NOAH- Pyramid Megacity for New Orleans

With the rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina ongoing, a group of designers have come up with the proposal for just such a structure designed to sit on the bank of the Mississippi.

Called the New Orleans Arcology Habitat (NOAH), the structure would house 40,000 residents along with all services and amenities that would allow them to live their entire lives within its walls if they so desired.

With much of New Orleans built below sea level and the city prone to extreme winds, NOAH’s designers chose to go with the concept of a floating structure whose open triangular frame shape is designed to dissipate severe winds by allowing weather to blow through the structure in any direction with a minimum of massing interference. The structure’s outer edges are also curved and tilted to further dissipate wind loads, while both curved and flat surfaces would be outfitted with secured sliding hurricane panels to form a protective exterior barrier.