HOiUSING F11 SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES
KATRINA RAE JOHNSON
B.A., University of California
Davis, California
June 1975
SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE AT THE
MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
June 1986
@ Katrina Rae Johnson 1986
The author hereby grants to M.I.T. permission to reproduce and to
distribute publicly copies of this thesis document in whole or in
part
Signature of author ................................................. . . .. . . ............. ..............
................
Katrina R.
Johnson
4 .Department of Architecture
March 15, 1986
.. ....................
John Randolph Myer
Professor of Architecture
Head of the Department
Thesis Supervisor
Certified by.....................................................r
Accepted by.........................................................
.....................
...........
Thomas Chastain
Chairperson
Departmental Committee for Graduate Students
F TECHN0!G
JUN 0 4 1986
LIPARIE S
R4d
A.STRACT
s...1.....
.
HOUSING FOR SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES
by
Katrina Rae Johnson
Submitted to the Department of Architecture on 15 March 1986,
in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Master
of Architecture
Ihis
thesis poses the question of how we are to house the family
of the future.
The concept of the strictly nuclear family as
a
backbone
of
our
civilization is disintegrating under
the
onslaught of careers, of divorce, of teen pregnancy, and of abusive
home life.
Though many of these trends are deplorable, there are
cases
in which the decision to be a single parent is a constructive one.
But,
whether voluntary or not,
the situation of the
single parent is a difficult one.
Single parenthood entails the
combination of roles and tasks usually shared by two
adults.
A
child
who
lives
with only one parent has fewer
resources
for
support,
whether financial or emotional,
and may lack necessary
role models. Single-parent families, therefore, are families with
extraordinary needs.
. . . .. . .........
.................................
...
...
..
are
needs
the premise of this thesis that many of these
is
It
childcare,
are
Among the issues involved
to housing.
related
the sense of home and of belonging to
location of the workplace,
a neighborhood, of having a 'turf' of one's own. These issues are
these
but
se.
per
the single-parent family,
to
limited
not
contstraints,
emotional
and
economic
have both greater
families
present-day
The
fewer resources for housing and services.
and
of our
segment
ever-growing
housing market does not cater to this
population.
The attempt to define the housing-related needs of these families
adjacent
The site is 21
is paralleled by a design exploration.
The program
lots in a residential neighborhood of San Francisco.
incorporating various
for a cluster development of 24 units,
is
There are single units and shared
levels of cooperative living.
the
enhance
features that are intended to
have
-- all
units
the
facilitate
to
and
chores,
or
childcare
sharing
of
possibility
home.
the
with
workplace
reintegration of the
Title:
...............
.................
Professor
Thesis supervisor: John Randolph Myer
of Architecture, Head of the Department
(MTENTS
ABSTRACT......................................................
INTRODUCTION....................................................1
I
THE PROBLEM
HOUSING FOR SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES...........................5
CHILDCARE AND KIDS' SPACES..................................7
A WORKPLACE IN THE HOME.....................................15
A PLACE TO CALL HOME........................................19
II
THE PROGRAM
EVOLUTION OF THE PROGRAM....................................23
THE CASE FOR COOPERATIVE LIVING............................27
SITE ISSUES ................................................. 35
THE PROGRAM OUTLINED..................
..
.................... 38
UNIT TYPES..................................................41
..............................
............. ............. . ..
... ..
..
III THE SITE
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION........................................47
SITE SELECTION.............................................55
IV
THE DESIGN
AN EXPLORATION. .............................................. 59
DESIGN AT THE SITE SCALE................................... 65
CONTEXT AND IMAGE..........................................81
THE INTERFACE BETWEEN PUBLIC AND PRIVATE...................97
FLEXIBILITY. ................................................ 119
PATTERNS OF INHABITATION. .................................. 127
V
CONCLUSION................................................137
REFERENCES ................... ................................. 141
CREDITS.......................................................143
4....
........
.....................
INT1RODUCITION
A major component of the American Dream is
of-
the ideal of the typical family:
number of these are single-parent families
breadwinner,
kids,
Mom the homemaker, and their
living in their own house surrounded
by their own garden,
or
individuals
dream
are
above all in
cars, etc.
Americans
family
considered
failures.
-
by
They are,
live
in
growing
a
percentage of
families are living in -
mothers
children.
many.
In
american
brink
occasionally,
This
growing
fathers)
and supporting,
their
trend is most pronounced
with about 50% of
all Black families having a single parent:
All
has
(or,
significant and
in the Black community,
of
all
A
living alone with,
the mother.
nuclear
or on the
-
however
and homeownership
become an impossible dream for
this
themselves
only about 7%
actually
situation,
a
Families
that fail to attain
good company:
fact,
Dad the
poverty.
of these single-parent families
needs
parent
beyond
The
must fulfill both breadwinner
homemaker
access
decent shelter.
roles.
to childcare
training.
To do this
and,
she
possibly,
have
lone
and
needs
job
The
scop e
of this thesis will be
limited
far
more efficient and stability-inducing
to a clos e look at the needs of one-parent
to adapt the dwelling than to relocate the
families,
family.
and
rela
primarily
in regard to housing
ted issues such as access to
workplace
childcare ).
and
to
These
services
as
'
This
thesis will commence with a
look
into
the
needs
of
careful
single-parent
are not
really
families,
from those of any other
family
possible approaches to the specific
(or individual, for that matter) -
only a
lems.
bit
single
opment
of this theme,
solution.
different
more
needs
(such
the
immediate,
since
parent lacks the resources,
well
as financial,
the
'ideal' family.
is
that
the
and
will then propose a set of
Parallelling the theoretical develis a site-specific
emotional
as
design
that are inherent
in
diagrammatic exploration of spatial
The corallary to this
housing that meets the needs
prob-
tionships,
it
Though
was
I
began
with
rela-
soon evident that
of
social
problem such as housing cannot
this particularly demanding group ought to
solved
independent of context:
be appropriate for other dwellers.
specific
of
A test
whether a particular dwelling type
is
viable might well be a look at its usefulness
to a range of
change over time,
users.
All
families
and it would seem to be
site in a specific and
urban residential neighborhood.
hence
a
be
a
familiar
The
'design solution',
as it stands,
is a
in
the short or the long run -
there is a
cluster of townhouse-type dwellings with a
chance
that this prototype might
range
sorbed
into our collective notion of what
of plans and an unusual
shared
number
spaces and facilities.
intended
as
a
public housing.
verse,
'project'
of
It is not
of
'home'
be
ab-
is all about.
subsidized
The neighborhood is
di-
but generally middle-income.
The
client group for the design exploration is.
the same.
There is a reason for this:
long
as the issue of single-parent
lies
is
seen as a
related
to
unlikely
problem
poverty and
that
as
fami-
specifically
welfare,.
it
is
the nation's builders
and
developers will pay it any mind.
If,
on the other hand, a prototype for
viable
and
posed,
a
variety
permanent community
community
of potential
is
a
pro-
with latitude for
a
'clients' and for
a
range of spatial interpretation -
whether
..........................
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.
..............
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......
......
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.....
..
..
..
...
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..
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......
......
--- - -
-,-. - I
-
.---- 111 1
11 1
wamimumnow
.. ji..j...1.1.OBLL
... '+
1..........*
.....
While
*
the needs of single parent families
with her children,
"
"
*
*
i~
rather than having all
are many and varied, they are not entirely
her (and their) waking hours occupied with
distinguishable
from
those
of
'normal'
chores.
families.
translation
of
everyday
day
The
problems into the narrower constraints
the
of
single-parent situation requires some
There
should be time left in the
for the undistracted pursuit of
activities as play,
on.
Communality,
such
storytelling,
and so
or neighborliness,
or
examination. I will confine myself here to
cooperation are all ways of expressing the
those that,
notion
housing
as I see it,
issue.
of work:
place,
the
So, too, is the prob-
the location of
the
work-
hours and wages. Efficiency within
-
home
housework
bother -
the
Access to childcare is of
primary importance.
lem
pertain to
the
potential
for
getting
done with a minimum of fuss and
is
important,
in
should be able to emphasize
that
a
parent
'quality time'
of having someone there
whatever
burdens
or
duties
to
share
that
come
along: and single parents often have fewer
resources for
this
self-reliance.
Along with
need for neighborly resources
the need for a sense of belonging.
a home and community can do a lot
validating
real
goes
Having
towards
the single-parent family as
family,
a
than some
sort of
...........
........
.....
.....................................................................................
rather
............
................
...............
societal
And of course feeling
cripple.
safe and secure and part of a neighborhood
is
important to children
without
those
models.
the
the
full
-
particularly
Flexibility in the arrangement of
The
ad-
be
home is an issue that should
dressed.
role
of
quota
way in which various rooms
how
are used is inextricably tied up with
52 1 '
the
dwelling is inhabited,
The
ability
to
and by
redefine this
whom.
would
be
conducive to accomodating a shifting population,
without creating a patched up
or
temporary ambiance.
Now,
these concerns are not unique to the
single-parent family,
but building a case
for an ideal housing type for this heretofore neglected family type cannot but have
1970
1975
1980
.
193
a
labor
the
women in
of
Percentage
children under six years of age.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
force
beneficial
'trickle-down'
with
other family housing.
effect
on
................
...............
...............
...............
CRIL OCAD E ck KJOS' SPIUA JL
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . .
S
The
with
question
the
children to
occupied
has
different
various
of what a parent is
keep
always been an
ages
and
different
solutions have
extended
them
been
to
do
safely
issue.
In
societies
found.
The
family provides a certain amount.
bilities if not equal rights.
at
an early age.
frequently
sent out as
they
8
were
years
this
children:
effect,
foster
marginally
useful
enterprise
(an
member of
aged
the
family
grandparent
or
slightly older sibling) could take on.
a
In
Sons who showed little
predilection for their father's trade were
favored
otherwise
they
were included in whatever work was at hand
of latitude as to who is going to mind the
it is a task that an
Thus
ance
apprentices
old.
system
of
The
what
when
Puritans
were,
in
homes as a form of insur-
that their sons would not be
raised
indulgently.
The
early
settlers'
attitude
towards
an age when the greater part of a communi-
children
ty's
following centuries. The Victorian middle-
economic life took place within
confines of the home or farm,
the
'childhood'
was brief indeed. Children were considered
small
citizens
-
with
equal
responsi-
class
did
did
not
change
much
begin to think of
in
the
motherhood
and childrearing as a skill, and to extoll
the virtues thereof.
This did
. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
not,
how-
......
.. . ...
...
society. It is generally accepted that the
proper
way
to raise children is
in
the
suburbs
and with the undivided
of Mom,
the happy homemaker. Except for a
attention
brief reprieve during World War II,
women
have been expected to consider this
their
career.
However, women have now reentered
the workforce in earnest.
is
Nowadays there
seldom an extended family to fall back
on.
Citizens
have
working for daycare
been
agitating
and
for decades now,
and
a great deal of progress has been made. We
have
community daycare and preschool
preschool preparedness programs.
ever,
It
extend
to the workers or the poor.
was not until
that
this
century,
really,
the patterns of work and of dwelling
changed
to the extent
emerged
as
an
that
issue for all
S**l.**..........................................
childrearing
strata
of
don't
It
have is equal access to
goes without saying that
and
What we
childcare.
the
middle-
class mother has somewhat better access to
transportation,
among other things,
her inner-city counterpart.
than
Also schedul-
ing
can be a prohibitive stumbling
block
for
the parent who works at odd hours
-
ly, even in an on-premises situation, that
a
center would be able
daycare
on the night shift, for instance.
open
It is not within the scope of this work to
nothing to say it couldn't,
outline
sufficient demand from the clients).
a
society.
plan for the restructuring
Suggestions
hand,
on the
hours
a
day
(though
suitable
and
both to a residential
care.
While
and scheduling would be to reintegrate the
tion
(limited
childcare function with the dwelling.
children),
terms
(transportation)
of formal daycare,
this would mean
block
licensed,
center
on the premises or within a
or so.
While this would be impractical
single
simple
staffed
provider.
a professionally
family dwelling,
enough
to
it
provide in
development situation.
would
a
in-home
The
day-
it is a small-scale proposi-
it
an
creating
daycare
having
a
In
situation
to the care of tots and infants.
of these is licensed
straightforward approach to the
problems of access
if there were
other
first
twin
there's
There are other forms of daycare- which are
are within the purview of architec-
ture. One
stay
solu-
for physical
tions to specific problems,
of
24
to
by
regulation
has
the
to
six
advantage
of
for
the
at-home livelihood
Another feature is that, being
there
is
some
mechanism
for
in
inspection and inforcement of standards of
be
space,
cluster
Now, it is unlike-
hygeine,
etc.
There are possible
drawbacks to this form of childcare in-home
provider
.. .. .. . .. .. . ... . .. ... .. . .. .. .. . .. ..
the
in
a
can find herself
..........................
..........................
4-:i...
-X .....
-X .......
+: +: 4-:-i-:.:-X- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .:,i,:
.....
.....
..
..........................
...............
..............
...............
