Architecture Students Earn Award in Timber in the City 6: Urban Habitats Competition

Friday, October 2, 2026

University of Florida School of Architecture students Jorge Ramirez and Alberto Badra received an Honorable Mention in the 2026 Timber in the City 6: Urban Habitats Competition. Organized by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and Think Wood, the competition was to design attainable missing-middle urban housing (single-family to high-rise gap) using advanced wood technologies like CLT, Glulam, and digital fabrication.

Their project, titled “Cara (casas),” reimagined the former Venezuelan Consulate at 7 E. 51st St. in Manhattan as housing for Venezuelan asylum-seeking families. The proposal built on the site’s history of both housing and serving the Venezuelan community, introducing a prefabricated CLT structural system and modular residential units designed for efficient construction.

At the heart of the project was a central atrium inspired by the communal character of Venezuelan neighborhoods, creating opportunities for interaction through elevated porches, stairs, windows and shared spaces.

The project was developed under the guidance of faculty member Mark McGlothlin.

  • A small model of a building with a tiled facade and the word VENEZUELA above the entrance, sitting on a red pallet jack in front of a concrete block wall.
  • Architectural model of a multi-story building section featuring rooms, staircases, and small scale figures.
  • Architectural elevation drawing showing a modern tan building with sunshades inserted between two traditional blue-lined Parisian-style facades, with the text VENEZUELA and the - prime - burger visible at street level.
  • A person wearing a green rubber glove washes a blue plate in a soapy kitchen sink, looking out a window at an apartment courtyard.
  • A multi-story architectural model of a building with visible interior rooms, staircases, and a shop front labeled Venezuela, sitting on a red industrial pallet jack against a gray concrete block wall.
  • A narrow, multi-story building with a light-colored, gridded facade sits between two taller buildings on a city street at night, with the word VENEZUELA above the ground-level entrance.
  • A young child runs along a bright, wooden-walled hallway with a glass ceiling, while a parrot sits on the blue railing nearby.
  • A timeline infographic detailing the history of the Venezuelan Consulate building in New York City from the 1920s to 2026, featuring historical photos and summaries of key political and economic events.
  • Architectural floor plans for Level 3 and Level 1, showing room layouts, furniture, and staircases in blue line drawings.
  • Architectural section drawing of a building interior featuring CLT walls, a skylight, and floor slabs, with labels identifying specific structural components and materials.
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