PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF PROPOSAL (SCHEME 02: CORNER) FROM STREETCORNER
LOW RISE: LA
LOS ANGELES, CA, USA
PROJECT TYPE: Open Design Competition (Lowrise.LA), Individual Entry
PROGRAM: Multi-unit housing proposals for the city of Los Angeles to combat the housing crisis, focusing on strategies for incorporating missing middle housing (2-8 units) into the many low-rise, single family neighborhoods scattered across the city. The response below is broken into two parallel, sister proposals: one for a ground-up fourplex unit on a prototypical mid-block lot, and one for a multifamily mix-use project on a prototypical street corner double-lot. Project Duration: 2.5 Weeks.
SITE PLAN: SCHEME 01 / MID-BLOCK FOURPLEX
SCHEME 01: MID-BLOCK FOURPLEX:
This 3,995 square foot proposal for a ground-up fourplex unit is based on a prototypical Los Angeles residential block: 50’ wide, 150’ deep, flat, alley access at the rear, and surrounded by 1-2 story gable-roof homes set back 35’ from the street. The proposed design matches the existing front setback line, and—in lieu of a street-facing driveway—provides four covered parking spaces and electric vehicle charging stations for residents at the rear of the property accessible through the alley. The building is oriented along the Southern side property line, consolidating the site’s open spaces into a landscaped public through-block walkway along the shaded Northern side, replete with benches, citrus and olive trees, planter boxes, and permeable groundcover. Primary entry to the residences would be from along this walkway, while secondary entrances would be provided to a shared, covered loggia for communal dining, barbecuing, social gathering, utility/meter access, and bicycle parking.
GROUND FLOOR SITE AND LANDSCAPE PLAN: FOURPLEX
SITE PLAN: SCHEME 02 / CORNER LOT
SCHEME 02: CORNER LOT + COMMERCIAL SPACE:
This proposal for eight ground-up residential units (7,295 square feet) and commercial space (500 square feet) is based on a modification of a prototypical Los Angeles residential street corner and rear alley. The proposed design matches the neighborhood’s existing 35’ front setback line along one of its two street frontages and meets the sidewalk along the other. 5’ of the combined 100’ lot width is donated back to the streetscape in the form of a widened sidewalk, allowing for the inclusion of public street furniture, lighting, bicycle racks, and a curb inlet for bus and rideshare stops. In lieu of a street-facing driveway, the design provides each unit with one covered parking space at the rear of the property accessible only through the alley. The site plan is organized into two parallel building masses running East to West, separated by a 24’ wide public pedestrian through-street replete with benches, citrus and olive trees, planter boxes, and permeable xeriscape groundcover. Primary entry to the residences would be from along this allée, while secondary rear entrances would also be provided to shared, covered loggias for communal dining, barbecuing, gathering, utility/meter access, and bicycle parking (nine total spaces). The commercial space, which occupies the ground floor of the corner unit and opens up to both the sidewalk and an outdoor patio, is depicted in the accompanying drawings as a community food business such as a taqueria, café, or soup kitchen.
GROUND FLOOR SITE AND LANDSCAPE PLAN: CORNER LOT
RESIDENTIAL UNITS:
While both scheme’s massings are intended to read as continuous structures, they both contain a range of unique dwelling types. The residences closest to the street (Type A) is a 2-bedroom, 2.5 bath, 1210 square foot unit ideal for a family with children. It features a second floor bay window projection which also doubles as a twin bed. The next residence in from the street (Type B) is a 2-bedroom, 1.5 bath, 1040 square foot unit set up for either a family or two cohabitating single persons or groups, and shares roof patios/gardens with neighboring units A and C. On the other side of a shared courtyard is Type C: a 3-bedroom, 2.5 bath, 1115 square foot family unit with a double height living area, a ground floor accessible bedroom and ADA bathroom. Like the other units, it shares roof patio/garden access between adjacent units B and D. Type D, located on the second floor at the rear of the site, is a 1-bedroom, 1 bath, 590 square foot unit ideal for a single person, couple, or family with a young child. Lastly, Type E is a 1 bedroom, 1 bath, 595 square foot variation of Type D which is intended for the second floor above the corner commercial space, and shares a patio and roof access with neighboring unit B. The potential for multiple exterior space-sharing arrangements not only encourages residents to calibrate their living spaces to match individually desired levels of neighborly engagement, but also allows the scheme to be rented or owned in a variety of conventional and alternative ways, including a community land trust or cooperative ownership arrangement where some or all of the units are to be occupied by friends or relatives.
UNIT PLANS A - E (LEFT TO RIGHT)
CORNER COMMERCIAL SPACE (L), AND TYPICAL RESIDENTIAL KITCHEN PLAN (R)
MASSING AND MATERIALS:
Although consolidated into one continuous form, the individual unit plans are derived from a single geometric template: a 22’ by 36’ box with a sloped shed roof (22’ tall at the lowest point, and 28’ at the highest point), and maintain a unified aesthetic: white plaster, black anodized aluminum windows and doors, terra cotta patio paving stones, locally sourced gravel, and weathered steel planter boxes. To break up the monotony of the combined massing and give the impression of a smaller footprint, the roof slopes vary in direction from unit to unit. Southern facing portions host enough photo-voltaic arrays to power the entire development, while non-exposed portions are used either as vegetated xeriscaping for rainwater catchment, as communal roof decks, or as terraced gardens for residents to locally grow their own fruits, vegetables, and herbs.
The design of the project pays tribute to several housing and architectural typologies found across Los Angeles and elsewhere. The housing units, organized about the site in a modified mews arrangement, are effectively hybrids of traditional garden apartment and rowhouse typologies, while the second-floor rear unit over the parking pad is also reminiscent of the many mid-century “dingbat” apartments scattered across the region. The braced V-shaped columns proposed here, however, help to alleviate the seismic lateral vulnerability endemic to typical dingbats. Materially and aesthetically, the project draws on both the long tradition of modernist experimentation in LA, as well as from pre-modern pueblo construction. Additionally, the xeriscaped “zen garden” in the middle of the scheme is not only appropriate for the arid California climate, but also pays tribute to the strong Japanese influence on landscape design in Los Angeles and introduces a courtyard element to the linear walkway as a subtle nod to classic LA bungalow courts.
VIEW OF CENTRAL COURTYARD / ZEN GARDEN FROM LIVING AREA
INTERIOR VIEW OF TYPICAL KITCHEN
SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES:
The building utilizes 12” thermal-mass walls to absorb solar heat gain, white plaster to reflect sunlight, deeply inset casement and awning windows to minimize daytime heat absorption and promote strong cross ventilation, operable clerestory windows and high ceilings to encourage vertical stack cooling, and low-voltage ceiling fans in all bedrooms and living areas. Together, these passive strategies bring the building’s HVAC load down to near zero. On-site solar energy is used for all remaining active systems: LED lighting, tankless water heaters, radiant floor heating, electric vehicle charging, refrigeration, and double-pipe heat exchange units for water preheating. All mechanical, plumbing, and electrical systems would be integrated into a single smart-house network to automate shared elements, track occupant utility usage, and allow for localized climate control of each unit. Additionally, the design proposes that rooftop rainwater be combined with plumbing gray-water and stored in large cylindrical tanks (located by the covered patios for units A and B, and by the parking pads for units C and D) for re-use in water closets and for watering the gardens. Composted waste can similarly be re-purposed on-site as fertilizer for the shared gardens.
BUILDING CROSS SECTIONS