..........................
situation
'trapped
classic
Another, more flexible daycare alternative
cooped-up with ob-
is the parents' cooperative or play group.
similar to that of the
housewife':
streperous children, there is the possibi-
lity that she will park the kids
of
in front
the TV set or make them the target
of
a
with a separate space and
of one or
core
100 -
daycare
fulltime
two
participating
parents
and
providers
90-
small
a
group of children in their home, or it may
be more formal,
vented frustrations.
watching
turns
taking
parents
with
format,
This may take a round-robin
on
specific shifts.
8070 -
child-
complete arrangements for
However
60-
care
50S40
children
other
be,
might
their
and
for
provisions
activities
must
be
30
considered.
20 T
10
1958
space
1965
1977
1982
..
.........
oo.
are important
supervisability
care in child's home
care in another home
pOngroup care center
Ma other arrangements
Childcare arrangements for preschool children
mothers working full time.
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census
Both outdoor and indoor
with
varies
children
considerations.
required
with the age of its
feel
of
The
such
space
users.
Small
safer when they know
their mother is near.
play
that
As they grow older,
of course, they seek more independence and
more
territory.
more
secure
if
Naturally parents
they
know
feel
where
their
children are and what they're up to.
is
equally valid for any
family,
creative.
and their dreams must be considered.
This
within
,R4
the range of personal style, but think for
a moment how much time is consumed by
average
the
mother in merely keeping track of
her offspring. An environment that permitted
child
household
supervision along
activities
with
would,
it
other
seems,
ameliorate the pressure.
This
notion
convenience
of arranging space
of the responsible
not the only consideration.
important
for
adult
which
is
It is equally
cive to the activities of children.
room
the
to provide space that is condu-
not mean kid-proof rooms
(like the
of the 50's) but rather,
children
feel at home,
To achieve this both their size
I do
rumpus
spaces
happy
in
and
.4
Both indoors and out,
children need space
they can claim as their own.
home
alcove
(space permitting,
room),
a place to store possessions or to
secrets,
right
The
size
room')
by
assignment ('this
there are issues of
but
own
book.
your
control.
the right to
control,
the
is
of space is the right to
built
bed-
partially
ownership
it.
.
is
is important.
about
.
of space
a
the door,
it.
IMR..
whole
for curling up with
Territorial
.
a
or a nook that's just
claimability
conferred
%#
the
this might mean a definable sleeping
keep
"t
Within
close
Intrinsic to the
alter
As with other things, children learn
their environment
Lacking
a
what
chairs, whatever.
manipulating
kid-sized space
environment,
with
by
in
the
kids will build their
is at
hand
--
blankets,
The
surroundings
and its immediate
home
constitute a child's first lessons in
of
structure
and
nature
reality.
the
block to neighborhood.
The
ding realm, kids need their own private or
average home is adult-sized, subdivided by
fixed
mostly
walls,
off-limits for experimentation
generally
and decoration.
tially
and
hard-surfaced,
It is perhaps the
its
that challenge kids to
im-
provize,
the
clubhouse or
important
too.
Hence the importance of
tree-fort.
An
Limits
exploring tot
are
might
up
draw on walls or to line
to
'secret' places.
Within this expan-
essen-
boring nature of the home and
appurtenances
child's confidence from playpen to yard to
furniture into a long 'train' to push over
the
cliff
environment
If
(downstairs).
home
the
were designed so as to
be
a
naturally rich environment, it is possible
that
less
of
a parent's time
would
be
taken up with saying 'No!'
Outdoors the same holds true.
'Own turf'
is important to a child's developing sense
of
self,
and
expands
along
with
the
............................................................ . . .. .. . .. .. . . . . . .
........................
prefer to know where the known world
ends
and where 'here be dragons' begins.
Cer-
tainly her mother prefers it to be spelled
out in the form of a fence or hedge.
limits
the
are also challenges.
When
It is not with-
in
the purview of this work to
on
the design of creative
ments,
but
play
their
impose
environ-
and
both
needs and the constraints that they
must
sideration.
.
elaborate
kids constitute at least half
of any given one-parent family,
.
ready,
young explorer reads the hedge not as
'stop' but as 'tally-ho'.
* .~..::,eq4.4~A2..................................................
But
be taken into
careful
con-
................
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.........
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................
.. ... .. ... .. ...
................
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. .. .. .
.. . .. .. . .. .. . .. .. . .. . . .. . .. .. .. . . .. .
. . .. .. . .. .. . . .. .. .. .
...............
A 1110 1"1"P 1 it("I, IN THEJ HOME]J
The foregoing discussion of the family has
This
cited historical models, most noteably the
factors
extended family and the home workplace, be
suffice
it
it
mere
reasons,
the salutary effects of
that
building
on
farm or sweatshop.
nostalgia.
these
aside
they
models
by
in
country --
The
were
it may be
true
justifiably
the march of
progress
were obstacles to bonafide
ments
baby
While
This is not
the
quality of
life
-
insignificant.
by
say
that
among
these
suburb-
the national economy and
stability of the workforce
For
the
were
greater part
on
not
of
this century, it has been considered right
in
and
this
the
'ideal' American family has been rede-
fined over the course of our history.
We
egalitarian
vision of our founding
prompted
improve-
being thrown out with the bathwater.
communal
to
the
that
has been
too diverse to delve into here -
shunted
we may have a situation of
have come a long way from the
reevaluation
fathers.
proper for kids to be raised
in
the
healthful atmosphere of the suburbs, while
dad commutes to work.
becoming
consuming,
ever
we
more
Now, with commuting
expensive
and
time
begin to hear it said that
the
job of the future will be located
in
the
home
of
and conducted with the
aid
.:4~...............-.
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The ideology of the Family has
computers.
it
futurism:
not yet caught up with this
still supposes the nuclear family, without
into account the havoc that a two-
taking
can
year-old
One
machine.
wreak
on
xerox
home
a
home
the
might argue that
is more appropriate to the married
office
contacts
for dates,
who
office
on
does not rely
who
individual
would,
The
000000*
notion
into
000
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00
of moving the workplace
the home does,
points
06
however,
to recommend it.
The
00
00
back
have
some
savings
in
both time and money that would be effected
are
not inconsiderable.
separation
blamed
for
prevalent
Then,
of work and living
sense of
the
today.
too,
the
have
been
alienation
Working at
home
so
would
she
could not be expected that
day.
It
would
get as much done or do it as
effi-
present-
ciently as would be the case in an office,
his
but this might well be a reasonable trade-
adult is so accustomed to having
or
her 'own space' that the very idea
being
The
040
mind her own children for a portion of the
day
not
0*0
0.
with
of separation of activities, of isolation,
or of the need for privacy.
00
have many advantages for a parent who must
But there remain the issues
family.
000
rather,
welcome the additional time to spend
his
000
able to get away from
it
of
all
off.
Of course,
(either the from the job or from household
tion
chores) would be appalling to many.
to
working at home is not a solu-
that is applicable to all people
all
jobs.
But to an ever
or
increasing
degree, people are seeking new job defini* *~:.
*~~..................................
.
...
...
..
...............
.................
0
tions,
A
new services that can be marketed.
number
of
associated
occupations
with the home are natural can-
ditates:
in-home
catering,
crafts
segment
being
conducted
manently
and so
on.
solution
are
network
most of which are
im-
work-at-home
Also, nowadays, most cleri-
since
accomplished
number
so
with
many of them
computers.
home
are
A
now
growing
of single parents are career women
have
decided to have a
child
While
from
sense
munity
of all this is that
the
ideal
would be to develop a close comsituation,
parents
one
in
which
those
who go off to work will have
-
resources
the
both formal and informal
-
to enable them to leave their children
good hands;
in
and in which parents who stay
at home to work can have both the fulfillment
of
resources
rearing their children
to
and
have them supervised
the
while
some work is accomplished.
alone
rather than take a chance on 'missing
boat'.
accomplished
home base.
A
growing
that can be
work
My
tasks can be transported to the
office,
the
tailoring,
through various
well suited to the
entrepreneur.
who
childcare,
of the nation's retail sales
marketing schemes,
cal
traditionally
there is a considerable portion of
so on,
the
most careers involve a cer-
tain amount of meeting and networking
and
...................................................
..................
...........................
.... .;. , , ,
.. .. .. .
.
. ..
..........:Am
...
....
...........
....
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.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..
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................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. .. . .. .. .. .. .
........A PLACJE To CALL 1-10311
The
need
for a definable
'turf'
limited to growing children.
is
We all
not
need
is the object of this
becomes
to have a place to call home. This need is
its
really
often
a
combination
tendencies:
crowd,
of
two
opposing
the need to stand out from the
and the need to
'belong',
to feel
that one is a part of a group or that
one
guise of that
cheering
This identification with territory, with a
live,
specific
borhood
citizenship.
to
We
know about flag
stirrings
locating
of
ground,
with
learn from an early age
and
country.
patriotism are
oneself
begins
These
useful
in the global
for
picture,
and they are further refined by attachment
to state or region.
is
'home at last'
-
on
When
the
asked
neighborhood
casually
or of
softball
where
they
people will often give their neigh-
the
tive
most
feeling
upon turning into one's own street,
team.
of
territoriality
In
applied to the home neighborhood in
has a claim to territory.
patch
it
personal and comprehensible.
daily form,
the
identification,
rather than the specific
address
street name alone is not so evocaof
Indeed,
'place' within the urban
whether it be for racial,
fabric.
ethnic
or economic reasons, neighborhood is one's
claim to fame or shame.
When the city or town
..........................................................
. .. .. .. .. .. .. . . . . . . .
...........
..........
............
I...........
.
.......
..............
...............
.
...............
confer-
Within the general classification
red by neighborhood,
the creation of per-
The basic human predilection for living in
'own home' is
an identifiable dwelling has prompted much
sonal image and the sense of
often associated with interior decoration,
furniture styles,
with
its
milder forms this need
is
the
painting of identical
There
whatever.
or bath or
clearly
a market for furniture and drapes
one's
express
that
such
'colonial'
it
essential
'Danish
or
nature,
be
modern'.
But the factors that define home
not limited to the interior
are
ments.
could
place'.
facade
family's
a
to
be
Farm'
or
expect
'Riverbend
Nowadays,
may
arrange-
are the days when a citizen
Gone
be
an
with
identified
'the
an
old
Jackson
individualized
individual's
or
a
sole claim to an identity within
neighborhood.
asking a lot --
And
of the silliness of our suburbs.
or with the dream
kitchen
and
ly on the color of their front door.
even this
may
be
many folks must rely mere-
with
a
range of cute
recently,
earthtone
responsible
While in
accounts
'little
pastels
stains,
boxes'
or,
more
it is
also
for the application of
half-timbering,
z-brick,
for
tudor
permastone
and
shingles to the same box.
I
do
not
raise this issue
of
external
appearances to pass judgement on
personal
tastes,
the
but rather, as an illustration of
desire for identity in our home envi-
ronment.
A
case
could be made
for
the
contention that extremes in the ornamentation of the home are a peculiarly american
trait,
prompted by our national ethic
of
rugged
individualism.
example,
long
Europeans
for
accustomed to a more
con-
strained urban environment, display a less
exhuberant
facades.
these
personalization
of
their
An examination of the detail
of
facades gives us clues as to how we
can create a sense of individuality with a
limited palette of materials,
define
personal,
as well
as
claimable territory
in
very limited space.
The other side of the coin,
so to
is the issue of fitting in,
of belonging.
In some parts of the country,
communities,
the
neighborhood
is
speak,
and in some
only way to belong to a
to
fit
within
rather
stringent limits of race, religion, income
or
ethnicity.
Other communities are more
lenient in their definition of 'same'
'other'.
and
There are few communities, how-
........2..
1.
.
Il
ever,
a
*project',
development
as
well as matching their image
of
what 'home' should look like.
different
that are noticeably
apartments
hood
or
homes
of
environment that blends with the neighbor-
a
gracefully accomodate
can
that
in scale, or massing, or occupancy.
anyone
that
There
is no reason to think
would
choose to live in a project if they
The
else.
anything
afford
could
challenge, then, is to create housing that
is
distinc-
at the same time affordable,
tive,
and contextual.
This is difficult
enough for housing designed for
'regular'
nuclear
families.
acceptable
societally
It
even more important
is
that
While
families
for
norm.
not fit with the accepted
do
they
might well
an
from
benefit
enhanced sense of community, and the reinforcement
alone,
of
these
are
knowing that they
families
........
.
. .
.
. .
. .
.
need
not
physical
a
. .
. .
. .
.
.
. .
. .
'The American Home, Safeguard of American Liberties'
a painting commissioned in 1893 by Judge Seymour
Dexter, founder of the United States League of
Building and Loan Associations.
. .
.
. . .
.
.
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. . . . . . . .. .........................................................................................................
T1
.....
...
...
...
....
...........
HEj PRO(1' Ail OUTLINE
thesis
for
this
My first inclination regarding this design
were focused on the issue of tran-
exercise, therefore, was to develop a sort
investigations
original
The
sitional housing.
that is,
Housing,
for
of congregate residence for single mothers
families or individuals who are in need of
a
and their children.
their
place to reevaluate and readjust
of manor-house with all activities center-
lives, while seeking more permanent accommodations.
The
break-up
whether
abusive
situation,
The
usually entails
as well as emotional
mother may well have to
ing
nuclear
due to divorce or to
family,
nomic
a
of
an
working
might
hours
be obliged to cut
or
find a
new
back
job
'great room'.
space -
ram
eco-
The
complex
daycare,
counseling
rooms,
job-training rooms, offices, etc.
