I posted about shophouses spreading to the Balkans, and recently there has been speculation that ShopHouse may be coming to cities across the U.S., but one place they are definitely planned is Austin, Texas, according to local real estate agent Garreth Wilcock. From a post on Activerain.com: "Mueller, Austin TX is a mixed-use urban infill project built at the site of the old international airport. The guiding Design Handbook was a collaboration between many members of the surrounding neighborhoods, [master developer Catellus, Roma Design Group] and the City who owned the land, and includes specification for Mueller Shop Houses. The shop houses are estimated to be three stories tall, with retail space below and residential space above." From Mr. Wilcock's blog: "According to the design book, lot sizes will be 55×25 feet. The Mueller Design Book has them placed on the north-south transit boulevard and also in the Mueller Town Center. The theory is that the wider street will have businesses to promote different activity and engagement. They will also cut down on transportation needs if they are walkable, not to mention those commute trips that are now vertical rather than vehicular."
The Los Angeles Model: Mixed-Use Townhouse
From Contemporist.com, a gallery of a townhouse in the Venice neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, designed by Dennis Gibbens Architects. From the architect's website: "This mixed-use project is situated in the middle of a stretch along the boulevard known for its many recent examples of architectural experimentation. The ground floor houses parking and a single retail tenant; the two upper floors contain a single-family residence. The public residential spaces are on the second floor surrounding a private courtyard. The third floor contains bedrooms and a large exterior dining and entertainment deck. The entire shell of the building is constructed of board-formed poured-in-place concrete. Other exterior walls are glass or stucco – non-corrosive materials practical for their use near the ocean."
Singapore Shophouse Cooling Features Explained
From iProperty.com writer Samantha Loveridge: "Julian Davison, author of the recently launched book The Singapore Shophouse, marvels at the architectural ingenuity of these shophouses’ air well feature: an open column that ran through the whole house and created a cooling system. 'There’s usually a water feature at the bottom of the airwell too,' which, Julian explains, 'added to the cooling quality of the house.' The floors would have been made from terracotta tiles where the airwell came in. These terracotta tiles would be laid straight on to the earth. This wasn’t done for speed or cost, 'the cool moisture of the earth rises through and keeps the tiles cool', says Julian. Very little is actually known about the people that created shophouses. One man, Wee Teck Moh, whom Julian calls the 'Shophouse King', worked from 1890 to 1911 and created hundreds of shophouses. All that is known of him now though is his signature on the architectural specifications." Full article here.
Urban Land Magazine Again Touts Small Development
After its cover story on the wisdom of small-scale development (the issue also included an article profiling 10 small-scale infill housing projects, and another article on small-scale adaptive reuse), Urban Land magazine returns to the topic in this week's email newsletter with an article titled "Small & Smart" by Kristina Kessler: "Though small mixed-use infill projects do not fit most institutional investor business models, there is a market for compact, mixed-use design and smaller housing space. With some 3 million acres (1.2 million ha) of greyfield sites becoming available for redevelopment and some 20 million attached housing units needed by 2025, this project type is being increasingly favored by the planning and development industry for its scale and innovative design. Contemporary urban infill housing can weave new units into existing urban environments, with street-level uses ranging from retail space and offices to clinics, and even a Walgreens store. A number of municipalities are turning their focus toward redevelopment and infill and partnering with smaller lenders and borrowers." Full article here (requires ULI membership).
Non-Urban Townhouses in Albany Pros & Cons
Some townhouse projects have a feature or two that are not quite urban. Astute readers will note that the 2010 Slow Home Award-winning townhouses don't actually face a street. Now the Albany Times Union's Chris Churchill writes about the Lofts at Bryn Mawr, sturdy brick townhouses in Albany, New York that were designed by 3T Architects and won an award form the local AIA, but according to Google Maps the townhouses are in a suburban neighborhood next to an office park. What are the pros? Suburban townhouses can help increase the number of people who are comfortable living in attached buildings, and serve as examples for financing urban townhouses. Furthermore, I hunted around Lofts developer Crisafulli Associates' website and found that they are currently constructing a more urban townhouse development: the Townhouses at Center Square, rendering above.
