The prizes piled up for three teams of Woodbury University architecture students at the 2007 Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA)/American Institute of Steel Construction design competition.

The Woodbury students earned a first place, a second place and a third place in the contest, which drew more than 400 submissions from 50 universities in the United States, Canada and Mexico. This marks the second consecutive year that Woodbury teams have taken home a first place prize in this contest.

Both the first- and second-place projects were in the open category with the theme "Borders in Crisis."

Matthew Beasoliel and Noel Moreno's project, "Divert.City: United States-Mexico Border" brought home first-place honors. They proposed an infrastructural alternative to the current fence along the U.S.-Mexican border.

Their project called for a 700-mile city that would run the length of the border. It would be the world's largest inland container port fed by the a newport in Ensenada, which will will overshadow San Pedro-Long Beach to become the largest port in North America.

Their solution to the border malaise consisted of a crisscrossing network of big-box commerce, bridges and marketplaces, coupled withfarming and a transportation infrastructure.

The expert jurors praised the project for its authenticity, noting that the project's "overall level of resolution and commitment to repairing the rift of the U.S.-Mexico border sets it apart and made it the clear choice."

Woodbury students Lilit Ustayan and Nelli Khachikyan took second place in this same division. Titled "U.N. Water," their project proposed a center run by the United Nations for the distribution of water among three central Asian ex-Soviet countries that have suffered displomatic disputes over access to water resources.

The center would include a water filtration facility and would be located on the tripartite border where the three countries meet.

The judges lauded the project as "an appropriate rendition of a traditionally expansive civic prototype as an iconic movement, using contemporary engineering and human challenges."

The first- and second-place entries were projects developed during a fourth-year "Topics " studio, the topic being architectural responses to borders in crises.

Jason Muller and Pouyeh Choroomi's project, called "Vert-cycle," was awarded third place in the museum of steel category. They designed a museum that promotes the use of steel in a city that's historically known for steel production - Pittsburgh.

The museum would be built by an actual old steel mill. Because steel is very flexible, they were able to create a curvacious building. The design also included long spans of steel beams, supported by a series of trusses.

The judges said the project "has strong spacial form which is portrayed through dynamic, fluid and smooth design."

Gerard Smulevich, associate professor of architecture, was the faculty advisor for the first and second place award-winning projects, and was the co-instructor with adjunct faculty member Guilio Zavolta for the "Vert-cycle" entry.

For the past seven years, Woodbury architecture students working under the direction of Smulevich have placed in the national ACSA steel competition. Last year, the school won first place with a proposal for a new transportation structure for the West Bank and Gaza. In 2005, the school received an honorable mention for a transportable voting facility for Afghanistan.

"That we won first, second, and third place awards in 2007 is a tribute not only to the winning faculty and students, but to all of the faculty and students in the architecture program as well," says Norman Millar, director of the School of Architecture at Woodbury University. "It is also noteworthy that this year for the first time, a Woodbury team of third-year students was a winner in the contest usually won by fourth- or fifth-year undergrads or graduate students. With this year's results, I think it is safe to say that Woodbury's architecture program, thanks mainly to Gerry Smulevich and his students over the years, is the 'winningest' in the history of the annual national contest. I am very proud of that."

The Woodbury students' prize-winning designs will be seen by thousands of practicing architecture professionals at the ACSA Annual Meeting in Houston in March 2008 and the American Institute of Architects National Convention in Boston in May 2008.