As I looked into the issues involved, how-
job
ever,
a problem-within-the-problem
began
to emerge. There are two reasons why tran-
skills and a job, while an already working
parent
around a
was to have included a great deal of prog-
difficulties.
acquire
This was to be a sort
on
sitional
housing is needed:
that
justment
is
between
the
allows more time for parental duties.
..
.
..
.
..
.
..
.
..
required in
happily
.
..
.
..
.
..
because
the
transition
married
.
..
.
..
.
ad-
.
dependant
.
...
the living
state (or for teenage mothers,
at
home
bread-winner state;
single
the
with Mom state) and
and because there
is
little, if any, appropriate housing available
to
suitable
single parents.
housing would be
(Remember
convenient
that
to
conducive
work and to daycare facilities,
to a warm home life, safe, integrated into
a community,
things.)
from
My
and affordable,
among other
attention was thus
the stop-gap solution to an
diverted
attempt
to evolve a forward-looking response to an
as yet unacknowledged need in the nation's
housing supply:
housing designed specifi-
to meet the needs of
cally
single-parent
families.
The
nature
cussed.
24..
. ..
0 ...
0.
.0.0 0..00. ..
...
of these needs has been
What remains is the task of
disde-
ciding
how
stands,
best
the
tended
for
to meet
them.
As
proposed development is
a mostly
it
in-
notion of sharing.
The exploration encom-
passed a range of models for this sharing,
Within this envi-
stable
population.
or cooperative living.
Keeping in mind that nowadays
'permanent'
ronment, it is reasonable to expect that a
may
mean only two or three years,
nevertheless
group
of
designed
primarily
residents who are
able
to settle in,
home
and to make friends
within
some,
and
around
for
willing
to personalize
the
a
and
their
and connections
community.
For
an anticipated stay of a year or so
would
be
sufficient
settling-in
response,
need more time.
than
I have
to
elicit
this
while others might
It is the attitude rather
the absolute time-frame that is
im-
major
proposal
amount
of
the
that are truly
families
could be accommodated.
tional
cluded,
residential
instability
'in
transtition'
A strictly transi-
program might be
in-
or individual families in transi-
tion might share a unit with a
family,
of
'permanent'
either as boarders of a sort,
or
as full-fledged household members, depending on the needs and preferences of
concerned.
those
For the purposes of the design
exploration, I have assumed a
'transition-
al family' population of somewhere between
portant.
A
certain
component of
the
final
is a carry-over from my
exploration
design
earlier
of transitional models --
the
six
(in
two triple units) and ten
the additional families divided among
smaller clusters).
(with
the
>2
I
4N
.... ...-
2-
*c x,,4* a ...............................................
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
*
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_..
..
....
.....
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. . .. . . .. .. .
. . . . . . . o
............
.. .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .. .. . .. .. . .. . .. . o1 61 1 1 0 0 ee
. . . . . . . . THE
I 16 6 aI I e o a o o oo 66 e6 o 1 66 66 6 6e
101" COOPI'll'ONFIVE LIVINC
-
sharing a house is also increas-
For most Americans, during this century at
mates
least, the notion of sharing accomodations
ingly common amongst couples and families.
or
facilities
people
(such as
outside
has
Until recently it was a
sign,
and reminder,
also
been
These
with
the immediate family
been unthinkable.
'hippies'
bathrooms)
associated
and other
It
of poverty.
with
'utopians',
'un-american'
negative connotations
has
types.
aside,
most
people would reject it at first glance
as
Cooperative
living
is
not,
of
course,
but those who do like
right for everyone,
it have various arguments in favor of some
level of inter-familial sharing. There are
advantages inherent in
the
family:
a
extended
wider range of individuals for
kids to relate to
their
the
development
an important part
-
and the
of
possibility
division or sharing of labor,
not
to
an infringement on their privacy.
of
In recent years shared households of vari-
mention
ous
a
isolation. The presence of other adults to
means
take turns at child-care allows a parent a
wide
all
descriptions
have been formed
range of citizens,
of
culture' .
them
could be
and by no
called
by
'counter-
While many of these new commun-
ards are single -
sort of grown-up
room-
measure
the breaking-down of
of freedom to work,
housewifely
or to go
to
school, or just to get out of the house.
There are also economic advantages. Having
....
...
...
...
...
o....
. .. ....o........
a
number
of people to share the rent
mortgage payment,
the
the utility
cost of furnishing,
nificant savings.
struction,
kitchens
the
and
significant
or
provide
or
both for individuals and for family units.
sig-
At the same time it must facilitate, with-
bills,
results in
In the case of new con-
consolidation of
several
laundry rooms could save
amount
in
plumbing
a
costs
alone.
Now,
out
for some autonomy and privacy
forcing,
It
family.
am not suggesting that
communal
housing
development
a
wholly
would
be
household,
the
neighborly
cluster.
or collective living arrangement
necessary
logical or emotional -
either ideo-
probably both.
It
to me that
these
categories,
and
privacy.
agreements
as
how-
rules
strictly the
must
-residents involved.
Any
scheme,
to be workable,
work.
. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. .. .0 .. .. . .. .. .. . .. 0 .. . .. .
.......
.................
it
is
there
be
The proposed categories are
sufficient
ever.
the
flexibility in interpretation of community
layout
scenarios,
since
and appropriate that
ly sharing single-parent status would be a
There are other possible
com-
There are grey zones
intended
to make a commune
are
there
shared household and
would be unreasonable to expect that mere-
bond
of
These are the co-operative group
between
a great deal of commitment -
community,
munality, stopping short of a full-fledged
either appropriate or feasible. A communal
requires
seems
of
basic categories or levels of
three
commune.
I
a sense
-
more as models of unit size
than of operative
are
to
ideology.
hierarchies
concern
or
and
The
house
of
the
The Co-operative Group Household
This
is
the large end of
the
scale
-
xl
three
or four family groups sharing
kit-
_
_
_
Nf
chen, dining and living rooms. In order to
maintain
the sense of individual
and
of
family, provisions must be made for privacy and for choice.
ment
Basic to this require-
would be family suites consisting of
bedrooms, bath, and sitting room, perhaps.
Other
access
provisions might include
-
the
possibility
alternate
of getting
to
one's room without passing through all the
public spaces;
spaces
-
also the choice of
having
both
quiet
living
and
noisy
living rooms, for instance.
This model might be most appropriate for a
program for transitional residents,
it
is
particularly appropriate
fostering of peer-group support.
for
since
the
A
diagram of the organization of use-spaces within
the cooperative group household.
9.........
.2...
The Shared Household
It
is perhaps less uncommon nowadays
two
single parents to share a
for
household.
There are benefits of economy and cooperation
_Y
that can outweigh the inconveniences
of sharing a house or apartment.
The
isting
does not
housing stock,
however,
generally accomodate this kind of arrangement.
Even
though there might be
bedrooms in a given house,
enough
these are usu-
arranged in such a way that all
ally
XCOMMON C1?-L4-AWN
.aIVA-E
C1leZULAT1ON
ex-
the
bedrooms are in one zone and the
kitchen,
living rooms are in
another.
the
private
and
dining
This
typical
grouping
of
spaces makes it difficult for two separate
Above:
The
typical suburban house is laid out
in
such a way that all of the
most
private spaces
(bedrooms and bathrooms) open onto a common
hall,
making it
difficult
to achieve
any degree
of
separation in a shared-living situation.
Below:
There
are
exceptions,
of
course:
this
example,
a modified courtyard house,
laid out to
provide a separate master bedroom wing,
lends itself
well to
sharing by,
say,
a parent with an
infant and another with two children.
families
to consider sharing a house,
they desire any
If,
so
if
kind of privacy.
however, the home were to be arranged
that there are separate private
zones
for each family to retreat to, sharing the
more public spaces would be less
onerous.
There are several possibilities as to what
could
be
apportioned
to public
and
to
private (either individual or familial):
-each
and
family might have only
a bath,
bedrooms
with kitchen dining
and
living areas all shared;
-the families might have an
additional
5LEri'
private room, a sitting room or study,
that would make them virtually autono-
L
_jeE
1179ovJ
mous;
-the
FAMtLY(
extreme
case would be
for
family to have its own eat-in
each
kitchen
-TVr F'L-AY
and share only the living/play room.
The
variations
are
numerous.
concern applies to them all:
a
definition
A
NLT:-
rC N
camoI
single
the need for
of what is the private
and
which the public realm.
Diagram of the shared household.
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.....
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...........
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..........................
The Neighborly Cluster
A third approach to this notion of cooperUN 1-
flZ1VATE:
is to incorporate it at
ation
COMOO)
cluster
a
scale rather than at a unit scale. In this
sort of scheme, each family would have its
own
IVA-ME
perhaps,
UNIT
(apartment or townhouse)
unit
a
small garden or a
with,
deck.
All
residents would share such facilities as a
laundry,
rooms.
ordinary
the
garage,
meeting
and
This is not far different from
apartment building or
game
an
townhouse
cluster, but in combination with the other
options, the general ambiance of neighborly sharing could be greatly enhanced.
q
J
Above:
In the cooperative cluster community,
each
family has its own unit, but they are ranged around
a common court that serves as a sort of shared outdoor living room.
Below:
The
bungalow court is an example
of
this
arrangement.
The overlapping use of the court for
the sole means of access as well as for the units'
yard space,
however, raises rather serious privacy
problems.
... .. .. . .. .. .. .. . .. .
..........
.. ....
.. . .. .. ... . .. .
.. .. . .. 0
00 .
These
to
general categories are offered more
inhabitation by single-parent families,the
possibilities
possibility that the population might well
demonstrate a range
than
of
to point to a correct solution.
For
be
more
diverse,
vary
or that it might
the purposes of discussion, I have focused
over time, is taken into account.
on the idea that these households would be
Just as there are various possibilities as
exclusively
It
for
single-parent
families.
a
that
quite reasonable to think
is
mixture of residents would be workable
-
to the exact makeup of
are
households,
there
a number of plausible scenarios as to
the appropriate form of tenancy.
It would
and
be possible to imagine single-parent units
situations among the housemates would more
being offered either for rent or for sale.
even
preferable.
closely
model.
approximate
concerned:
needed,
range of
ages
the extended
Making room for a senior
for instance,
vidual
A
citizen,
might meet the needs of all
the need of the elderly indi-
for companionship and for
of
family
feeling
the parent for help with
the
kids, and of the kids for a range of adult
role-models.
program
So, while the discussions of
and design speak specifically
of
If rented,
or
it could be on the open market
program,
as part of a
restrictions
were
whatever
deemed appropriate
sponsoring agency.
the
with
The sale of
by
such
units could also be negotiated on a variety
If affordability
of terms.
maintenance
of
the
units
and
within
the
the
single-parent community were deemed important,
a non-profit cooperative plan might
wherein families buy equity in
be set up,
the
co-op with a low down payment and low
monthly
payments,
advantages,
but
resale is limited.
and have
their
certain
profit on
tax
future
This arrangement gives
the family the security of home ownership,
while ensuring that the units will not
transformed
thus
into market-rate housing
inaccessible
to the
clientele
be
and
for
which they were designed.
In summation:
it is clear that both indi-
viduals' and families' needs and predilections vary,
needs
our
of
and to truly meet the housing
the single-parent component
society,
a range of choices both
design and in form of tenancy,
of
in
would be a
welcome addition to the housing market.
Note:
for
a
more
complete description
various forms of ownership, see Appendix
of
the
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...
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................
...............
.
..
..
..
1.
..
..
..
..
..
.....
..
.I...
...............
.
.
..
.
..........
................
...............
................
................
...............
................
...............
. . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. . .
...............
.. . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . .. .. .. . .. . .. ... .. . .
.
....... .. SirF E11 ISS141's
................
...............
The
this
site I had
selected
the program's
point,
and
topography,
influenced,
outline.
the existing pattern
at
The
of
transverse footpaths combined with my goal
if any, children) and arrive a popu-
few,
lation closer to 50.
At any rate, I began
'great
experimenting with the idea of the
household
intermixed with smaller
house'
groups,
all sharing common courtyards and
suggest a series of clusters along a path.
entries.
In addition to residential units,
My early explorations were along the lines
I
of
of
the
creating
an intimate neighborhood
doubling the density of the
site
were developed with
site.
21
to
If
single
family dwellings (one per lot) and we were
but
serve
daycare,
that
by
to
Among
the
uses for this sort of space
are
particular function.
either
for
or
children
for
We could of course
as-
seniors from the neighborhood, a hobby- or
the houses would be built
for
workshop,
tion of about 90.
sume
inhabited
room,
a
families, we would be looking at a popula-
them
This is not a multipurpose
to include what I
rather space that could be set up
possible
assume
'flex
space'.
'average'
to
call
planned
'yuppies' (working singles or couples with
space.
A
or
job-training or
central
enterprise
feature of the
common
...
. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.... ..
...
