This Housing project explores the infinite possibilities of the “free plan” for a housing scheme that is conceptually “unfinished”. Rather than dictating a unit type, a family type, or a room type, this project proposes a housing scheme that is constantly evolving, adapting, and growing with its inhabitants. This is achieved by efficiently organizing the services and structural load of the building into individual T-Shaped mass timber cores which are scattered across in plan. The dwelling thus occurs in the spaces in-between these service cores, where walls can come up just as easily as they come down.
This proposal challenges the conventional static housing model. The plan can be easily rearranged for multi-family affordable housing, student housing, transitional housing, market-rate housing, and more models. The prefabricated assembly allows for further vertical expansion in the future if needed, with pockets of shared amenity space arranged throughout the building’s massing.
The building’s massing gradually lifts to introduce a public promenade at street level. Here, the existing bus depot garage is partially repurposed for local market and local commerce, whilst new recreational and community spaces are designed on the ground floor to embrace the vibrant life of the neighborhood.
