Fieldwork
During our February visit, we were based in the historic La Posada hotel downtown, but toured many sites around the city, including bridges, wastewater treatment plants, and the Zacate Creek. We saw firsthand the downtown which had seen more prosperous days (before NAFTA), the drying vegetation, and even the ground markers of a US-Mexico border wall that was never built. Drought warnings were in effect, yet golf course sprinklers still ran full blast. It was my first time seeing palm trees in the flesh.
Stakeholder meetings
Our February visit also included many stakeholder meetings, including the City Manager, City Council, Chamber of Commerce, public works staff, healthcare workers, and local residents. We heard about key issues that were top-of-mind for them, which included not just water scarcity but medical underservice, air pollution, and inadequate infrastructure (Laredo is the #1 port in the US). RGISC was instrumental in organizing these meetings for us.
Analysis
After returning to Boston, we clustered our insights into themes and key messages, both individually and as a class.
Graphics
To help us communicate to a non-designerly audience, other members of the class developed plan views and renderings of the proposed CWERC. We sited the CWERC by the historic Zacate Creek to the east of downtown, where its reclaimed water could replenish natural waterways and generate energy, revenue, and jobs for the upcoming neighbourhood slated to replace the existing water treatment plant at the site.
Full report
The final report brought together diverse skillsets in user research, architecture, landscape architecture, and financial analysis to produce a holistic recommendation for a CWERC in Laredo, which we presented (three times!) to stakeholders during a return-visit in May.