Madrid's El Viso Neighborhood Townhouse Styles
I recently had the chance to visit Madrid, and Francisco Garcia, Miami's Planning Director, suggested that I check out his childhood neighborhood, El Viso, which I did and added the photos to the Flickr pool (including map). Mr. Garcia told me that the neighborhood was built by Spain's dictator Franco as an urban edge community, and then Madrid grew up around it. In a city that has few continuous townhouse neighborhoods, El Viso an exception (though it is almost exclusively residential) and is composed of groups of three units in a pseudo-traditional style, groups of four units in a modern style with half-circle bays at the ends, and blocks of wide, tall, unadorned houses that happen to be attached.
Incremental Housing Strategy in India
Another oldie but goodie from reader Natalie Weinberger, originally reported by ArchDaily writer David Basulto: "In developing countries, almost all construction is done by anyone but architects. In these countries architects can develop strategies together with communities to achieve housing solutions that address today's necessities and can be extended as families grow, once again without architects. In Bombay, a team of international architects, urban planners, landscape architects, and graphic designers volunteered to set up a strategy that uses existing urban formations as the starting point for development, and existing social networks are respected. Each family is free to choose one of the three incremental prototypes, and all prototypes need the participation of the community to emerge. After the reinforced concrete structure is up, the families can help by placing windows, doors, and tiles, and painting. " Key participants were Sheela Patel and Jockin Arputham of SPARC and Filipe Balestra and Sara Göransson of Urban Nouveau. Full post here with lots of images.
Townhouses Win for Housing in Mouvaux, France
Loyal reader and inspiring writer Natalie Weinberger recently reminded us of a past but interesting competition (reported by Dezeen.com writer Chris Barnes): "Paris studio LAN Architecture have won a competition to design a residential complex for Mouvaux, France. The 117 residential units will be clad in various patterns of brickwork, visually breaking the development down into smaller elements." From the architects: "Analysis of uses and architecture types composing the urban morphology of Mouvaux quickly led us towards the conception of a hybrid model, an intermediate housing environment able to accommodate desire for intimacy as well as sociability. This choice is legitimated by the scale of the construction already composing the district and the city’s fabric. The relation between the container and the content is inverted and the new buildings become tools for defining public spaces." It is unclear if the project is moving forward (developers were said to be Acarat Groupe, Groupe GHI, and Notre Logis) but the principles and concept are instructive. Full post here.
Washington-Area Townhouses Get Many Things Right
From Greater Greater Washington writer Cavan Wilk: "The Leesborough townhouse and condominium development in Wheaton exhibits excellent urban planning and creates a sense of place on the human scale. Well-designed infill can increase density without decreasing amenities and quality of life. In Leesborough, the Wheaton Metro Station is a 10-minute walk south on Georgia Avenue. Rather than having wide streets with long driveways, the townhouses and condominiums in Leesborough address the street, which has parallel parking, while the garages around back open up to an alley, much like older row house neighborhoods in DC. The rear placement of garages eliminates curb cuts from the primary streetscape. Leesborough is not perfect, obviously. It is a single-use housing development. There is no neighborhood-serving retail like a convenience store or a dry cleaner." Full post here.
Contemporary Bangkok Shophouse Renovation
From 5osa.tistory.com, a gallery of photos of a shophouse renovation in Bangkok, Thailand that was designed by (and is the new offices of) the architecture firm all(zone). The all(zone) website elaborates on the contemporary yet vernacular project: "Our observations are always captured by contemporary vernacular design solutions. We, therefore, try to learn from them in order to create alternative built environments where all could feel 'at home' in the world." Full gallery here, and all(zone) blog post with design studies here. (Photo credit Piyawut Srisakul.)
Philly Rowhouse Diversity in Photos
From a blog called PRETTYUGLY., some Philly rowhouse appreciation: "The city is awash in rowhouses, and they can be found throughout the city’s North, Northeast, and South sides. And there are numerous eclectic variations on the rowhouse, including Queen Anne, Victorian, Romanesque, German, and Italianate, even Dutch-influenced ones with gable roofs. The lone exception is much of West Philadelphia, a place where various Victorian styles – sometimes detached, and usually intricately decorated – are the norm. Fishtown, along with neighboring NoLibs, appeared to be the crux of Philadelphia’s infill rowhouse construction, which was a deciding factor in me visiting the city. The rich quality and limit-pushing of the designs built by local talent Onion Flats instantly made me a fan." Full post with photos here.