.
space would be a laundry room which
over-
I acheived what I thought to be a workable
'tot
lot'.
plan for approximately 150 residents. Upon
an outdoor playspace or
looks
Unlike
the strictly utilitarian
basement
laundry room found in apartment complexes,
'sociable' laundry room would
this
addition
in
outdoors,
a
have,
the -goings-on
to a view of
seating area and coffee kit-
chen, so that laundry chores could overlap
child play supervision
with
and
general
reflection,
a
such
would
concentration
-
families
tend
'fitting
however, it was apparent that
in'
of
single-parent
and of kids in particular
to
destroy
that
the
any
-
of
sense
might
residents
otherwise enjoy. This was, I felt, a partly
site-specific problem:
I can
imagine
another, more urban site accomodating such
socializing.
a density (even of kids) as long as
open-
But
aside
space
needs were attended to.
from the issue of neighborhood 'ambiance',
there
lems
4ACTW-E;A
related to the slope and the vehicu-
lar access.
Tt,-r PLAY
-
not
Several of my early ideas
particularly
site-dependant
survived the test of time:
'flex space',
.... .... . .. .... .. .... .. ....
.
.
.
... .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. . . . .
..........
.............
.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. . ... . ..
prob-
are site-specific logistical
-
have
the concept of
of the shared courtyard and
laundry,
and of shared units.
of
sharing of units
this
The extent
has,
however,
been somewhat modified.
My
about
the
same number of units as there are lots (24
per
shared
And while many of
they
units,
are
usually
to the 'flex' space provided
in
there are spare
cluster,
many of the units:
for
laundry
changed.
To
street
also developed as public sitting and
play
and garden areas.
rooms
in
a spare
bed-
an in-home office, or whatever. The
sociable
there
and cluster entrance terraces are
rooms that can be used
a variety of purposes,
room,
that are partially utilized for cul-de-sac
only
In
each
rights-of-way
are
these
doubles rather than triples or larger.
addition
the street
equivalent to 29 units
on 21 lots,
acre).
the city,
parking
final solution was to have
units
with
room idea
solve
the
remains
parking
problem
are several garages as well as
parking.
As a hypothetical
un-
ontrade
..........
...
.. . .
4R THEfl P1ROGR;AM 01UT LED
L1AND:
21 lots, each 25' x 70' (1750 sq.ft.)
36750 sq.ft. =.84 acre
total site area:
slope: varies, but generally around 20 degrees
south
orientation:
RESIDENTIAL:
Accommodation
single-parent
for
30
families.
families,
The
if
occupied
arrangement of rooms
solely
by
allows
for
for
grandparent,
an admixture of singles (a
thus
flexibility,
fall
but
size,
and
layout
in
vary
example) is possible. The units
into three general categories.
Single units:
5
4
3
1 bath
2-bedroom,
2-bedroom, 1 bath + spare room **
3-bedroom, 1 1/2 bath (2 with spare rm)
@ 650 sq.ft.*
@ 1060 sq.ft.
@ 1090 sq.ft.
Double units:
5
4
1
4-bedroom, 2 bath
4/5-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath
6 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath
@ 1180 sq.ft.
@ 1500 sq.ft.
@ 1620 sq.ft.
Triple units:
2
6/7-bedroom, 3 1/2 bath, + 2nd living rm
@ 1900 sq.ft.
total area of residential units:
28080 sq.ft.
notes:
Square footages given are typical
*
Spare rooms, where provided, account for around 280 sq.ft.
**
(35
is adequate space for in-home daycare for six children
This
also
are
They
or for a small office.
child)
per
net
sq.ft.
suitable for adaptation as a small 'mother-in-law' unit.
0.............
.... . . . . . . ... . . . .. . . ... . . .. . . . .
COMMON
SPACE:
Laundry Rooms:
This falls into two basic categories:
space with a
designated
use, such as laundry or parking; and space that can be designated
for a particular use at the discretion of the residents,
and may
change over time.
3 small -several machines + sitting area
2 laundry/play rooms
Flex Spaces:
6 --
Office/Meeting:
essentially a spare room in manager's unit
(a separate unit near the center of the site)
ranging from 400 to 760 sq.ft.*
@ 120 sq.ft.
@ 225 sq.ft.
total:
common space total:
On-site Parking:
20 garage spaces (4 double garages,
9 off-street spaces
3340 sq. ft.
280 sq.ft.
4530 sq. ft.
1 4-car, and 1 8-car)
note: 400 sq.ft. of 'flex space' is adequate for 4 work stations,
if used as office space.
760 sq.ft.
is enough space for a daycare center
for 15 kids (at 35 sq.ft.
per child plus
service
space, bathroom, etc.)
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.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
...............
. . . . . . . . UNIT r1"iY131 N
There
is
quite a range of single
families.
parent
They
heads
there are,
vary not only
parent
which
site.
I
children
range
of possible
in
them and how many
appropriate to the conditions of
are
but also in income and history
it
have attempted to design
'scenarios'.
the
for
a
To do so,
was necessary to make certain
assump-
and, most important perhaps, in their view
tions as to what size and type of dwelling
of the future.
would
whether
Some see their position -
self-imposed or
temporary,
a
Others
more resigned or
are
content
there
with their lot.
house
proposal,
them all.
In
In
as
perhaps.
even
quite
any
event,
Communality or cooperation have been
sented
the
pre-
as a possible solution to some
time,
energy,
and
social needs
The proposed units
families.
developing
clude
prototypes for the three levels
of desirable qualities
a single-parent family dwelling
that
sharing
that
were laid
out
of
of
in-
these
certain
of
the potential population.
will
I have defined a
set of parameters,
for
evil
is no one prototype unit that
happily
this
necessary
-
otherwise
be appropriate for each segment
of
previously.
Herewith, a list of the types and sizes of
units,
along with a brief description
. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. ...........
of
...
41.....
the
category of client envisioned and
the
specific
features included
of
for
the
benefit
of that client.
outline
of the features incorporated into
But
first,
an
-Shared units are arranged with private
all plans as fundamental to the proposal.
-All
units have a
units
outdoor
have some private
Though small -
space.
occasion-
and
ally merely a large deck -
this space
super-
is so located as to be readily
small
visable:
outside
can
children
play
while their parent attends to
other matters.
-All
some
place
units have a discrete entry
with
sort of claimable territory to
geraniums.
put
bed- and sitting-room
a bench or
a
pot
a
of
a change of level or
by
other
suites for each
generally separated from each
family,
kitchen.
open-plan
-All
located,
centrally
by
a
common area.
-Some units have a spare room.
or in-home
ed as a potential workroom
office
Intend-
or perhaps an in-home
daycare
these
are located adjacent
to the entrance,
are (generally) con-
playroom,
venient
separate
spaces.
can
to the street,
and
from the rest of the
With
somewhat
living
minor remodelling, they
either be opened up
or
entirely
closed off from the rest of the house.
THE SINGLE UNIT:
This
is
types -
designed
spare
unit
the
either two or three bedroom, with
a smallish
living
'normal' of
most
the
to
'great room'.
The kitchen is
spaces,
and
there is
I
see
this unit
room.
appropriate
of
function as the hub
for
a
the
usually
as
relatively
a
being
stable
& secure single parent who prefers working
at home to trading-off daycare responsibi-
lities and chores with a housemate.
Note: the various possibilities for inhabitation of
types is explored further in section
unit
these
IV.5 'Patterns of Inhabitation'.
spare
room.
single unit with a
A
representative
Note that the kitchen is centrally located and open
to the living/dining area, to the large vestibule,
spaces
the terrace (both potential place
and to
which are also supervisable from the spare room).
~..........
..
0A
0
r MI ~~y5
u -ra.
THE SHARED UNIT (double):
This
unit
parent
is
designed for
f ami lies (though other
tions could be imagined).
and sitting-room suites,
two
or three bedrooms.
arrangement
prevails,
common
be
single-
conf igura-
It has two bedeach with either
The same
general
of kitchen and living
spaces
except for the addition of more
space -
separate
could
two
usually in the form of
playroom or
inhabited
presumably
on
study.
either
a rather
This
by
a
type
friends,
permanent
basis
(until someone' s situations changed) or it
could
be
*permanent'
rent
A representative shared unit: this one has two bedsitting clusters (two bedrooms each) separated by a
level change,
as well as a 'great room'
(kitchen/
dining/living) and a spare room with an
interstitial
anteroom, which can be annexed.either tothe spare room or to the shared domain.
the
less
equal -
single
perhaps
parent who
spare suite to a
more
a
chose
more
to
transi-
THE SHARED UNIT (triple or ?):
This
is an expanded version of the double
following the same layout precepts.
unit,
this is more likely to be a
However
more
either
transitional
arrangement than
the
while it is possible that
group
others:
of single parent families would
sufficiently
close and motivated to
of
a
be
work
it out over the years, it seems more likely as a setting foi
bilitative
the
according
reha-
With this in
mind,
program.
suites
flexibly
a transitional,
are
-
to
to
arranged
allow
somewhat
easier
the space and
more
adjustment
privacy
re-
quirements of specific residents.
same
The multiple household has many of the
features as the other unit types, with the addition
of a ground-floor suite of rooms that can be used
as a second living room, a playroom, an office, or
even as a semi-independant apartment.
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
.
.
. .
. .
.
. . .
. .
.
. .
. .
.
..........................
............
xti?
n
View of the eastern end of the site,
in the distance.
with the bay
4......6.......
SITE"
REFDSRITO
rijHE
A
NW].
For the purposes of my design exploration,
I
Bernal
chosen a hillside site in
have
Heights,
a neighborhood in San Francisco.
Bernal Heights is in the southern part
a part of the Mission District,
the city,
is
which
of
for
known
its
predominantly
Latino population as well as for being the
city's *sun belt'.
goat
pastures
Heights
family
the
is
and
Originally the site of
truck
now an area of
houses,
one
earthquake of 1906.
two
after
Until recently,
class.
influx of spanish-speaking immigrants
into the flatland portions of the
did
and
most of them built
the hill was predominantly working
The
Bernal
farms,
Mission
not extend significantly to the hill.
Map of San Francisco:
Heights neighborhood.
....
.......
...
....
....
...
...
....
shaded area is the
...
....
...
Bernai
...
.47............
It
remains a heterogeneous
neighborhood:
predominantly anglo with a liberal
admix-
ture of Asians,
Blacks, Latinos and other
ethnic groups.
The north and west slopes
of the hill, with their vistas of downtown
and
the
bought
bay and the
up and upgraded,
middleclass
workers.
slower
-
sunset,
have
been
mostly by
young
professionals or white-collar
This process is proceeding at
pace on the south and east
probably
slopes
because the views are not
spectacular
a
so
(they do not include Alcatraz
or the Golden Gate).
Also, in a quirk of
the western point
the
micro-climate,
the
hill diverts the oncoming fog to
of
the
south, so that the southern slope is someblanketed in fog while
times
Map of Bernal Heights:
the hill is bounded on
the
on the west by Mission
south and east by freeways,
Boulvard -- a major public transportation artery -and on the north by Army Street.
and
northern
light.
summit
the
slope are basking
in
sun-
-
A
11111
~
TT
Tl!A
L
_
I
View of the site from south of Cortland Street.- The
site
comprises a strip of vacant lots
just below
the boulevard at the top of the hill. (shaded area)
........................................
For my site,
lots
top
*......................................................................................
I have chosen a series of 21
that stretch across 5 blocks at
of the south slope.
These lots,
the
in
'dogpatch'.
A
few
blocks
downhill
close-packed grid of an urban
neighborhood
begins.
Uphill,
residential
there
are
round-the-hill boulevard and
the
groups of two and three, form the northern
only
boundary of a somewhat shabby neighborhood
bare hilltop,
of single
nity action has been designated as a
The
immediate
scattered
roads
family detached houses.
-
neighborhood
is
one
of
park.
a
To
'unimproved'.
occasionally
many
to
as
bare
which as a result of commu-
date it is,
houses and narrow discontinuous
referred
the
city
for the most part,
It is chiefly used, as are
hilltops,
as a place
..
..
..
..
..
.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
to
fly
kites or to picnic or to take in the view.
are
also
Bernal Heights Boulevard is a popular jog-
The
western end of the loop has
ging
track,
since it is just a
mile
in
circumference and has gentle gradients and
The
good
views.
with
sporadic but
traffic.
.5...0........
The
joggers share the
occasionally
road
reckless
a popular spot
for
'parking'.
recently
been closed to traffic, thus diverting all
traffic
around the south end of the hill,
and past the site.
The
age
shoulders of the boulevard
...............................
houses surrounding the site
vary
from pre-earthquake to modern.
in
They
are
with
few exceptions range from
able
to unattractive.
25'
all
The lots are
regular
a
While this grid is an extension of
grid.
the
unremark-
and are laid out on
x 70'
and
(small)
fairly uniform size
of
streets
streets
the
below,
is reversed.
to
parallel
the
hierarchy
of
The streets
lying
though
less
slope,
'improved' than their counterparts further
down
through streets,
dwindle
drives.
platted,
are here
slope,
the
thing,
another,
unlikely that they
will
boulevard:
for
they are too steep,
and
for
the traffic thus admitted to the
neighborhood
the
single-lane
are
these
ever be connected to the
one
the
streets
Although
is
as
while the uphill streets
to mere footpaths or
it
used
would wreak havoc.
Due
slope of the hill and the age of
to
the
Above:
View of Powhattan Street, looking West.
Though is is platted as a 40' street, Powhattan is,
at present, a rudimentary single lane. The encroachment of grading for drives, of plantings, and
so on intensify the impression of informality in
the placement of houses.
