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Parking and auto storage will be relegated to only the most undesirable locations and on the outskirts of cities. As this happens, thousands of parking garages will be rendered obsolete.

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KTGY R+D Studio: Park House | A Housing Solution for Repurposed Parking Structures

Park House concept addresses the future of unnecessary parking structures as a result of a paradigm shift in U.S. car culture by proposing a solution for repurposing parking structures into housing, utilizing repurposed shipping containers as residential units.

Using a “donut” shaped parking structure for maximum flat surface area, the interior ramp system is removed and replaced with a generous courtyard space, providing daylight to all units. Working within the parking structure’s 28-foot structural bay, three shipping containers side-by-side measure 26 feet wide. The leftover space between the columns is captured with a prefabricated extension piece to provide an additional 128 square feet for the two-bedroom units. To address the need for incorporating plumbing and electrical systems, a one-foot plenum was created beneath each unit by welding a steel channel to the steel container. By coring the existing slab at key locations, the plumbing for each unit can run beneath the containers within the plenum and connect to the main stack through pipes cored into the slab. Once a parking structure that provided 1,091 parking stalls, this solution proposes a 119-unit residential building with a density of 80 dwelling units per acre.

Status: Unbuilt

The repurposed containers and interior walls are constructed off-site prior to delivery and installation. With some modifications to the existing structure, the original utilitarian structure transforms into a building that’s hardly recognizable as its past function.

Container Units in Elevation | Ample 8-foot deep and 24-foot wide private patios provided for each unit.

Fifth-Level Units | Warm wood decking in the corridors and courtyard softens the concrete slabs and is more suited to the residential use. A steel shade structure covers the upper level corridor.

Residential Corridor | A raised deck corridor eliminates the need for stairs at each unit, while providing an accessible path of travel. Punched openings in the existing slab create a vertical garden and open guardrails bring light into corridors, providing visual connections to floors above and below.

Park House is primarily aimed at young professionals, and the units were designed with this consideration. The units are staggered to create movement in the building facade which also helps to break up the long residential corridor.

Section Cut | A section cutting through bathrooms and kitchens demonstrates the utility plenum below the units, providing space for supply lines (orange) and waste water lines (yellow).

View of Living and Dining Areas | Tube steel reinforcing and shipping containers surfaces have been left exposed in much of the living spaces.

View of Living and Kitchen Areas | The two-bedroom unit features exposed concrete of the parking structure where the kitchen has been integrated into space between the existing concrete columns.