Your Street Challenge finalists

While Cape Town waits in baited breath to hear if we’re the 2014 World Design Capital, Design Indaba has quelled some anticipation with the announcement of the finalists of the Your Street Challenge.

The Mother City leg of this exciting competition asked Capetonians to submit creative proposals on how to enhance an aspect of the city’s street life through the power of design.

Design Indaba says they were flooded with entries, “showing that there is both a need and great interest in positively transforming an aspect of urban life,” they say.

“It was a near impossible task to select the seven finalists,” says Design Indaba. But they did, choosing entries that responded to the six guiding principles of the challenge; generosity, international excellence and innovation, feasibility, fun and a better world through creativity.

The winners will receive a total of R250 000 to implement the most feasible ideas.

In no particular order, the finalists are:

Verena Grips

The Matchbox project proposes repurposing shipping containers into crèches for disadvantaged communities

Luke Pederson, Jenny Pederson, Kirsty Reilly, Jess Pederson and Katherine Spindler

Violet’s Walk is a clearly marked route in Woodstock with resting benches in strategically marked places along the way.

Lorena Pasquini, Mark Henning and Hannah Williams

Acre Road, Kensington is a community-based design solution to improve the lives of Acre Road residents using low-cost facilities to cater for positive community activities

Andrew Cole, Rene Bakker, Andrea Ferry and Pieter H Botha

Let us Grow is an urban farming initiative that supplies fresh produce to urban dwellers, while also creating employment

Ashley Stemmet, Porky Hefer and Tsai

Urban Mosaic is an aesthetically pleasing way to solve the problem of shack fires. It proposes painting the exteriors of shacks with fire-resistant paint.

Sonja Spamer

Kidz-Up City is a playground project that rethinks “traditional” playground furniture to make it more inclusive with forms better suited to learning, while playing.

Joe Schutzer-Weissmann and Gerald van Wyk

Jamshack is a licensed stage where pre-selected performers will play to a busy Cape Town street.

Finalists will present their final plans to a jury, which will include representatives form the City of Cape Town, before a final decision is reached on 25 October.

Your Street Challenge in Jozi is still in full swing. Watch this space for more details.

More information: www.designindaba.com