The view from the hilltop, looking
Facing page:
southeast across the boulevard and the eastern end
of the site, towards the bay.
. . . . . . . . . . ....
000a00*09&a0a0600000
*
0 * 0 . &
00 .
. 0 00 00 00 00 0 0*
00 00 00 00 00 0a a0 0 00 0 00 0a 00 & 0 00 0*
0a 0 * 0 0*
0 00 a 00 a0 * 0 aa 0 00 * 0 *
buildings,
0a a0 0 aa 000 0 6*
0a . 0 0 . .
relatively
00 0 000 .
00 . 0 0*
0 00 a.
few houses in
a0 0*
the
neighborhood have garages. On-street parking is,
therefore, the norm, and the use-
able
street
more
than
width is reduced
a single lane.
neighborhood,
then,
is
The
to
little
immediate
something
of
a
backwater, and likely to remain so.
The siting of the houses on their lots
somewhat
just
is
less regular than that of houses
a
few
blocks
below,
where
most
facades are right at the sidewalk,
or set
back
porch.
The
just far enough for a
front
houses at the top of the hill tend to
be set back a little further, and the fact
Looking South, down Prentiss Street from
Above:
Bernal Heights Boulevard. The street here dwindles
to a driveway and then to a mere footpath as it
ascends the hill.
Facing page: map of the site for the design
exploration, showing existing buildings, formal and
informal streets and paths.
.............. ...... ........... ........ ........
that
residents have encroached in various
ways
on
sifies
the street
right-of-way
the sense of informality and
hazardness.
intenhap-
0a
|..
Li. ~&7c.
e
...
-I
-
-
- -
-
-It
--
r-T
.-
-.
.. ...
----
'
1
-
~
*
-t
-
~ri
-
-
-
NsJ--
7
L---
-W-N"
n
- .~'.1.-
-5
*,
,f
I
-
r7
~~--
V
1-
*
K
I
K
-.
PL-
't)
H
I
rzzzi
ii
~7)
ow
.--.
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
...............
................
.
..I............
...............
...............
................
................
.. . .. .. . .. .. o o . .. . .. . .. o. . . .. . .. . . ... . .o o ...
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.........S1TE ("I ION
SITI!J IJ !J-4
.. . . . . . .
................
...............
................
The
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
this
principal reasons for selecting
site were its size (21 lots,
and
continuous)
an
to
its relationship
neighborhood.
existing
more or less
particular
Of
interest was the prospect of working
with
a site that was large enough to accomodate
exploration
various-sized
clusters.
I developed the notion of work-
Early on,
units:
with clusters or groupings of
ing
it
of
that a major
seemed
component
of
a
the
goals
appropriate neighborhoods,
opportunity
of
The
fact
linear
would be the formation of
mini-
level.
The advantage to
beads:
six
whole
(plus
three,
one single lot) allows
range of groupings.
for
Since one
or
a
suggests
the
site
that,
is
variety
on
essentially
properly
if
development
casually
together
housing
ment of lots in groups of two,
I welcomed the
to experiment with a
that the
signed,
the
in
parcel sizes within the larger design.
level,
arrange-
to
blocks of land are not often available
to this problem of single parent
this particular site is that the
is
this investigation
propose viable prototypes, and since large
solution
neighborhoods of a sort.
of
could
the
deknit
be
neighborhood
and more intimately on the cluster
The
a
analogy here is a string
series of separate entities
of
-
unit-clusters on each parcel -
whose
a
whole
common
bond
unites
them
into
greater than the sum of the parts.
of
.:
..
..
..
..
. ......
rk_
r--
I'i'TTThI
e.-
conjectural sketch of a developer's response to
A
other
on what has been done on
................................................................................
site -- based
the
San Francisco hilltops, such as Diamond Heights and
Twin Peaks.
The
second reason for favoring
was
that,
ting
(albeit
'shoeboxes'.
It is understandably
diffi-
for the speculative builder,
trying
the site is
small
development
Fit-
place.
of
by developers'
hood is a challenge.
this
scale
standards)
access,
There are issues
of
and of zoning to be
dealt with, as well as the often neglected
issue
infill
distinct
new
of
often these days
too
takes
into a single family residential neighbor-
density,
All
construction
neighborhood,
a
ings.
while being a part of an exis-
enough to lend it a sense of
ting
site
the
of blending in with
the
surround-
cult
to
turn a profit on a
plywood
of
the form
single-lot
infill
job, to exert himself financially for mere
aesthetics.
This
site
is
particularly
vulnerable to the depredations of speculative
building.
Were it not for the suc-
cess of an active community in obtaining a
moratorium
on
such
projects,
the
site
F
...............................
2,T
A
more organic response to the slope:
the
infill
units are graduated in height to take advantage
views
and sunshine and to shield the
from boulevard traffic.
Nonetheless,
usurp the public's view from the park.
0..
.........................
would
be
a prime target for
of
development
they do not
a
bank
of
6............00.................
0.............
.............
.....
San
Bruno hills,
view
accessed from the boulevard.
amenities
The orientation and aspect of the site are
whether the advantage of this -proximity is
The south facing slope
outweighed by the danger and disruption of
applications,
the traffic on the boulevard remains to be
is
and
ideal for passive solar
render
unit
with
sun'
quite
the task of
providing
direct access to a
simple.
The views
every
'patch
to
of
east,
south and west are quite good, overlooking
the
southern portion of the city and
seen.
balance
the sunset.
of
Also
is
The access
a
condos, towering over the neighborhood and
favorable indeed.
of
as well as affording
the park are
a
to
the
plus,
but
on the negative side of
the
fact that the
boulevard overlook the site,
park
the
and
creating the
potential for privacy problems.
the
....
rot..
...........
..........................
..........................
so
L1
2
The
site also has
amenities
situational
that make it a likely candidate for family
housing.
It
is
transportation,
S
-
within
2
as
blocks,
convenient
two
to
public
bus routes
on Nevada
pass
Street
and
AMy
Cortland
Avenue.
Also,
Cortland
is
a
neighborhood commercial street, boasting a
variety
bank,
of
and
several
- .since ..
~'1
stores,
a branch
this
laundromats,
library.
schools in the
San
children,
two
Francisco
There
a
are
vicinity,
though
busses
school
factor is less
relevant.
Besides the hilltop park, there is a minipark
(a 2-lot playground) just one
down
Prentiss Street,
block
-
rra
CEN T
Map of Bernal Heights, showing various neighborhood
amenities.
vehicular routes
major
Legend:
---------- bus routes
commercial areas
schools
parks and playgrounds
....... .... ........ ... .........
and
three
larger
playgrounds within a ten-block radius.
TI.HE D SIGN
...
AN
_ EXPLORATION
In
a broad-brush description,
the design
This design,
like the program, evolved as
proposed for this single-parent housing is
I pursued several lines of
an enclave of 24 units,
It
clusters
arranged in
of varying sizes,
house
and
along
a
office.
path that
They
five
plus a single
are
traverses
organized
the
site,
is
an attempt to bring together
factors
and
description
account.
the hill.
development
various
space
central
'flex
plan-types,
in
as
well
the form of entry
courtyard,
space'
reational or work space.
as
common
terraces,
a laundry
for use
as
room,
daycare,
a
and
rec-
diverse
of
the
issues.
issues
A
and
many
linear
of
design process cannot take them all
which in turn traverses the south slope of
Each cluster comprises units of
investigation.
I
will therefore
separate
the
into
the
of the design into three main
sequences.
The
first
scale:
both
of
these begins at
site and context
the
served
site
as
important determinants regarding the overall
layout and image of the final design.
. . . .. . . . . . . . ... . . . . . .. . . . . .
...
The second sequence begins with an explorof
ation
public
the relationship of
to
The Bernal Heights site presents a
of
design
opportunities and
number
challenges.
private space and an investigation of
the
The
of both types of space in
the
groups of various size affords the
poten-
tial
group-
importance
of a living environment.
design
Lastly,
distribution
of
available
lots
of exploring a range of unit
in
there are the issues of use, of usability,
ings.
and of change to be considered.
ence
The basic parameters of the site have been
permits the exploration of several
proto-
types
single
laid out in the foregoing chapter.
mentioned
that the selection of the
I have
site
was not done independently of the development
final
the program in its
of
form.
While the objective of developing an urban
prototype
to
tated,
location,
did,
in
for single-parent housing
an extent,
and so on,
turn,
the
site's
dic-
size,
the site parameters
affect the development of
the program and of the design.
This allows a diversity of experiin the proposed community.
under
design.
plore
the
While
umbrella
a
it is challenging to
single-parent
development
of
It also
scale,
ex-
housing issues at
it
is
difficult
a
to
ignore the fact that parcels of land large
enough
for the proposed
development
are
not easily come by in an urban/residential
setting
-
barring such stigmatized
cels as redevelopment land.
an advantage,
par-
It would seem
then, to be able to propose
a prototye that can work on many different
levels
of site size and of density,
single
or
not intended
is
here
I
proposal.
as
a
without
-
to the freeway.
whole-block
concerns
are
have endeavored to create a
creating
setting
that
a sense
of
place apart
'project' inflicted on an otherwise
like neighborhood.
lost trucker trying to take
occasional
shortcut
housing complex that blends into its
roundings
much to the dismay of the
the hill,
over
surplace
as
a
parking
(if
emergency
access
(due in part to the dis-
to further development is
structure:
is a touchy
one:
the
local homeowners have been fighting devel-
It was only in the last
that the hilltop was
as a park -
every
that
Perhaps the most incontravertible of their
This issue of maintaining the character of
aside
admit
Indeed, the existence
inappropriateness
decade
we
parity between official maps and reality).
the success of the design.
opment for years.
the
home-
objections
neighborhood
in
'dog
proper household must have a car) and with
of a viable neighborhood is fundamental to
the
residents'
The
not entirely
a
There are bonafide problems
manger-ism'.
with
on
continuing
street grid
proposed
offered
specific solution
The
parcels.
larger
to
double infill lots
from
the
finally
older maps still
set
show
of the
infill
typical
a plywood or stucco
the
maximum-
envelope triple-shoebox, which would tower
the existing homes,
over
usurp the
view
and so on.
In
point
belong
of
fact the lots
to various
in
individuals.
question
If
the
......(..
.....
.. . . .. . .. . ....
..
-.
The west
side
of
Nevada
Street.
The
building
envelope permitted by current zoning (shown dotted)
would clearly overwhelm the existing houses.
r-
City were to approve piecemeal development
of the land,
code restrictions would man-
date the widening and straightening of the
streets,
and every house would be perched
over a single or double garage.
zoning
law would permit the
The same
construction
of
units
sidewalk
back,
The
measuring 35' in height at
and
with
40' at a
a 40% openspace
required street
with
houses
point
ten
feet
requirement.
'improvements'
the imposition of such
the
along
out-of-scale
would certainly destroy the neigh-
borhood as it exists.
While these site-related issues influenced
be
separated into accounts of each
the macro-scale -
of
thought and of the
the overall layout, the
circulation plan, the massing and so on it
was
territory
private
inter-relationship
regarding
of units.
and
first evolved in
unit plans
-
expanded to
on
the whole site.
This presentation is,
simplification
the
process.
the
tion
to
-
of
the
shed
light on
the
unilaterally
others,
solutions to a problem at one scale
the
scale.
to
have some validity at
there
were other significant issues to integrate
into
issues such
the overall scheme,
flexibility and patterns of
as
inhabitation,
as well as the investigation of the potential
uses of communal and private outdoor
space.
The
following
account
of
the
process and of my conclusions will,
design
then,
...............
. .
. . .
.
design
None of the lines of investiga-
each
proved
conclu-
of course, a
actual
described were pursued
regard
inform
And
to
ideas
transition from public
the
-
thinking
of
The
space
private
to
public
generated
that
individual units
of
layout
of
relationship
the
sions.
resulting
train
. .
. .
.
. .
. .
. .
. .
.
. .
. .
. .
.. .. . .
. .. .. . .
and
often
another
...............
...............
;.z
C-A..
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.....
01"NIGN Y-1VF 'I111E S11,FE SCAL]"
A
!j
Among
the
first considerations
in
the
ric,
to
'path' and
'place' and what they
evaluation of a given site, in relation to
mean to the community, as well as to situ-
the design of what is to be built upon it,
ational issues such as solar
are context and topography.
buildability of slopes, views, and vehicu-
These give us
a clue as to what is appropriate and
what
is possible.
The
access,
the
lar and pedestrian access.
It
was
the
interface of
two
of
these
evolution of this design depended
on
issues,
the apparent conflict between the
the pursuit of several parallel trains
of
logical
orthagonal
thought
site
regarding
the parameters of
as well as the satisfaction
of
street grid
system
of
the
graphy
that provided a starting-point for
paths generated by
one line of investigation.
tions
the
'image'.
Under
the
general
fabric of houses and
heading of 'site considerations' there are
tegrates
issues
prevails lower on the hill.
image
related to the context,
both
and the logic of the existing
the
the
requirements of the program and considera-
of
and
the
fab-
Street
the
topo-
As it is now,
streets
disin-
from the strict regularity which
At
Powhattan
the edge becomes ragged as
houses
.. .. . .
... ...
... ... .
...
~..
I.
/
'A~
/
. ...
e........
" .........
4.