Slow Home Awards: Best & Worst Townhouses
The fine folks at the Slow Home Studio evaluate hundreds, maybe thousands of floorplans each year against their criteria for efficient, convenient design, and have chosen the best and worst of 2010. Best townhouse: Rock Row by Heyday Partnership in Los Angeles, California. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6Qb9shBFvE]
Worst townhouse: anonymous in Toronto, Canada.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCtcbEfczyM]
ULI Small-Scale Development Council Speaks Out
From uli.com, members of ULI’s Small-Scale Development council speak about the advantages small-scale developers have and the challenges and opportunities they face in the current economy. Highlights:
- David Chandler of Faison in Charlotte, North Carolina: "Small-scale developers know the markets and the municipalities better, and they can probably see trends faster than someone from outside their area."
- Mac Chandler of Regency Centers in Los Angeles, California: "In this economy, you have to go really small, and small projects aren’t easy because you have to do a lot of them. But small-scale developers can navigate approvals easier because they are not perceived as an open checkbook. In the retail sector, tenants are expanding in the infill markets, and they are actually having trouble filling the pipeline because they sense a lack of quality product."
- Bob Lalanne of the Lalanne Group in San Francisco, California: "There are many more small and medium-size buildings and infill sites than large, and therefore many more opportunities. The Federal Reserve doesn’t seem as interested to protect the smaller lenders, so we are finding opportunities where smaller lenders and smaller borrowers have finally cried uncle and need to get all-cash deals and close within weeks."
- John McNellis of McNellis Partners, Palo Alto, California: "We’re not competing with institutional players that often pay significantly more than an individual using his own money would. Just in the last six months, we’ve started seeing a number of projects in the $1 million to $5 million range that one can purchase, add value, and create a fair profit. In other words, they are accurately priced."
- Dan Petrocchi of the Evergreen Company in Sacramento, California: "Small mom-and-pop retail franchises are the group of tenants most in danger in this economy. I have seen municipalities become kinder to tenants, so to the extent that the tenant and the developer interact, they are kinder to the developer."
- Keith Ulstad of United Properties in Bloomington, Minnesota."Municipalities don’t have the capabilities to extend sewer lines or public transportation routes, so they have turned their focus toward redevelopment and infill. That’s where small-scale development shines."
Full article here, requires ULI membership.
New Washington Litmus Test: Townhouses
From Greater Greater Washington: same area, different patterns of streets and lots, i.e. neighborhood streets and townhouses in 1949 vs. highway, towers, and what looks like a master-planned campus in 1979. What are the benefits of each? Which is more dense? Which includes more jobs? Which includes more amenities? Which would you rather walk in? Which allows the community to incrementally evolve? Is "fragmentation of ownership" a sign of blight, as some states define it? Full post here with images from HistoricAerials.com.
South Carolina Townhouses and Prototypes
Loyal reader Eric Brown of Brown Design Studio in Beaufort, South Carolina emailed me some photos of their work at Habersham, which I added to the Flickr pool. Eric also mentioned that they have "semi-stock plans that people can purchase", which I checked on their website and yes, folks, do include townhouses of 14-, 18-, and 30-feet widths. I also read a few posts on the firm's blog, and found an excellent presentation from CNU17 about urban frontage elements relevant to any townhouse: forecourt, terrace/ lightwell, stoop, shopfront, awning, gallery, arcade, and balcony.
Philly: Welcome to the Year of Small
From the Philadelphia Inquirer writer Inga Saffron, via urbanist Randall Robinson: "Welcome to the year of small - small parks, small houses, small improvements, small plans, but not necessarily small thinking. The smart places are investing their limited disposable income in low-cost, high-impact projects that improve the quality of life for people who actually live in them. After the rapid-fire boom decade, the slowdown is giving Philadelphia a chance to catch its breath and think about what kind of city it wants to be.
