Architectural Excellence:

Hurricane Ike hit Louisiana in September of 2008. The area hardest hit by the hurricane was Cameron Parish, located in the bottom left corner of the state. Communities across the parish were destroyed leaving 75-94 percent of the population homeless, and the entire parish under a State of Emergency. Two major high schools in the parish, South Cameron and Johnson Bayou, were destroyed and no other facilities were available for the high schools to use.

Cameron Parish needed classroom space as quickly as possible. Using a combination of new and used buildings, M Space provided Cameron Parish with classroom, restroom, kitchen and cafeteria space in just 42 days. South Cameron High School received 46 classrooms and a cafeteria with a kitchen, while Johnson Bayou received 20 classrooms and a cafeteria with a kitchen.

Technical Innovation:

The hurricane caused so much damage that preparing the site and delivering the buildings had to be handled differently than a typical project. The first step was demolishing existing modulars that were destroyed by the hurricane. M Space conducted engineering development and site development at both locations. This included elevating six acres of land five feet in order for buildings to be set safely. When it was time for the buildings to be delivered the roads, like most things in the town, were still damaged and/or flooded and the only way in was by ferry. M Space knew that getting the high schools back up and running was the priority of the town so they utilized ferries that could deliver the buildings to each campus. It took creativity, but all 86 modules were delivered despite the challenges.

Cost Effectiveness/Energy Efficiency:

This project was cost effective because 70% of the buildings had been previously used and were in storage, which eliminated some of the manufacturing costs. By using existing buildings, Cameron Parish not only saved money, but also reduced the impact on the environment. The use of existing buildings avoided unnecessary use of energy and materials required for a new building. Before the demo and site work began, M Space went through both campuses and salvaged whatever materials they could (i.e. electrical panels, fixtures, etc) and recycled them by reusing them in the ‘new’ buildings and site infrastructure.

Project History:

The pre-leased buildings that went to Cameron Parish were originally constructed for Charlotte County Florida to provide that school district with temporary space after Hurricane Charley destroyed their buildings in 2004. M Space chose to use these particular buildings because they were readily available and needed very little refurbishing. M Space recertified the buildings for the state of Louisiana and installed new flooring.

These buildings were also a perfect fit because they previously incorporated kitchen and dining space and exceeded the local specifications in Louisiana, including the 140 MPH wind load. One building helped two districts in two different states recover after two different hurricanes. M Space is proud to be able to help rebuild after natural disasters, particularly with essential uses like schools.