Design Response To Housing Quality and Affordability Dilemma
WHY
Thanks to the changes brought on by the pandemic, our children have been a constant presence during the working hours. Often, it makes things difficult, but sometimes, priceless interactions come out of it.
As Lidia was working on a project, her first-grader son looked on curiously.
Child: “Mom, is this our house you are designing?”
Mom: “No, this is for work.”
Child: “When are we going to build our own house?”
Mom: “Well…Houses are very expensive to build. We want to make sure that the house that we build does not hurt the environment, and that we can afford it.”
Child: “I wish it was our house you were designing!”
Mom: “Me too!
And so, from this simple exchange of aspirations between a parent and a child, our purpose for creating an affordable housing solution was born.
WHAT
Our intent was to create an affordable housing prototype that could be grouped and repeated but also would feel like a separate, single family home to the owners.
The design presented here is but one configuration of a flexible building module. We envision the form being highly configurable and adaptable for a variety of uses:
live-work unit configurations with top floor living areas and ground floor lobby, office, or workshop areas;
community uses, such as combined senior and child care;
accessible, senior-friendly ground floor units.
HOW
Our design is driven by two forces working in tandem: sustainability and beauty. Starting with east-west building orientation on site, the long shape of the duplex is positioned to optimize cross-ventilation and solar tempering.
If you are not familiar with either one of these “green” terms, here’s a little explainer for each:
Cross-ventilation is a passive (read: no added mechanical or electrical energy) building design effect, which takes advantage of the natural flow of air driven by change in pressure. Cross-ventilation happens when you open a window on one end of the room and the door on the other, allowing the air to circulate. This method can be used to cool spaces, remove excess moisture or odors in the interior environment and replace stale air with fresh.
Solar tempering is another passive building design technique. The main idea behind it is collecting the heat from the sun during the day and using it to heat spaces at night. This is usually accomplished by introducing a thick slab of material that absorbs solar heat well and releases it slowly. Ever sat on a concrete bench in the evening of a very hot day? The sun is almost gone but the concrete is still warm.
Opportunities for shared outdoor spaces are created by the oblique placement of the building on the site. Courtyards between the duplexes form a strong connection between the public features (sidewalk and school field), while also screening it with a layer of semi-privacy.
In addition to the common spaces between each pair of buildings, we envision common “gap” spaces breaking up a group of 6-7 buildings (12-14 dwelling units) and serving as green community hubs. These landscaped hubs provide amenities, such as playground equipment, seating, dog walking areas and public art. A common trail, running on the edge of the school field adjacent to the homes, connects the hubs.
Orienting the building’s long axis along east-west direction minimizes western exposure heat gain. East and west facing windows are limited in size for the same reason. South-facing sloped roof surface is designed to serve as the location of the solar shingles or solar panels and solar water heaters. Light-colored western walls and reflective roofing throughout helps mitigate solar heat gain.
CLIMATE
With the site location in Sacramento, we paid particular attention to both the challenges and opportunities of the local climate. The east-west orientation of the building takes advantage of the Delta breeze for building ventilation and cooling of the outdoor green areas between the buildings. The width of the yards between the buildings allows for winter sunlight access to the first floor rooms.
Both horizontal and vertical shading elements have been designed on the sides of the buildings exposed to direct sunlight to avoid as much heat gain as possible while also providing natural daylighting. South facing facades include shading louvers sized to allow solar penetration during winter months.
ENVELOPE
In-wall and attic insulation is planned for the buildings, with an airtight envelope made easier to achieve by the simple shape of the design. Both the shape and the modest size of the duplex module increase initial and operating costs and long-term sustainability of the project. These measures aim to minimize energy load for cooling and eliminate energy load for heating. Proposed exterior finish materials include cement plaster with wood accents but a wide range of options, depending on their affordability and availability at the time of construction, is possible.
FLOOR PLAN
We were able to achieve a spacious, open floor plan within a very small footprint. This two-floor concept has living areas on the ground floor and bedrooms on the top floor. The design includes a “flex space”, which can be used as a library, office, hobby or study room or even function as an additional sleeping area. With consideration for affordability and optimum use of space, we stacked the bathrooms and organized a single “wet wall” at the separation line between the two duplex units.
AESTHETICS
It is important to our team that the design, as affordable as possible, also enhances the built environment and raises the bar for future development. Our concept is based on a simple traditional house shape with a gable roof that is reminiscent of homes drawn by children. While the design details and finish materials promote modern aesthetics, the overall image of the duplex units appeals to the child in each of us. And every child deserves a home to call their own!
View from Common Area