Occurring throughout urban history is the tragic irony that great disasters often give rise to visionary plans of rebuilding. It was perhaps too soon after the human and urban catastrophe caused by Hurricane Katrina to comprehend yet what consensus might have emerge for the future form of New Orleans. We contributed to this dialogue by proposing a scheme for an international competition to build a dense mixed-use project on the high ground along the levy. Our scheme reflected the urban fabric of the city, and was inspired by the city's historic building and open space types, yet creates new hybrid prototypes that are appropriate for dense, twenty-first century living. The project includes five kinds of housing, 20,000 s.f. of retail, structured parking, an art gallery, and a park.