Archinect - News

Preservation and micro-apartment living come together to save America's first shopping mall

2020-03-02T12:56:00-05:00

The rise of online shopping has drastically reduced the need for shopping malls across America. However, in Providence, Rhode Island, the Westminster Arcade, America's first shopping mall, has found a way to turn this supposed "retail apocalypse" into an opportunity to build more housing.

Westminster Arcade from Views of Providence (1900) printed by L.H. Nelson Company.

A Country Living article reports that the formerly abandoned mall has been transformed into a new commercial and residential hub for micro-apartment living. Rather than demolishing the building, developers wanted to preserve the structure not only for its historical value, but for its housing potential. Northeast Collaborative Architects along with developer Evan Granoff helped lead a renovation project that aims to transform the aging Greek Revival style mall into The Arcade Providence, a micro-loft apartment complex that includes 48 rentable units along its two upper floors. The former mall was built in 1828 and is...

Colorado's old Art Institute building will become 130 micro-units

2019-10-10T15:45:00-04:00

After abruptly closing in late 2018, a developer has big plans for the old Art Institute building at 1200 Lincoln Street. The Nichols Partnership has purchased the building and plans on converting it into roughly 130 micro-units...The units will range from 300 to 425 square feet.

"We shoot for several hundred dollars below the cheapest conventional apartment. So if a studio apartment in a bigger building is $1500-$1700, we want to be at $1100-$1200," developer Randy Nichols told CBS, advocating for the affordability the apartments will bring to the city. According to CBS, the new project is currently in the design phase and should take about a year and a half to complete.

Is the ceiling "the next frontier" for space-saving micro-apartment designs?

2019-08-23T16:30:00-04:00

A startup called Bumblebee Spaces is trying to make micro apartments more appealing by adding movable furniture. Beds, wardrobe and drawers are stored up on the ceiling, to be lowered quietly on white suspension cords at the touch of a tablet, like a scene change on a theatre stage. In theory this frees up floor space.

The Economist's 1843 Magazine delves into Bumblebee, a new San Francisco startup that aims to imbue tiny apartments with movable architectural elements.

View this post on Instagram Bumblebee Spaces Open House on Saturday, 10/20. Come check us out, Seattle!

Cruise ships, tenements, drainpipes: Hong Kong's housing crisis inspires creative design approaches

2018-03-27T14:03:00-04:00

For eight years in a row, an international survey of nearly 300 cities has named Hong Kong the world’s least affordable housing market. [...] Architects and developers have also put forward some novel proposals, ranging from the quirky to the audacious. While some of the ideas may be repackaged versions of the cramped spaces the city has long known, others could reshape the future of housing in Hong Kong.

The proposal by architect James Law to squeeze 100-square-foot micro apartments into concrete drainpipes was widely published a few weeks ago. The NYT lists a few more 'solutions' — some lofty, others being already implemented.

Conceptual proposal by Humphreys & Partners envisions futuristic mixed-use NYC project with micro units and drone landings

2018-02-21T13:28:00-05:00

Although Mayor Bill de Blasio announced last year new mandates to force building owners to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as a way to fight climate change, a Dallas-based architecture firm has taken the idea of sustainable design to the next level. During last month’s International Builder’s Show, Humphreys & Partners presented a conceptual plan for a mixed-use project on Manhattan’s waterfront. In Pier 2: Apartment of the Future, the architects tackled major issues prevalent in many cities, like affordability and energy efficiency (h/t Curbed NY). The futuristic proposal includes two towers with modular and micro-units, which would boast futuristic amenities like artificial intelligence, drones, home automation and more.

The proposal cites Elon Musk’s Hyperloop proposal as a look into the future of transportation. The firm incorporates the concept of autonomous transportation by including automated parking systems, areas to land drones and energy-generating walkways. On the ground...

This 100 sq. ft micro-living unit made from concrete pipes is Hong Kong's newest housing solution

2018-01-02T13:08:00-05:00

The goal with it is simple, says architect James Law: to utilize “leftover space” between buildings in Hong Kong, a city with limited land and a constant housing shortage.

The city of Hong Kong has retained the title of the world's most expensive real estate market for the past seven years. As housing prices continue to soar, many residents are finding themselves with inadequate shelter, including over 200,000 people living in what has come to be referred to as 'coffin homes,' or tiny, subdivided housing units measuring at just 4' x 6'.

Aiming to ease the city's affordable housing problem, architect James Law has found a creative solution that converts concrete water pipes into 100-square-foot micro-living units. Called OPod, the tiny apartments are equipped with a shower, toilet, and smartphone lock, and can house one to two people. Additionally, the tube houses can also be stacked on one another between the city’s highrises to form modular communities.