'v-i;
random --
become
more
limits
of their
within the
lines
regular lot
route
--
footpaths.
foot-
streets dwindle into mere lanes and
Though
paths.
and
only a roughly-paved lane,
Powhattan is in effect the last element in
serving as a collector and con-
the grid,
for
nector
the
uphill
Above
streets.
local access is effected by a route
this,
the
Street,
across Chapman, up the last block
which
Chapman
Nevada
of
last vestige
the boulevard.
to
an
was
The
intended
Folsom
informal
segment
to
and for parking.
This
of
connect
with Rosencranz is used only as
footpath
of
One premise of this exploration is
that it is important for a family to
have
able to identify with their home.
up
lane
place.
sense
create a special
to
portunity
the
slope:
and thence along
op-
to topographic provides a rare
gonal
across
grid,
Nevada
this change of direction from ortho-
Now,
'roots' in the place thay call home, to be
platted
of
response to the slope.
the
within
the
the natural
in fact,
of
constraints
which,
works its way
It is,
and
drives
by several
echoed
is
unseen
a
diagonal
As
house,
but
of
it
This
stronger.
located
is
is
probably
is
to
partly due
logistics as the delivery of
civic
their
the identification with the street
which
on
with
people identify
as
much
it is also related to the
'turf'
and
of
such
mail,
definition
neighborhood.
The
View of Powhattan Street looking East
typical
orientation of houses towards the
on
towards the bay.
Uphill
from Gates
Street,
Banks
(the cross street) houses rely for access on
a diagonal drive cutting across a vacant lot.
street,
with back yards totally
Facing page:
enclosed
.. . . .. . .. . . ...
I-
-~
, i
7jr-
-~-
%,
...
..
.....
Irv
-I
within
the block and
reinforces
fenced,
the tendency to consider the households up
and
bors,
down and across the street as
neigh-
related to childcare.
houses directly
behind
in
while
belong to
the
'others'.
The age groups most
of supervision are toddlers
need
pre-schoolers
(18 months to 5 or 6
and
years,
One of the principal goals of this work is
roughly). The natural realm for these kids
to identify ways in which neighborly coop-
is
eration can be encouraged.
pose
of
this
cooperation
And the
is
pur-
chiefly
the backyard.
is somewhat
yard
too
private,
however.
the parent watching a toddler at play
For
it
The conventional back-
can be lonely,
and for the five
old it lacks challenge.
lenge of the site,
The overall chal-
then, was twofold:
to
barriers
to
way to dissolve the
a
find
year
cooperation within the block structure, so
as
to allow neighborly alliances to
where
fences
norm;
and
across
showing existing
map of the site,
Facing page:
structures, topography, and patterns of use (footpaths, formal and informal parking, etc).
and laundry lines
are
form
the
usual
ties
streets and down them to the
com-
to
munity at large.
maintain
the
F1MIL-Y/ouSE7-4OLD
to the path.
relationship of the clusters
The
space is related directly to the
Shared outdoor
while private gardens and terraces are more
path,
remote from it.
'
........ o.............................................................
The
response
the
cluster
designed,
to the first was to
system.
The
create
clusters,
are partially derived from
traditional
courtyard house,
as
the
in that the
o......................................................
courtyard
internal
archy
or
atrium house
space
to
and individual
outdoor space
usual separation of frontyard and backyard
limited to the courtyard.
activities is replaced by courtyard activ-
all
ities.
along
They
differ from the
one-family
is
path -
cul-de-sacs.
nodes
-
not
the
hier-
units'
always
Also, the over-
attempt was to treat them
a
that
is arranged with a
of privacy,
access
in
as
places
rather than
as
I '_T
VI r
I" I-
r-----I|
'
r- I
|L
challenge,
In response to the second
i=:i -
the
1
network of streets and paths.
The
space is shown crosshatched).
public
way
(Shared outdoor
as well as serving as
feeder
maintenance
of street-frontage alliances,
routes and shortcuts to the various
the
used was a system
ible destinations in and around the neigh-
device
slope footpaths.
system
is
clusters,
This
a path that connects
running
paths
cross-
The main element of this
all
through or past
path is reinforced by
tangential
of
which
them.
parallel
provide
the
a
and
more
borhood.
poss-
This path system is in effect an
overlay on the somewhat imaginary official
street-grid.
The units are sited in such
a way as to respect this grid:
streets
do
since the
not and cannot go through
to
the
boulevard,
structure
the
major
clue
of the blocks is the
of facades.
to
the
alignment
Maintaining the appearance of
the grid is a statement to the effect that
these clusters 'belong'.
street
Meanwhile,
the
rights-of-way themselves defer
the topography.
sidewalks
to
Conventional streets and
are replaced to varying degrees
by sloping walks,
stairs,
seating areas,
planters and garden plots, and play areas.
This
network
of
paths will serve
focus of neighborhood interaction.
as
Paths
are a popular locus of children's play,
-
r
Chapman
Street looking west from the
intersection
of Banks Street.
Laid out within the width of one
lot
(25') there is minimal space for sidewalks or
parking.
a
a
place for running or riding.
Narrow foot-
paths
wider
walks
lend themselves to races and games,
while
a
head-
evoke jungle
secluded
quarters.
trails,
nook might become club
For
parents,
places along
a
path
are potentially places to chat
neighbors
ren.
while supervising small
The
with
child-
places that are created at the
intersections are an intregral part of any
path.
An intersection connotes a choice,
whether
of
remaining
which path to
still
Intersections
ter,
If
for
follow
a time
or
of
to
decide.
are also places of
encoun-
of chance meetings or
assignations.
the spatial implications of the activ-
ities
that
considered
take place along a
in
the design,
a
path
system
are
of
paths can become more than merely paths the
network can become a viable
part
of
-community life.
An entry along the footpath up Banks 'street'. Even
though it is technically in the public domain, this
is
There
private.
to be
walk appears
shaded
path on the suuy side of the tree which is
another
used by passers-by.
..
.
.0
0.
..
.
.
..
.
.
..
...
.....
0000000
60
0*
a0
*0
.0
0*
000a00 a0
0a
00 *0
aa
a 00 00
00 a0
Of
course,
in
such a network just as there is a
of
path
there is a hierarchy of space
'volume'.
On a narrow
path
small widening to permit passing or a
one
a
low
00
a0
00
00
90
00
0* 00
0*
increases
paths
that
vehicular
pedestrian,
00
00
00
with
00
00
00
the
00
*
*0
00
00
interfaces
space for cars to be parked and
sufficient. The amount of 'slack' required
space
the
In this design,
cluster-system
crossroads
context
06
Where
the
with
the
unloaded,
they
cross-
the points at which
path intersects
are
with
special
front
stoops
and
at the same time.
Within
the
of the conventional street
grid,
is clear enough what is correct.
roadway and sidewalks are public,
in theory,
*0
the
for kids to wait for a safe
importance:
0.
of
the uphill thoroughfares assume a
it
aa
yet more space is required -
wall that one or two people can sit on are
ing.
a0
consequence
are intersecting.
access
00
can walk there.
The
anyone,
Front
yards
and porches are private: the homeowner has
a right to shoo people away.
a
large corner lawn,
The owner of
however,
knows how
difficult it is to dissuade short-cutters.
.............................................................
The
overlaying
of
a path
on
system
a
street grid creates quite a number of posroutes,
sible
and
an
number
equal
On paper it
potential misunderstandings.
is
average
signs
-
are
citizen,
sort of clue.
to
how
easy to define rules for
rights-of-way
to
them anyway -
(usually,
range
there is a whole
'more private'
a change of
being
a
smaller
level,
with
equated
are
materials
more complex or to
to
or a change in light
darker
attention
as
decrease in width,
The
It is not necessary to post
people don't pay much
understood
scale)
requires some
however,
ly
various
treated.
be
of
Among the attributes common-
differences.
with
privacy
or
seclusion. Coupled with a level change, an
change
abrupt
familiar
understood
of direction
-
a
demarcation
of
front
stoop
creates
the
universally
formal
the
Just
of the private realm.
as
of tacitly understood indicators.
A fence
beginning
but
clarity
the curb of the sidewalk signals the limit
with a gate is clear enough,
does
not
so we
engender richness,
must
of
the car's territory,
changes in level
a pedestrian way can signal a
look further.
along
A change of direction alone can signal the
ference in use or in ownership.
entrance to another
if
domain,
it is an abrupt one.
particularly
The increase in
step
A
difsingle
might be effectively used to deline-
ate a seating area, for instance.
level of privacy will 'read' more clearly,
however,
if
it is accompanied
by
other
fxi%
While all of these options can be used
state 'private',
to
their indiscriminate use
The
site-scale design challenge might
described
as
finding a place for
be
a
new
fabric.
It
would be apt to create confusion. Through-
community within an existing
out
is the slip in the regularity of this grid
the clusters proposed here'there is a
certain
unity
of signals as to
what
is
more private.
that affords a niche for a new interpreta-
tion
of
inside out,
plished
grid -
the
turning
as it were.
the
This is
block
accom-
by piercing the usually inviolate
facade with a semi-public access path, and
grouping
street.
unit
entries
along
this
new
On the smaller parcels the inver-
sion
is partial,
a mere intrusion of the
path
culminating
in a
area.
shared
courtyard
The six-lot parcels, however, have
a through path which connects the internal
public-to-the-cluster courtyard space with
The
basic vocabulary of the public/private
interface along the public path or street: a right-angle
direction
change is combined with a
narrowing
of
the
path -- though it opens out again into a
terrace.
This is accompanied by a small level change
(as dictated
by the slope) and by
a
change
in
materials (from concrete to unit masonry, perhaps).
...................
.................
external entrance terraces on both
frontages.
clearly
In
all cases,
demarcated
street
this path
as separate from
is
the
truly
level
way by means of
public
and
direction changes, as well as by a refinement of materials,
and the use of a front
Cluster entry terraces are
stoop scale.
delineated by a change in direction, some-
in
materials.
The
change
and a
times a small level change,
path
passage of the
between the units (usually intensified
the
a
by
overhang of the second story) creates
gateway,
which is even
more
commonly
associated with private territory.
Once through this gateway,
the path opens
up again to create a new public realm with
its
own set of
hierarchies.
Within
the
clusters, individual entrances are identified with the same set of markers,
on a smaller scale.
*stoop',
though
Each unit has its own
clearly separate from the public
way, that leads to the unit's door.
.................... ...........
........... ...............
~4:+4~~
across
cross
four
as
Insofar
streets.
this community path follows the
possible,
It is paralleled by
contour of the hill.
This
pro-
vides passers-by and residents alike
with
a
more public path up-slope.
a number of shortcut options.
Seating and
play areas are also provided in the public
realm
system.
The relationship of unit entries to the path echoes
that of the clusters' entries to the street.
of
creation
gathering
common
an
'street'
internal
individual
with
complete
is
and play areas
asocial.
clusters'
normally
The
city land along the boulevard for more
was
of
a
help
street
life,
interaction
block
kidwatching
and
Such public
-
amenities
local
pedestrian
and the sort of
neighborly
create
would
an
was
under-utilized
connection
'streets'
and
entries
to enliven a sector of the
attempt
that
of
path
There is ample room in the fringe
community gardens.
This
the
key intersections of
at
a
whether over gardening
or
that would tend to knit the
clusters into the community.
individual
device
for
giving the community a sense of continuity
Facing
shown
page:
plan of the proposed infill clusters,
at the level of the
internal
follows the topography of the site -west to east.
street,
which
dropping from
K
*.
I
IL
.......
.
44.
1
t y
1.
1.
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...............
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...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
..
.............. .
.....
..........
fitting a 'special
of
.
.
.
in
use'
the
infill
development into an existing neighborhood,
no
matter how heterogeneous it might
The
designer
while
families
individuality,
that
tized
tional
just
is faced
sense
need to have a
it
is
be.
dilemma:
a
with
of
important
equally
they not feel isolated or be stigmaby being
housing
such
different.
The
not
meet
either
economic requirements.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
0 0
0
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
0
To
norms
of
size and set-back,
unit-clusters can,
identity
the
must
local
the
flying in the face of
Without
the
nevertheless,
infill
have an
as a neighborhood.
To do this,
existing
neighborhood
fabric of the
be examined and evaluated.
Once an
understanding of how and why it works
been
distilled,
the
has
designer can choose
which elements to retain for continuity of
it
image or ambiance, and which can safely be
merely
mimic the existing housing stock, however,
will
.
convenwith
project carries
a stigmatization.
.
Jt
difficulties inherent
are
task
111M
I
Jy
TV
There
.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
programmatic
or
changed for programmatic reasons.
The virtual disintegration of the prevailing grid structure has been mentioned.
this proposed design,
In
the maintenance and
.. ... ...
the continuation of the existing fabric is
centered
an important gesture of
size of the house,
buildings' facades,
'belonging'.
The
therefore, follow the
dows
on the facade;
depending on the
there may be bay
on one or both sides of this
local norm rather closely,
both in align-
and
ment
This might
downhill side of the entry stairs,
and
in appearance.
construed as overly rigorous,
that
it was justified,
dience
to
latitude
the fabric
regarding
but I
be
felt
this
there
may be a small garage
is often too small for modern
win-
entry;
on
the
though
cars.
in that this obeallows
other
a
certain
image-related
issues.
