ICON’s Initiative 99 Global Architecture Competition Phase Two Winners Revealed

October 1, 2024 /3BL/ - ICON announced today the winners of the second (and final) phase of Initiative 99, the global architecture competition to reimagine affordable housing that can be built for $99,000 or less. In addition to the total prize purse of $1M for both Phase 1 and Phase 2, ICON, the Initiative 99 jury and Mobile Loaves & Fishes (MLF) have selected two award-winning designs in the Professional category for ICON to 3D print within MLF’s Community First! Village’s expansion of their growing master planned development serving the Austin-area’s homeless community. Breaking ground in early 2025, the Initiative 99-designed homes at Community First! Village will be brought to life in part from grant funding from Wells Fargo, which has committed $500,000 to serve the underhoused community.

We are thrilled with the evolution of each team’s submission from Phase 1 to Phase 2 of the competition—the global emphasis of Phase 1 elevated the stories of regions and demographics with significant needs for affordable housing; in Phase 2 the contestants excelled in adapting their designs to the local conditions at Community First! Village,” said Melodie Yashar, VP of Building Performance and Design, ICON. “We believe the designs generated by the competition introduce a wealth of ideas to advance progress on affordable housing worldwide.“

This past spring, ICON announced the Phase 1 winners of Initiative 99 on stage during a technology showcase event at SXSW. More than 60 countries from all over the world were represented in the initial submissions with six winners and ten honorable mentions being awarded prize money from the $1M prize purse during the event and presented by Wells Fargo, lead supporter of the competition.

“ICON’s innovative 3D-printed technology paired with these beautiful, imaginative Initiative 99 designs can be a model for the future of safe, high quality, affordable housing. Wells Fargo is proud to help make these 3D-printed homes a reality at Community First! Village,” said Darlene Goins, president of the Wells Fargo Foundation.

ICON and partner Liz Lambert also recently announced further plans to expand the new El Cosmico in Marfa, TX to include Initiative 99 winning designs where the existing bohemian campground is located. This adds to the newly designed and reimagined 60+ acre expansion of El Cosmico in far west Texas that will feature a hotel, hospitality amenities, and homes, which broke ground this summer. Phase II winning designs will be selected for this project in the coming year.

The first, second, and third place designs in each category will each have their home designs featured in a collection in ICON’s CODEX, a digital catalog of ready-to-print home architecture that allows builders, developers, and home buyers to build with ICON quickly and affordably using world-class architecture.

Full list of winners and those receiving honorable mentions from Phase 2 of Initiative 99:

Winners in the Professional Category:

1. Guerin Glass Architects (USA)*

2. MTspace Studio (New Zealand)

3. Concave (various locations)*

*Selections to be 3D-printed at Community First! Village in Austin, TX.

Winners in the Student Category:

1. Victoria Roznowski (Germany)

2. Casa Fami by IAAC (Spain)

3. Nex-Living by IAAC (Spain)

Honorable Mentions in the Professional Category:

• JK3D (USA)
• Beta Realities (Germany)
• Sameep Padora and Associates (India)

Honorable Mentions in the Student Category:

• Henry Aldridge (UK)
• Juan Felipe Molano (Colombia)
• Fusco-Ayala (USA)

To learn more about the winning designs, visit www.Initiative99.com.