New York's micro-apartments seen through the psychological lens

2016-05-16T13:45:00-04:00

In just a few weeks, the residents of New York’s first micro-apartment building can move in to their new homes. And when they say micro, they mean it [...]. Spending extended amounts of time in a crowded space can be stressful; if the unit holds multiple people, the occupants – especially kids – can suffer as a result of the lack of privacy. And creative space-saving layouts, she explained, can become a source of mental fatigue.

Long Island City ‘Micro’ Units Will Have Three Bedrooms

2015-10-08T17:45:00-04:00

A micro apartment is typically less than 350 square feet, but the term “micro” is getting an expansion (figuratively and literally) in Long Island City. A new rental complex will offer 57 two- and three-bedroom units ranging from 490 to 735 square feet, according to the Wall Street Journal. The project at 37-10 Crescent Street is being developed by Ranger Properties.

More details emerge about WeWork's residential endeavor WeLive

2015-09-03T14:29:00-04:00

WeWork, the $10 billion startup that leases space to startups, has bigger ambitions: it wants to rent you a "co-living" space where you work, too. WeWork is busy launching its co-living apartments — known as WeLive spaces — in places like New York City and Washington DC, The Information reports. [...] WeWork will offer more than 250 micro-apartments at that location, along with amenities like bike parking, an herb garden, and a library.

Read also our Working out of the Box interview with Miguel McKelvey, co-founder of WeWork and a trained architect himself.

Previously in the Archinect news: WeWork moves into residential development with WeLive.

500 Square Feet and Falling

2015-07-22T18:59:00-04:00

The trend toward living in less square footage isn't just about battling rent hikes: in Orange County, the able-bodied and financially resourceful are choosing to habitate (and sometimes co-habitate) in so-called micro or mini-apartments. Although the definition varies, anything below 500 square feet is generally considered to be on the petite side. The smaller appliances, constricted shelving, and overall compactness of these places requires spatial creativity and a Spartan materialism. According to the Orange County Register, nursing student and 475 square foot apartment dweller Cayla Alexander says of she and her husband, “We have three bowls and five plates. But when you really come down to it, do you need anything else?”

Perhaps the most extreme example of this trend is the My Micro NY, a complex of 55 apartments designed by nARCHITECTS in New York City that range in size from 260 to 370 square feet. According to CapsysCorps, the units make use of tall ceilings, large windows an...

Editor's Picks #403

2015-02-03T11:20:00-05:00

Archinect Sessions still wants you to share your client horror stories!, (Inspired by the insane Just lost a-hole clients thread from a earlier this month) which you can do via twitter #archinectsessions, email or call us at (213) 784-7421.

News
Stephen Burgen traveled to the newly opened Museo Universidad de Navarra, designed by Rafael Moneo. Mr_Wiggin was disappointed "To me, Moneo's best works are those that are inserted into a place built up 100+ years ago....this, standing alone in the middle of a verdant green, looks like failure of planning".

The NYT reported on the latest developments regarding Paul Rudolph’s Orange County Government Center in Goshen, N.Y. Thayer-D lamented "I know this building is a maintenance nightmare, but it's truly one of the more interesting brutalist buildings out there. A lot of ideas to cull from it".

Orhan Ayyüce shared a quote/story from Esther McCoy's 1981 memorial to Konrad Wachsmann, wherein both Corbu and Konrad praise the Pont Transbordeur as ...

Read the Urban Land Institute's full report on the micro unit housing trend

2015-01-30T15:49:00-05:00

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) recently published a report titled "The Macro View of Micro Units", which shares the latest findings in the revived trend of micro dwellings in the United States. The report arose from a ULI Foundation research grant that the Multifamily Housing Councils received in 2013 to evaluate the market performance and acceptance of small living spaces.

↑ The 23-unit SMARTSPACE SoMa micro apartments at 38 Harriet St. in San Francisco.

Bill Whitlow, a partner of Terra Search Partners, led the ULI Research Committee that wrote the 46-page report. The Committee worked with ULI Multifamily Council members as well as other developers, operators, and design professionals familiar with micro unit developments in conducting interviews. The findings were presented at the ULI's annual fall meeting in New York.

The report focuses especially on high-density and pricey metropolitan cities like New York, Boston, Seattle, Washington D.C., and San Francisco. The prefab SMARTSPACE ...

Urban Land Institute releases new report about the role of Micro Units

2014-12-18T15:18:00-05:00

New research from the Urban Land Institute suggests that micro units—typically larger than a one-car garage, but smaller than a double—have staying power as a housing type that appeals to urban dwellers in high-cost markets who are willing to trade space for improved affordability and proximity to downtown neighborhoods.

