Gulfport Redevelopment Plan

Location: Gulfport, MS. City devastated by hurricane Katrina

This Plan presents a conceptual strategy for redeveloping many areas of the city of Gulfport, Mississippi. Such a strategy became necessary because of the damage and destruction dealt to the Mississippi coastline by Hurricane Katrina, the most devastating natural disaster in this country’s history. The Governor’s Commission on Mississippi Recovery, Rebuilding, and Renewal ultimately facilitated the mobilization of over two hundred professionals from around the world to participate in a week-long Charrette (12-18 October 2005) to help plan for the areas destroyed by the hurricane. HDR was able to volunteer four planners to the effort, the most of any one firm. The outcome of this Charrette and the subsequent weeks includes redevelopment plans for 11 distinct communities along the Mississippi Gulf coast, as well as recommendations for a host of technical, design, economic, environmental and regulatory factors. HDR’s planners were assigned to Gulfport, the largest of the 11 cities, and became an integral part of this team. The Gulfport team decided that they would not limit themselves only to those areas that were directly impacted by Katrina. While most low-lying areas within the city, including the entire coastline, were devastated, many of the opportunities for positive redevelopment were systemic as well as site-specific. These larger opportunities include enhanced local and regional transportation systems, with increased modal choice, environmental linkages, enhanced wetlands and estuaries, neighborhood integration, and a new approach to planning, zoning and development within the City as a whole.

Transect Zone(s): T4 general.
Status: Proposed
Project or Plan's Scale: City
Features: Affordable/subsidized housing, Civic buildings & parks, Green buildings, Live/work, Mixed uses, Waterfront.
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Residential types: Low-rise flats, Townhouse/rowhouse/maisonette, Semi-detached, Live/work.
Project team designers: HDR | Town Planning; The Governor's Commission on Mississippi Recovery, Rebuilding, and Renewal
Project team developers: City of Gulfport

Previous site status:

Starting/Ending date of construction/implementation: -