Author(s): Amy Trick
The built environment is shaped and changed by social, political, and environmental forces, often simultaneously. In Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, a town two hours inland from the coast and nestled in mountainous terrain, the colmado (or “corner store”) in the Alto de Cuba neighborhood has evolved and changed in architecture and functionality in response to such forces. (Figures 1 and 2) Sometimes the changes were forced upon the building – by way of climate disasters – while later, the building evolved through initiatives of community organizations that used architecture and infrastructure to anticipate and counteract difficulties and facilitate resiliency. The colmado, considered as a case study, demonstrates how resiliency can be promoted by way of infrastructure but also how architecture and the built environment – both spatially and tectonically – can impact the implementation of such resiliency projects. It also demonstrates how infrastructure can serve as a tool to combat problematic forces that have historically had negative ramifications on places and communities.
Volume Editors
Reed Kroloff & Francisco J. Rodríguez-Suárez
ISBN
978-1-944214-52-4