Here's the direct link to the report The Macro View on Micro Units.

Click here for more on the topic of Micro Units on Archinect.

Asia’s richest man is building Hong Kong apartments barely bigger than a prison cell

2014-07-22T14:32:00-04:00

Li’s development company Cheung Kong will start selling “micro-apartments” for between HK$1.94 and HK$2 million ($250,000 to $260,000) a unit on July 26. The 196 mini flats, part of a larger development (pdf) of 1,071 units, are among the cheapest in Hong Kong and less than 200 square feet, or around 18 square meters. The smallest of the apartments come with usable area of just 177 sq. ft, including a 97 sq. ft living room, a 13 sq. ft kitchen and a 31 sq. ft bathroom.

"Housing Design in the Future Los Angeles" and the politics of micro-units

2013-08-29T21:08:00-04:00

Architects Alice Kimm, FAIA; John Mutlow, FAIA; Lorcan O’Herihy, FAIA; Warren Techentin, AIA; Patrick Tighe, FAIA; and Ed Woll, Ph.D. will present housing projects in development and discuss the potential of micro-housing units, transit oriented development and changing lifestyles to create livable density in LA.

This past Wednesday, I attended a panel discussion of architects at the University of Southern California about the future of housing in Los Angeles -- an exciting and highly debatable topic nowadays, as transit networks expand and neighborhoods densify. Presented in conjunction with two recently-concluded coordinated exhibitions originally sponsored by LA Forum for Architecture and Urban Design, "BY-Right/BY-Design" and "How Small Is Too Small?", the discussion was a type of send-off by trying to describe what smaller and more efficient housing in Los Angeles may look like in the next twenty years. While it didn't really provide any tangible answers to that prompt, the panel did settle on a necessary focus of residential architecture: empathizing with the specific inhabitant.

Given population growth within the past twenty years, housing is certainly a top priority for developers: since 1990, LA County as a whole has risen from approximately 8.9M to 10M*, and accommodating th...

New York’s micro-unit exhibition extended to September 15th

2013-08-26T20:07:00-04:00

Due to popular demand, the Museum of the City of New York is now extending their "Making Room: New Models for Housing New Yorkers" exhibit until Sept. 15, 2013. Originally planned to close on Labor Day weekend after recently hosting its special "Living Large While Living Small" series this month, the exhibit continues to attract visitors from around the globe.

In addition to experiencing the fully built micro-apartment, visitors were drawn to one specific feature: the "Cubista." The Cubista is a coffee table and ottoman that transforms to a table that can seat four people.

Starting Friday, Aug. 30 until Sept. 15, any museum visitor can enter for a chance to win the $1,000 Cubista (with paid admission). One lucky visitor will be chosen.

Previously: Museum of the City of New York Presents: Living Large While Living Small

Museum of the City of New York Presents: Living Large While Living Small

2013-08-09T16:34:00-04:00

As part of the popular "Making Room: New Models for Housing New Yorkers" exhibit, the Museum of the City of New York will host "Living Large While Living Small", a series of events about how to live comfortably and stylishly in small urban spaces -- not to mention that all events will take place in a fully built 325-sq.ft "micro-apartment" housed inside the museum (an apartment size prohibited in most of NYC).

Previously: New York Mayor Bloomberg Announces Winner of adAPT NYC Micro-Unit Apartment Competition

UPDATE: New York’s micro-unit exhibition extended to September 15th

The NY Times on nArchitects' winning scheme for the adAPT micro-unit competition

2013-03-01T00:12:00-05:00

Nick Lembo, the president of Monadnock, recruited nArchitects for the competition. “Some architects shy away from modular construction, and some are intimidated by micro-units,” he said. “But Mimi and Eric were excited by the creative challenges. They created an incredibly space-efficient unit with an open design that will make it feel larger than its square footage.”

Previously on Archinect: New York Mayor Bloomberg Announces Winner of adAPT NYC Micro-Unit Apartment Competition

New York Mayor Bloomberg Announces Winner of adAPT NYC Micro-Unit Apartment Competition

2013-01-22T15:12:00-05:00

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, together with city officials, announced today the winner of the adAPT NYC Competition, a pilot program to develop a new housing model for the city’s growing small-household population [...]. The winning entry, ‘My Micro NY,’ was designed by a development team comprising Monadnock Development LLC, Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation, and nARCHITECTS.

Previously: Mayor Bloomberg announces new "micro-unit" apartment design competition

UPDATE: Museum of the City of New York Presents: Living Large While Living Small