPE AND DELIVERABLES :

Figure 2. Proposed Land and Outline of Cultural Village (source: Google

Maps)
Figure 2 shows the approximately five acre land on which the model cultural
village is to be developed.

DELIVERABLES:

1. A site layout and a 30% site plan showing utilities, drainage, grading, parking
and paving plans, and relevant permits,
2. • Architectural design and rendering of housing and community center
showing 30% structural design,
3. • Incorporation of sustainable practices in the design, • An overall cost
estimate for the cultural village,
4. • Develop marketing visuals that could be used by client for fund raising and
lobbying.
Because the scope was broad, a team of four students worked on the civil-site
design while another worked on the structural design. Both teams collaborated
closely.
CIVIL SITE DESIGN :

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Figure 3. Site Lay-out of Cultural Village

Figure 3 shows the site layout of the cultural village. In collaboration with the
structural design team, the civil-site design team located the housing units and the
community center.
Next, they designed the roadway alignment and parking stalls according to the
local codes. The team sized the detention ponds and a wet vault based upon the
impervious service areas of the roadway, parking stalls, and structures on the site.
Finally, the team researched the permits needed for the development, and prepared
the utility plan for water, sewer, and power .

STORM WATER DETENTION :

High water table assumed due to site being in flood plain

•Majority of flow control and treatment occur in wet vault
and ponds Fig 03: secondary and active roads
• Low Impact Development (LID) techniques will not work
due to low infiltration rates of soil.
•Rain barrels recommended for watering the vegetable
Garden

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UNDERGROUND UTILITY LAYOUT :

Water is provided by the city, sewer servicesprovided by the county public works
department;electricity provided by a power company
•To comply with county standards, a minimum of 10 feet horizontal separation and
18 inch vertical separation between sanitary sewer and waterpipelines maintained
throughout site
•To eliminate stagnant water, water lines loopedaround site

ROADWAY DESIGN :
Roadway designed according to county standards
•Computed cut and fill quantities (17.6 cu.yd of cut and 554 of cu.yd of fill)
• Project site is on a flood plain – therefore native soil to be used as fill material
•Community welfare and safety features: wye turn around at the end of road way
for emergency vehicles, exterior lighting

PARKING –

two parking stalls per unit; county municipal code required one guest parking for
per three units; team designed 48 parking stalls

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Fig roof framing

STRUCTURAL DESIGN :

There was a request of housing for 20 families. To save on cost and space,
the team designed five housing units as shown in Figure 4; each unit
consisted of two apartments. Each apartment was planned for two families
with each family occupying two bedrooms; the families share a common
living room and kitchen.

Fig 5 : Proposed communitycentre a)profile view b)floor plan

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Figure 5 shows the proposed view and layout of the community center. It
provides space for laundry, a health clinic and a multi-purpose covered
space and patio that could be used for community events. The team
designed the roof, shear walls and the foundations for both structures using
appropriate design specifications.
INCORPORATION OF SUSTAINABLE FEATURES IN DESIGN:

The team incorporated several sustainable features in their design as shown

in Figure 6. The team explored the use of solar panels to supplement
electricity expenses, straw bale construction as a sustainable building
material, and several passive solar techniques to reduce heating and cooling
needs. Passive solar methods incorporated into the design include a
clerestory for daylighting and ventilation, roof overhangs for shading in the
summer and direct heat in the other seasons, and a solar slab to act as a
thermal mass to store daytime heat for nighttime use.

The solar slabs consist of concrete masonry units (CMU) that are arranged
to form ducts running north-south throughout the unit. The CMU bricks are
overlain by a concrete floor that acts as a thermal mass that heats up from
direct sun in the fall and winter. Air flowing through the solar slab heats up
and keeps the housing units at a comfortable temperature. Straw bale
construction uses an agricultural waste material to replace lumber as the
main walls in a building, and also has good insulating properties for better
energy efficiency. Straw bales that are 18” tall and 24” wide are stacked in a
brick pattern and staked with rebar to hold them in place and covered with
stucco and mesh. The straw bale is anchored to the foundation with stakes to
resist the base shear forces.

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3.3.7. SUMMARY
At the request of a non-profit organization, a team of civil engineering
seniors developed a conceptual design of a “cultural village” for migrant
workers, replacing the traditional farmer owned housing model. The
“cultural village” consists of migrant worker housing, a community center,
space for vegetable gardens and a play area for the children. The team
developed the civil-site design involving zoning, permitting, roadway,
utilities, and a structural design of the housing and community center
including sustainable elements and alternatives. The project was supervised
by two licensed professional engineers, two licensed structural engineers
and a licensed faculty member. In addition to developing technical and
professional skills, the team was exposed to the migrant worker crisis
plaguing this nation and the ethical and social responsibility of engineers in
relation to this critical issue. The non-profit organization plans to use the
student work to lobby the legislature to revise the temporary housing code
for migrant workers, raise funds from state legislature and private
foundations to bring its vision to fruition.
Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com/bangladesh/content/ground/56661.html

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2. CASE STUDIES

Each case study exhibits careful consideration of migrant needs;

however, each also has an inherent drawback.

1. Participatory Design — Design Corps in Adams County

Architect and founder of Design Corps, Bryan Bell has taken an alternative approach
in creating on-the-farm housing by working directly with migrant workers and their
employers. By consulting directly with growers and conducting interviews with the
workers, Bell assesses the needs of both employer and employee to design housing that
responds to its user and to its context. One of Design Corps' built examples is a prefab
housing unit for workers in Adams County, Pennsylvania, who "pick apples, peaches,
and cherries from August through October" (Design Corps).

