Students designed these unusual cabanas to bring shade to Newark’s public pools

Five public pools in Newark, New Jersey, have been upgraded with custom-designed cabanas created by second-year design-build students at the New Jersey Institute of Technology's Hillier College of Architecture and Design. The cabanas offer seating, shading, and an unconventional poolside experience. The project was initiated through a long-standing relationship between Newark's recreation department and NJIT senior lecturer Mark Bess. A public-private partnership was formed between NJIT, the city of Newark, and Prologis, which provided $16,500 in funding for the cabanas. The students came up with dozens of concepts, which were then whittled down to 10 finalist ideas, and finally, five final designs were built. The cabana designs range from familiar lounge chairs to more experimental structures. The students were given a long leash to come up with interesting ideas, and then refined them to make them feasible. The designs were ensured to be feasible from a budget, liability, and logistical perspective. The cabanas were installed in late May, and an in-kind donation of paint and materials should set them up to survive for at least five years. The project's success has sparked interest in doing it again, but it will depend on funding.