At just 308 square feet, Marianne Cusato’s Katrina Cottage is a tiny thing, but it made a big impression at its recent International Builders’ Show debut in Orlando, Fla. Conceived during the Mississippi Renewal Forum led by DPZ’s Andrés Duany, FAIA, the building is intended as permanent, expandable housing for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
“The size is equivalent to a [Federal Emergency Management Agency] trailer, but it creates something nice [that] people would want to live in,” says the New York City-based designer. And not just those in need. “We’ve had people want one for their mother-in-law, or for a vacation house in Maine,” she adds. The first cottages will serve their original purpose, however, and are scheduled for completion this spring in Arabi, La., and Ocean Springs, Miss.