Affording housing is my comprehensive studio project in graduate school in which I explored several ways to create spaces with wood structure
According to the suitability analysis of Lafayette, this site is suitable to build an outdoor social center that could serve to the neighborhood along Moraga road around. Since there is a hilled wooded landscape existing on the site and the project is affordable housing, the existing trees is kept to create a forest like outdoor space that could also act as a gathering center for social housing residents.
Architecture is built around the site and is a continuous transition from public to private. Programs in the building is from commercial rental space that could contribute to the city, to community activities space that is shared by residents, and then to the apartment part. Pitched roof is indicating this continuous transition all the way to the top of the hill and also an indication of entrance when the volume break down. Building volume is offset to have an indication of the circulation when coming both from Moraga road and from the back road up down the hill. When hiking on the green wooded part of the site, there is a nice view to the city.
The structure system is post and beam with shear walls. Shear wall is in the middle of the building as service space which allows free movement from interior to exterior from both sides. According to the structure flexibility, there are many ways to occupy the space and form different kinds of unit type for future usage. This proposal is showing one type of occupancy, every unit is different.
Each apartment has an outdoor space, a nice view to the courtyard in the living room, natural ventilation and light to all spaces and morning sun in the dining space and evening sun in the bedroom.