Four units were built. According to Design Corps, the unit is

650 square feet, 13'-6" wide and designed to be oriented North-South. Each unit
includes a full bathroom with a sink, toilet and shower, a kitchen, a semi-covered
outdoor porch and areas for sleeping and socializing After the units were occupied,
Design Corps used "post-occupancy reviews" and worker suggestions to improve the
design (Bell 180). The workers wished to have "a cabinet for the garbage can" which
illustrated a heightened sense of pride in their housing (Bell 180). Workers also
complained that "the light-colored floors were hard to keep clean" (Bell 180). Members
of the design team observed that "each unit put its one television in one of the
bedrooms, rather than in the communal dining area. The men from the other room had
to come and sit on the floor to watch it" (

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CONCLUSION

Design Corps' Adams County housing units have been highly successful, earning
both high marks from workers and growers and additional migrant housing design
commissions in other states. It is, undoubtedly, an excellent example of well-designed
on-the-farm housing that allows the grower to attract better labor at a relatively low
cost.
However, mobility is more of a design concept than a design reality. Shipped by truck
and installed by crane, it is unlikely that the units will be moved once sited. And while
workers can enjoy quality housing while employed, they are faced with the housing
dilemma again when they move on to the next job. This is the inherent problem with
on the farm housing.

2 Esperanza — Mattawa, Washington

INTRODUCTION

The small community of Mattawa in Washington's Columbia River Valley

is home to a successful example of off-the-farm re-deployable housing.
The lack of housing and infrastructure during the population surges forced
migrant workers to set up makeshift camps near the Columbia River
(WSHFC).
Part of the design challenge was overcoming the assumptions and
preconceptions the state had about migrant needs.

HOUSING :

The housing units are constructed from standard shipping containers

arranged in four-unit clusters with a covered outdoor court at the center
The clusters are sited in a staggered arrangement to provide secondary
outdoor spaces. The small groupings "proved to be more space efficient

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than larger hubs" recommended by the county and "generated a richer

social pattern of use" Each container houses one family or about seven to
eight people with on-site parking provided. In order to live at Esperanza, a
$70 security deposit is required and the rates are $3 per day per
single worker or $10 per day per family

3. Las Mananitas — Coachella Valley

One of the most successful examples of federally subsidized housing for migrant
workers is the Las Mananitas apartments in Mecca, a poor rural community in
California's Coachella Valley Each fully-furnished unit has four two person bedrooms
with a shared living room, dining room and kitchen The complex also features rare
amenities, such as laundry facilities, an outdoor cooking area and common areas

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THE HOUSING SOLUTION :

. PORTABLE HOUSING

Portable housing can empower migrant workers in several ways, each

affording a degree of freedom that would be impossible through housing
that is in a fixed location or owned by a third party

A portable dwelling can also offer a sense of place and belonging to a

migrant worker. By the very nature of their lifestyle, migrant workers often
feel isolated and disconnected. Once the decision is made to migrate, he
becomes stuck between two disparate worlds and cultures, belonging
entirely to neither. Therefore, the struggle to establish a sense of place and
identity is part of the culture of migration.

A high degree of mobility is intrinsic to the success and livelihood of a

migrant worker, not only economically, but politically as well. Don
Mitchell describes mobility as "a double-edged sword, both for the workers
themselves and for agribusiness. By dint of their mobility, many
agricultural workers [remain] individually invisible to the powers
of exploitation and domination"

Mobile housing, when owned by the migrant worker himself, can be a great
source of political power. A dwelling that is easily transportable keeps a
migrant worker highly mobile and independent. By negating the
dependence on grower provided housing while maintaining a high degree
of mobility, migrant workers gain a sense of power and autonomy.

4. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

The above mentioned Literature studies and case studies suggest to understand thetype
of housing migrant worker need. It contributes
expansion of ideas beyond conventional thought about housing migrant workers.
Housing is not only a roof over one's head or a place to sleep. It is a source of pride
and dignity and the quality and character of migrant housing must reflect that. As
Cesar Chavez said, "Do not romanticize the poor... We are all people, human beings

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subject to the same temptations and faults as all others. Our poverty damages our
dignity."1

5. REFERENCES

Architecture for Humanity (AFH). Design Like You Give a Damn: Architectural
Responses to Humanitarian Crises. New York: Metropolis Books, 2006.
Banham, Russ. Wanderlust: Airstream at 75. Old Saybrook, CT: Greenwich Publishing
Group, Inc., 2005.
Bechtel, Gregory A., Mary Anne Shepherd and Phyllis W. Rogers. "Family, Culture and
Health Practices Among Migrant Farmworkers." Journal of Community Health
Nursing, Vol. 12, No. 1 (1995): 15-22.
Bell, Bryan. Good Deeds, Good Design: Community Service Through Architecture.
New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2004.
Bright, Brenda. 'Heart Like a Car': Hispano/Chicano Culture in Northern New
Mexico." American Ethnologist, Vol. 25, No. 4 (Nov 1998): 583-609.
Burns, Carol J. "A Manufactured Housing Studio: Home/On the Highway." Journal of
Architectural Education (Sep 2001): 51-57.
Bushway, Deborah. The Vitality of Latino Communities in Rural Minnesota.
Minneapolis: Hispanic Advocacy and Community Empowerment Through
Research (HACER), Dec 2001.
Cuevas-De Caissie, Rebecca M. "The Lowrider History." Bella Online. Retrieved
20 Nov 2007. <http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art39902.asp >
Design Corps. "Past Projects." DesignCorps.org. 03 Nov 2007. Retrieved 05 Nov
2007. <http://www.designcorps.org/Projects/Past_Projects.htm >
Embrey, Kay. "Farmworkers in the United States." Ithaca, NY: Cornell Migrant
Program, 2002. Retrieved 20 Dec 2006.
edu/pdf/background.pdf

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