In
the
interest
organization
of
of
the
'fitting
facades
in',
the
themselves
also obeys a set of rules that is based on
the existing house fronts.
the
arrangement of their
there
street
follow a traditional style:
44*
to a front stoop or
i~
facade,
are two basic categories of houses.
The older houses (pre-WWII,
up
In respect to
i
*:i
.........................................
more or less)
stairs
porch,
lead
generally
Chapman
Street was probably just an
informal
lane
when these older houses were built: grading & paving
has placed the road surface well above the level
of
the garages,
which are now accessed by stairs.
This
roof configuration, somewhat atypical for SF,
occurs frequently in the immediate neighborhood.
Most
of these have a gable
there
are
a number
bungalows.
size
the
These
of
roof,
'mission
older
though
comprised
style'
and an entry door which is
houses range
from one to two and a half
storeys,
typical example being one and a
storeys
crawl
slope.
door
usually recessed
behind a wrought-iron gate.
The stair up
to the living level is internal.
They are
either two or three storeys in height, and
of living space raised up over. a
never have living space at street level on
a
partially
or a garage,
Though
right
a double-width garage
half
space,
basement
in
of
excavated
depending
on
some of these are
at the sidewalk,
the
front of the house.
As a rule
they
the
placed
most are set back
to allow for the entry stair, and thus may
have a small front garden.
The
second
modern
infill
of house
unit.
'shoebox' type
simple
they
type
is
more
the
These are
structures,
usually
though
are often adorned with a variety
applied
finishes
etc.).
This
(stucco,
second
of
'fieldstone',
group tends
to
be
rather insular: the street-level facade is
most of the
These recent infill units are typical:
street frontage is taken up by a double garage door
lot
front
the houses are built close to the
and
line, leaving little space for a front stoop.
.. . . . . . .. . . . . .
....
...
....
...
...
....
....
...
....
...
....
... ..........
are
built
as close as
possible
to
the
front lot line.
All
in
there is
within
these
modern
houses,
enough
parameters
by
diversity
This
the
more
single entrance for each cluster, but this
stark
and
ambiguity is ameliorated by the topography
fit into
the
of
that
though rather
themselves,
appearance
the site:
belies the reality of
of paths leaves
hood's haphazard ambiance.
each cluster is to be accessed.
The
attempt here was to acheive an
for
the clusters that conveys a sense
at
expresses
the
units.
was
the
same
existence
time
of
image
that
the
clusters' facades,
of
it
the path structure.
on
of
the
'house
8
p. 7
prevailing
one-per-lot layout,
Wi:il. . . . . .
do not
.. .. .. .. .. . ..
the
in turn, create a sort
organizes
--
Banks Street, east elevation:
--
inf ill consists of two single units.
Prentiss Street, west elevation:
here
--
a
duplex unit and off-street
parking
occupy two lots.
Prentiss Street, east elevation: a six
lot,
Thus even though the
units
And
was,
p.89
individual
how
Following pages:
representative elevations of the
proposed infill and existing houses.
dimension', the 'entry dimension', and the
.garage dimension'.
as to
individual
design emphasis
articulation
doubt
broken wall that frames and
p.85
rather,
little
of
A wild variety of finish materials
avoided:
a
the sequence of stairs and
preexisting fabric to create the neighbor-
community
three
units' external appearance.
all,
unengaging
still a comprehensible 'three lots,
adhere
to
there
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .
.. .. .. .. .. .. .
cluster.
The
units
have a relatively low facade since the
lots fall away to the east, permitting
a
garden
level one floor below the
entry.
the
is
seven-unit
here the
p.91
Nevada Street,
west elevation:
side of the same cluster.
other
--
L
---
-- ---
-
t.
.~.j
'
4) V~
Ot)
V
J.x
4,
aspect of the existing fabric
Another
the massing of the houses.
might
To acheive a totally
design
response,
likewise
be tiny and detached.
new
In laying out the
feasible.
was
door space.
The precise point of compro-
mise
varies
cluster,
since
somewhat
from
cluster
the street set-backs
their
number of devices were
em-
The use
of
mentioned.
Another important
ploy
the maintaining of the one and a half
Thus porches
and bays have roofs or other trim elements
at
on one hand, minimizing building
on the other, maximizing out-
larger than
storey scale at the facade.
various
height and,
A
them-
units are out of scale.
been
is
cluster arrangements, a balance was struck
between,
however,
buildings
similar dimensions for facade elements has
would
not either economically or programmatically
The
ployed to lessen the impression that these
than
This
are,
abuttors.
contextual
the infill units
and street.
selves
houses
be said to be deployed rather
massed.
block
Actually, the
scale is such that the
prevailing
is
the one-storey
level.
Upper
floors
rise above these lower roofs, but the setback
the facade makes
from
these
upper
floors less readable from street level.
to
and
the height and style of neighboring houses
varies
from block to
block.
Generally,
the median set-back for the clusters
forms
to
the
average for
the
con-
specific
.
. .
. .
. .
. .
. .
.
. .
.
...
.
.
. .
. .
.
. .
. .
. .
.
. .
. .
. .
.
. . .
..........................
...........................
iiii,
ail
.......
W.M.
f
...........
. .. .. . ... .. .. . .
A
second
aspect
of the massing
of
the
clusters was a response to a more internal
concern:
maximizing the possibilities for
a pleasant ambiance within the units.
of the essential parameters in the
of
One
layout
units was the provision of a 'patch of
sun'
for
every
facing
every
room.
unit
--
and
The location on
preferably
a
south-
slope is ideal for the orientation
of units to take advantage of both sunshine
and views. The natural design response was
to have the clusters' courtyards open
to
the south,
and to have the
out
buildings
rise somewhat higher on the north (uphill)
side.
The combination of graduated building height with
the natural gradient of the south-facing slope
maximizes the opportunities for views and sunny
terraces.
Facing page: The roof plan shows the massing of the
development relative to the existing
proposed
fabric.
This
maximizes both the number of
windows with sun and a view and the potential for sunny roof decks.
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rFH E _NTr
F
In
I"*
j
11
JT
and
my earlier discussion of the pros
cons
shared living,
of
I defined
general levels of communality or
three
coopera-
the cooperative group household, the
tion:
shared household, and the cluster community.
The success of each of these depends,
to an extent,
on the attitude of the par-
ticipants. But there are ways in which the
viability
through
common
of
all
thoughtful
them can
enhanced
be
The
design.
denominator here is the
lowest
relation-
ship between the public and private realm.
This
private
public
and
be made on every level
from
distinction
can
between
the most private (the interface between
a
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
I E
.
A
bedroom
most
.
and the hall for instance) to the
public (the front stoop or even
the
point at which a resident turns the corner
into her own street).
This dynamic of interface between
and
private
public can be expressed in terms of a
a public space, and a zone
private space,
of transition or front yard.
without
a
be it doorway,
vestibule
When private meets
transition
zone
public
(or,
worse,
overlaps) a potential for conflict exists.
The
encroachment
uses of spaces Of
that
course
lack
....
...
...
.......
of spaces -
or of
that engenders
the
tension.
it would be foolish
to
state
of privacy is the root of
...
...
...
...
....
...
...
...
...
..
all
...
domestic
call
by
evil,
but
surely everyone
to mind instances of discord
the
TV
studying
nap.
On
complaint
interfering
or
with
of kids' play
the
caused
someone's
disturbing
other hand one
hears
that 'families don't do
together anymore'.
can
a
the
things
There is a fundamental
careful design or of chance.
The key to a
design resolution of the inherent conflict
lies
in an understanding of the nature of
the
public
household,
and'private realms
and the relationship of
spaces to one another.
at
a
within
a
these
One way of looking
household is as an
aggregation
of
conflict here between the need for a space
private spaces or nodes, ranged around and
large
held together by the shared space, just as
enough
to
accomodate
family
or
group activity, and for space conducive to
a
the pursuit of individual interests.
whose
It is possible to design the spaces within
passing
a
way
house
in such a way that they
both private and communal
houses
activity.
meet the space and activity
of their residents perfectly,
at
all.
Most
or bad,
............
The
Some
needs
others, not
houses and families
somewhere in between.
good
support
fit,
fall
whether
might be either a result of
..............................
family
with
is a collection of
relationship gives them
identity.
Perhaps the
an
the
ways
aggregate.
'basic unit' -
which
begin
in this case the
and the bedroom
in
encom-
clearest
to approach this problem is to
individual
the
individuals
-
and
study
spaces
and
uses
The
basic premise in this exploration
every
that
needs their own space.
child,
adult or
individual,
not
Though it has
long since the most a body could lay
been
to,
claim
was
as personal space,
nowadays
bed,
their
a bedroom of one's own
generally considered the norm (unless
is
is
a spouse -
or poor).
At any rate,
is
one
I
the
will start with the sleeping-place as
minimal personal territory.
If
it
room,
private
can
accommodate
activities -
the
alcove,
territory
is
a
reading or
a
whole
range
only
a
7..
of
-r
working,
sleeping
oTop:The individual in her private space
Bottom:
The individual in her private space,
with
The
family member.
guest or
another -- either
'transition zone' provides a buffer for privacy.
possibilities for private activi-
ties are more limited,
tion
is
alone together or just being alone.
being
If
personal territory
this
of the alcove as
more important.
making the defini'private'
all
the
Key to diagrams on following pages:
S- the individual (adult)
the individual (child)
-
-
-
the family (parent and one or more children)
the household (several families)
-
visitor or occasional occupant
..
........
........... ..............
9....
....
...
The
second
level of personal control
of
BATH, En.
space
PRIVATE
LIVINS
R
EDMTrW,
*
Mr+Y
is
the possession of
share with someone,
F
ber or a friend.
their bedroom.
HOUSEHOLp'Z
sro-oR
AR V
PULIC
somewhat larger,
house -
whole
a
place
to
whether a family mem-
For kids,
it is usually
For parents the choice is
since they 'control' the
though this does not
mean
they will not be interupted.
The
Above:
The sequence of space from most private to
public.
The size of the transition zone increases
along with the occupant load.
next
private
Opposite page
Top:
Minimum transition zone -- the doorway.
What
the traditional
divider of spaces -- the door -lacks in territorial presence, it makes up for
in
solidity:
a closed door is quite clear.
that
An inferred transition zone:
such devices
orientation of a sofa, or the use of a
shelf-unit as a room-divider are examples of
to
in
the
transition
from
public realm is shared
is controlled or used more
space
or
less
equally by all members of the household
the
Middle:
as the
step
living room for example.
might
infer-
be
used
by an
This
individual
-
space
family
red transition.
member,
Bottom:
The front entry as a bipartite
transition
zone.
Outside, the front stoop or porch defines an
area which
is
privately owned
(controlled) yet
accessible to callers, thus giving the resident the
option
of social interaction with neighbors or
of
exclusion of
unwanted visitors
in neutral
(yet
safe) territory.
Inside, the vestibule provides a
more
secluded area for such interaction
that
is
still
removed from the truly private realm of the
living areas.
*
~(j.~g
:~............................................
~
:~
by
several,
as a place for
family to engage in familial pursuits,
or
(in whole or
in
a
place
for the family
part) to entertain guests.
.......
the
Between
each of these
spaces,
those that are not room-sized,
ever is
including
and
what-
'outside' there is a zone of tran-
sition.
This
zone
might be real
or
it
might be inferred. It serves as a demarcation
narrow
and
as
a buffer.
but very real and
tion.
As small as it is,
serve
as
place
intercepted,
clear
would-be
or where
is
a
demarca-
the doorway can
'social
a distinct
where
A doorway
space',
visitors
a
can
be
'outsiders' can
be
1
-
~
t
-
engaged in conversation without the integrity
of the private space being
Naturally,
a
larger
separation between
invaded.
zone provides
'private' and
more
'public'.
The functions that are served on the
scale
more
by a door,
room
are generally
afforded
space on the house scale -
a vesti-
bule or front hall.
At the front door
we
...............................................................
.....
101.....
. .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . ...
actually have a bipartite zone: the vestiis more private; the front
inside,
bule,
inferred
zone
within
demarcation
of
transition
a room.
In a
is
a
shared
bedroom, private space might be associated
with the furniture,
defining
often
with a bed and bureau
'my side' and
living spaces,
'your side'.
In the
furniture arrangements are
relied on to delineate living
dining
areas
Clearly,
the
issue here is
or to create a
work
an inferred transition
from
area.
requires
housing
single
parent families, there are clear potential
advantages
porch, more public.
The
Since
shared
in
developing
living arrangements
make light work').
minimize
old
for
conflict
saw
'good
but
the living room.
there
of
hands
while
sharing
There is merit,
neighbors',
While
('many
the potential for
cooperation.
form
The question is how to
potential
maximizing
the
some
or
perhaps, in
fences
make
fences do not belong
good
in
,
are obvious
differences
of
but it can be
scale and intensity, parallels can be seen
as effective in defining the use of space.
between the space and privacy needs of the
more
space than a doorway,
Inferred
zones
creating
either
are
not
visual
privacy, however.
much
or
use
in
accoustic
individual
family
So,
group
using
'private',
outlined
.102
within
the
family
within a shared
the
foregoing
and
household.
concepts
'public' and.'transition',
at
the
.................
individual
the
level,
of
as
I
function as a
can
that
the
itself.
attributes of
is a
It
within
'cell'
'household'
within
sitting-room
bed- and
cluster intended as living quarters for
and
parent
accommodate
private
a
child
a
some
while maintaining
larger structure,
of
unit
at a prototype for a family
arrived
could
it
(though
There is
a second child).
a
a
space for each as well as a small
sitting room where they can be together in
private.
