Judges' Comments
- The jury responded enthusiastically to the proposed idea of repurposing parking structures to create unique housing opportunities as car usage is decreased. They noted that there is a distinct possibility this idea could become a reality and admired the architect’s demonstration of converting an actual parking structure instead of a hypothetical one. They agreed that many types of prefabrication could be used to achieve the design intent and hoped this project would serve as a model for future exploration.
Project Data:
Completion Date: 7/17/2017
Square Footage: 931
Building Use: For-Rent Residential
Location: The example given is constructed using a parking structure designed for a Student Housing development in San Diego.
Project Description:
More than 6,500 square miles of land in the United States is devoted to parking. Around 40,000 parking structures and surface lots operate at only half capacity, according to the Urban Land Institute. Dedication to mass transit, the rise of a sharing culture, the emergence of autonomous vehicles and increased popularity of automated parking solutions will, in time, alter the fabric of cities around the country. As this happens, thousands of parking garages will be rendered obsolete.
In an effort to find a sustainable solution to this problem, we propose a system that not only repurposes these parking garages for much-needed housing, but does so using repurposed shipping containers that can be simply “plugged in” to maximize efficiency and minimize the disruption to the existing context. Using an existing student housing site that has a stand-alone parking structure, we explore the use of shipping containers as living units and the intricacies of converting a parking structure into a new housing development.
A parking structure ideal for conversion into housing is mainly dependent on the configuration of ramps. The “donut” shape provides a way to carve out a courtyard and provide daylight to all units. The proposed sequencing takes advantage of the once-ramped area of the structure for access to courtyard unit installation and surrounding open space for staging of containers and crane erection. Working within the parking structure’s 28-foot structural bay, three shipping containers side-by-side measure 26 feet wide. This leftover space between the columns is utilized in the two-bedroom unit to provide an additional 128 square feet.
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 79.87 dwelling units per acre.
Warm wood decking in the corridors and courtyard softens the concrete slabs and is more suited to the residential use. Simple cable and steel railings open up the corridors to allow light and air movement where there were once 36-inch concrete walls. The container units push and pull to create interesting shadows and movement in the elevation. Punched slab openings along the corridors break up the wide corridor and serve as a vertical green space, with planters and hanging vines filling the void.
C.O.T.E. | Committee on the Environment
Submitted By: |
Marissa Kasdan, Senior Designer KTGY R+D Studio |
Design Architect: |
KTGY Architecture + Planning |
Associate Architect or Firm: |
KTGY Architecture + Planning |
Landscape Architect: |
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Owner / Developer: |
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Engineer: |
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General Contractor: |
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Consultant: |
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Photographer: |
No photography. All renderings and graphics created by KTGY Architecture + Planning |
Park House
Category
Inspire
Winner Status
- INSPIRE Award