"The rowhouse boomlets taking place in certain Philadelphia neighborhoods belong in the category of incremental improvements that make urban life better. And these infill projects remind us that progress continues even in hard times. How can there be so much rowhouse construction when bankrupt developers are frantically auctioning off unsold condo units? Despite the city's 11.5 percent unemployment rate, there is still a contingent of people who need housing and are casting their lot with the city.
"Rowhouses can be built incrementally, a couple at a time, making them a relatively low-risk enterprise for developers, who can sell them as they go. At relatively larger projects, such as Brown Hill Development's The Nine, the pace of work is scaled to the market. So while the first three houses there have been sold, the developer is just starting to frame out the next trio. Condo towers, in contrast, have to be built all at once, and then the developer has to hunt down a hundred or more buyers. With rowhouses, the main challenge is finding land in the right place at the right price." Full article here.
Blank Walls on 3 Sides? Problem Solved
From New York Observer write Matt Chaban: "The 19th Century brownstone at 132 East 38th Street looks normal enough from the outside, a more than generous 20-foot-wide Manhattan home. But inside, the quirkiness becomes clear, as the building's dimensions are revealed to be almost square. To solve this challenged layout, the owners have created one of the more distinct houses in the city. Enter the home and be greeted by the kitchen and dining room, the living room the floor above that, then the master bedroom topped by the second bedroom." Full article with slideshow of photos and floorplans here.
Narrow Townhouses: Undervalued in NYC?
From New York Magazine: "Jed Garfield, whose firm exclusively sells brownstones and townhouses, says he has 'never had anyone say to me, "I want a smaller house." People almost always end up there by default.' That may explain why, according to an analysis by appraiser Jonathan Miller, narrower houses are rapidly losing market share. Five years ago, houses sixteen feet wide or less accounted for 25.9 percent of townhouse sales; in 2010 (as of December 15), they constituted just 16.2 percent. 'The challenges are, really, 100 percent a mental thing,' says Garfield. House-hunters expect to feel squeezed in narrow buildings, but 'quite frankly, narrower townhouses tend to be better laid out,' he says. Skeptics who negate on size alone may be overlooking a good buy. 'These are the houses that are affordable,' says Corcoran’s Anne Snee. In 2010, the average price per square foot for sixteen-footers and less was $1,013; seventeen-to-nineteen-footers, $1,105; 20-to-24-footers, $1,375; and 25-plus-footers, $1,997." Full article here.
Landmark Brownstone Retrofit to Passiv Haus
I have linked to a couple of articles about new construction Passive House townhouses in apparently "funky" places like Amsterdam or Williamsburg, but now this news from Mother Nature Network: "The Passive House BKLYN Residence, a retrofit project and not a new build, is located in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn. Park Slope, if you’re not familiar with it, is the heart of 'Brownstone Brooklyn,' an area with little room for architectural funkiness of any sort. The Passive House BKLYN Residence — expected to be the first townhouse retrofit in the nation to achieve Passive House certification when it’s put to the test in January — is being overseen by Jeremy Shannon, principal at Prospect Architecture and organizer of the NY Passive House meet-up group." Full article here.
Brownstones Enable Value of Modern Cities?
From the New York Times: "It’s when Geoffrey West switches the conversation from infrastructure to people that he brings up the work of Jane Jacobs, who was a fierce advocate for the preservation of small-scale neighborhoods, like Greenwich Village and the North End in Boston.
"The challenge for West and colleagues was finding a way to quantify urban interactions. According to the data, whenever a city doubles in size, every measure of economic activity, from construction spending to the amount of bank deposits, increases by approximately 15 percent per capita. 'What Jacobs was clever enough to anticipate is that when people come together, they become much more productive.'
"Of course, these interpersonal collisions — the human friction of a crowded space — can also feel unpleasant. West describes the purpose of urban planning as finding a way to minimize our distress while maximizing our interactions. As Jacobs pointed out, the layout of her Manhattan neighborhood — the short blocks, the mixed-use zoning, the density of brownstones — made it easier to cope with the strain of the metropolis." Full article here. (Photo credit: Flickr user jurvetson.)