Marvel Architects has unveiled their proposal for a new research facility in the rural Puerto Rican community of Ceiba.

The plan for the island’s Maritime, Business, Research, and Innovation Center (MBRIC) calls for the addition of a new landmark building at the site of a former U.S. Coast Guard-operated pier looking out over the Straight of Vieques.

The oval building at the center of the proposal is elevated to avoid flooding and will encase an undisclosed research mission, highlighted by improved site access, research decks, and enhanced vegetation.  

Marvel says: “In shape as well as in intent, the proposed designs draw inspiration from the reference to atolls as natural restorative responses to nature events of volcanic activity and erosion.”

A series of restorative site improvements extends the surrounding mangrove further toward the shoreline in order to protect its status as a natural habitat and increase its ability to serve as a naturally-resilient boundary zone against storms and flooding. 

Marvel was responding to an RFP put forth by the Local Redevelopment Authority for Roosevelt Roads (LRA) calling for an incubator focused on marine science that can help cement Puerto Rico’s place in the U.S. Caribbean’s more than 200-mile-long Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Marvel is helmed by Jonathan Marvel, a San Juan native who has led his firm to complete many resilient designs in multiple typologies throughout the island. The MBRIC scheme is somewhat similar in scale to the firm’s previous Buffalo DL&W Corridor proposal, and, if selected, would be funded in part by a $16 million grant provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA).

Proposals will be reviewed by the LRA's Evaluation Committee and Board of Directors Selection Committee, local nonprofit Bluetide, the University of Puerto Rico, and the Roosevelt Roads Community. A project timeline has not been made available at this time.