They
active 'living' -
more
and so on -
cooking,
there are more public
shared with the household.
families,
larger
bath.
have their own
For
eating,
rooms,
To accommodate
a third bedroom can
be
added to this arrangement, and the sitting
room
one
enlarged accordingly.
of
larger,
the bedrooms
so
as
might
Alternatively
be
to be shareable.
somewhat
In
the
the
bed-sitting room cluster:
basic
The
Above:
storage closet and adjacent entry hall space create
cluster
buffer zone which separates the family
a
the
There is a door at
shared spaces.
from the
greater
for
closed
entry which can be
point of
The family sitting room provides an area
privacy.
of
can be used in a number
small,
which, though
a TV room, or
a sewing room,
ways -- as a study,
whatever meets the needs of the family in question.
A 3 bedroom variation, with a somewhat more
Below:
really
In either variation,
sitting room space.
to take
activities would be expected
exhuberant
place in the larger shared living areas.
event that two children must share a
room,
same principals can be applied
the
to subdividing the room.
effectively
of
bed-
most
This would
be accomplished with the
use
a device such as a bunk-bed divider to
create
bed-alcove privacies and a
shared
Now, by taking this entire cluster and its
'individual',
a
as
'room'
juxtaposing
and
and
it
an
with
'room' and 'individual' following
another
same rules of public and private
the
and
transition, we can create a larger cluster
-
play space.
family
resident
the household.
Since the bond
between
individual family units is more
the
that between
family
fra-
members,
gile
than
more
care must be taken to delineate ter-
ritories and to provide visual and accoustic barriers.
in
This might be
a number of ways:
accomplished
by locating
family
clusters on separate floors, for instance,
or by arranging them on opposite sides
the
j'3LC_
DNTMY
RMWH.&L
L
\IN
Two bed-sitting clusters combined with shared space
to create a two family household.
......
Whatever its relation-
4
ship
..................
shared space.
of
~...
.
.............
to
the shared
realm
must
entry
zone,
space,
be insular and
no
each
with
through
family
its
own
traffic.
are clear arguements for separation
There
of general household circulation from
private
and
domains,
disruption
privacy issue.
through
both in light of
potentials,
and
the
in major
as
either instance.
a
areas
is in order.
But a
must
be achieved between autonomy of
cess
and
the requirement for
or
balance
a
ac-
certain
of parental supervision of comings
amount
Further,
space
Before
the
large
common space must be
to be shared
shared spaces,
realm is in order.
levels
of
outlined.
on
an
intermediate
-
and
of
was
focuses
with
'most
bathrooms
-
contained within the family realm; and the
living
rooms -
activities can take place without conflic-
This
ting.
The
extent of the shared space is,
since
of course,
dependent upon the size of the
the
with
communality
form,
bedrooms
household, and diverse enough that several
seemed
-
kitchen,
dining
shared by the
to be
a
natural
privacies is
two parents
conflict
one child each could be
accomodated
ules;
maintained,
division,
of
minimizing
over personal habits and
while on the other,
and
household.
on the one hand the singularity
Clearly,
proposed household.
in
a range
This design prototype
spaces
of
required
Earlier,
household
social
to accomodate all members
is
an inventory of the common
the
enough
with
going into the articulation of the
private'
and goings.
household
six children, but a careful delineation of
the
living
work
far less space than a
noise
Likewise, an avoidance of
circulation
in
sched-
cooperation is
..........................
...........................
..........................
encouraged
by
the sharing of
inherently
seats
where
individuals can
retreat
to
social
activities such
common
spaces
of the
then,
comprise
the
dining
areas,
so that their occupants can parti-
areas
and the living room, in addition to
cipate
in
as
cooking.
shared
kitchen
The
household,
and
necessary entry and circulation area.
In
study or read or play a quiet game.
Some
of these are adjacent to the larger living
household activities at
will,
while others are crannies in the stairwell
a large household, the addition of a playroom
or
study or formal parlor might
be
required to provide adequate diversity
of
J
activity space.
For
the most part,
areas
were
treated
all of
these
living
as a
'great
room',
since an open plan is generally more
ducive
dren.
to the supervision of small
conchil-
They are not, however, large undif-
ferentiated spaces.
has
K--,
its
separated
sible.
own
area,
Rather, each activity
and
circulation
from 'places' as much
There
are also nooks and
as
m~j1
is
poswindow
i.j7-t~
A
- -.'
Schematic
organization
of household circulation.
Note
that the size of transition zones is
proporbuffering
is
tional
to the occupant load -- more
required betweem shared living spaces than between
bedrooms within the family suite.
or entryhall.
of
and
transitions.
then,
generative
("I've
got this windowseat and I'm study-
a
attention was paid
much
While
to
in one sense the en-
the household that the
room
serves
another
with
users.
in
the
sitting
small
family
cluster
a place for getting together -
simply
a
wide range of possible
articulation of
uses
the
ing,
so
go
the
("Push
well
in
functions.
and
common
furniture
flexibility
and
aside
let's
suited to the separate pursuit of
variety
this
for
away") and
Ideally, it should be equally
boogie!").
-
itself,
sense it is a realm unto
The
must allow for both clarity
realm,
tire common realm serves the same function
in
--
In all of this, the notions
public and private were
factor,
-
is
of
activities
In
a
or
to
very large
too much to ask
of
a
household
household,
any
space,
hence the second living room (or play room
or parlor or study).
...........................
..........................
.................
. . . .
........................................................... ...........................
.
............
... ... ... .
..
............
..........
...........
.................
........
......................
-
J
T___
T
IL
-
~The
--
organization of the courtyard cluster
similar to that of the shared household.
.................................................................................................................
Building
further
interface,
on
the
private/public
we come to the relationship of
the individual households to the clusters.
we have the analogy
Again
and
room
in
common ground,
relationship to
only here the
is the household.
apply:
there
each
unit
is a
cent
play
area,
shared territory.
and the
fers
private
realm,
buffers,
are
bipartite
to
expanded,
patios
and
dimension
the
all of the
so here we have
transitions --
reinforce
entryways
are
As the number of aggre-
group
and
........
the laundry and adja-
gated 'cells' increases,
'individual'
and
the courtyard,
individual
The same spatial rules
are transition zones
.................
of
and
is
entry
plantings to
the front
to the mere walls and
a
the
stoop
vestibule,
add
buf-
and
spatial
windows.
A r14S j WAL-KNAYS
1=
a
P010
RIMIY
DincTION
VIEW 1=ROM
OF
UNn-T5
r
Me
Closure and
views.
Except for windows
at
unit
entries there is little visibility of the path from
units' interiors. Units below the through path have
windows
opening only to their own patios.
....................................................................................................... ...............
.....
The
I
stoops,
Just
as
serving
the
all
street' connects
'internal
as
units'
internal living areas,
element.
a cohesive
kitchens
the-
supervise
they also overlook
remains
yard
since
older
street or park,
their own outdoor play and living areas.
pectation).
At this scale privacy becomes an important
plex,
issue.
The
building envelope will
take
care of most of the accoustic problems, as
long
as the kid population of the
court-
since
(and
rambunctious
kids
and more
generally
will
at a reasonable level
in
the
this is a reasonable
ex-
prefer
Visual
to
play
privacy is more com-
visibility
from
inside
practical
outdoor space is desireable for
as
well
as
orientation,
aesthetic
level
reasons.
changes,
to
Window
and screens
...................................................................................................... :.....-:
(both
built and planted) can be
minimize
intrusions
on
units'
The shared entry terrace,
yard
used
to
privacy.
path and court-
are intended as enhancements of com-
munity life, not as an enducement for busybodies.
Therefore, while all entries are
oriented to the internal street,
they are
not overlooked by the various units'
mary living spaces,
can
come
Further,
and
most
go
pri-
so that an individual
in
relative
privacy.
units have both front
and
back doors, and all but the smallest clusters have two entrances.
Above the path,level changes and set-backs are used
to enhance
seclusion of private terraces
minimize public view of unit interiors.
and
to
Facing page: Plan of the seven unit cluster located
between Folsom St.
and Banks St. showing the semipublic circulation,
shared
and private
outdoor
space, as well as unit layout at the entry level.
Following page:
sequence
of
Plan of the same cluster
spaces
from
most
public
showing
to
most
private.
......................
.......... ............. 00
-
( I
G'i~~P
-
ii-
----
I
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- HOUSE:OL.D)
P'RivA'T'E.__MOST-PRWlATE:
(HO
uSE-HOLD>)(F
ILlX'ARE~As* 5
aru
Taking
mula
the private/transition/public for-
one step further -
bit, perhaps -
stretching it
a
we arrive at the relation-
area
between clusters would be that
likely
to
trolled
be associated
by the clusters'
ship of the aggregation of clusters to the
hill,
neighborhood.
boulevard -
terraces
At
this level
the
entry
serve as the transition zone for
each cluster,
while the landscaped street
rights-of-way are common ground.
In this
dens,
the
sacs
or
and
con-
residents.
Up-
fringe of city land below
the
developed into community gar-
perhaps
Downhill,
with
most
the
-
would be a buffer zone.
clusters' parking
driveways would segue
cul-dewith
case, the general citizenry becomes a part
driveways and gardens of the neighbors
of the participating group,
create
with a
theo-
retically equal right to the space and its
amenities.
The
unspoken rules of
natural transition to the
to
city
street grid.
'turf'
will however play a part here,
creating a
hierarchy of users.
this would
Ideally,
a
the
have the effect of generating pride in and
consequent care for the areas in question,
rather than counterproductive
possessive-
ness.
There would also be a natural gra-
dation
of this shared public space.
The
1W
Facing page:
The transition from public to private
at the site scale.
.........
H ...
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...........
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
..........
..I...
...............
...............
................
...............
................
...............
................
...............
...............
. . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
....
. LE"XIBULITY
.............
.......
X
One
of the most basic priviledges of
is
homeowner
that
of
the
physical
making
changes, whether for aestheetic or practical
reasons.
Being able to transform
space is fundamental to owning
a
Con-
it.
it is the inability to change an
versely,
apartment
beyond furnishings and possibly
seem
paint color that makes a rented unit
transitional
even if one lives there
for
is
over
the nature of families
time:
and then to
to grow larger,
disperse.
to
change
While
change
in size or in absolute
quirements
family,
the one-parent family may not
the existence of spatial
of
flexibility,
in coping with problems.
can
living
situations,
would
families
naturally
be
on
sitting
cluster system,
the
Also, flexibilty
shared
if we assume that the
the
in
options
be seen as a prerequisite for
Within
either
re-
would expand the potential for flexibility
tracks.
Consequently,
space
any faster than the two-parent
to grow up,
ideal family housing would allow a certain
amount
it.
participating
years.
It
amount of available space or in the use of
and
individuals
different
time-
the proposed family
bed-
changes might be
made rather rapidly if the household is
a
relatively transitional one. But even in a
..
.1..
..
...
..
...
...
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
...
..
long-term shared household there is apt to
to
be
a tightly planned housing cluster, we must
some rearrangement.
the
When young,
maintain some possibility of change in
kids would most likely share quarters with
provide for internal
their
are several possible approaches to this:
respective parents:
its mother's room,
an infant
in
an older child nearby.
-flexibility
of
flexibility.
room use -
As the children grow up,
they become more
-dining room into a study,
independant,
distance
order.
have
and
more
Teenagers
might well
is
in
or a bedroom
prefer
to
is
one cluster to themselves,
parents sharing the other.
the
with the
Depending
on
age and sex of the household members,
many variations are imaginable.
relatively easy,
sive,
is
not
packed
though not
as feasible in the more
configuration,
rowhouse
particularly
minium or co-op ownership.
.........
or
This
denselytownhouse
with
condo-
So if we
.........
it
inexpen-
to expand outward or upward.
cluster,
rather,
are
*.................
turning
for
example,
into a sitting room.
a novel
approach.
This
It
the normal pattern of
the
is,
change in
most houses.
-interstitial rooms within the unit:
scheme
In the detached single-family dwelling
is
hardly
There
tered or
to
where
private
according
family,
rooms
either
for
are
such a way
nexed to either
be
used
that
instance
they
clus-
to generation
additional room or rooms could be
in
in a
-
placed
might be
bed/sitting cluster,
either as common space
separate private space.
an
an-
or
or as a
-interstitial rooms on the cluster
The
foregoing
used
between
negotiation,
scale.
principal could also
units so that,
rooms
annexed from the
with
be
some
could be ceded to or
neighboring unit.
of
the possibility
demonstrate
These two plans
redefining a group of four rooms by means of minor
remodelling.
three of the rooms in question are used as a
Above:
sitting room
of two bedrooms and a
suite
family
(with a private bath), while the fourth room adjoins
the common area -- a TV room, perhaps.
Below: breaking through the closet, closing one door
and moving another results in two bed/sitting rooms
that share a bath.
.......................
...
.......................
.......................................................................................
..............
............
..........................
..........
................
Alternate layouts for a bed-sitting cluster: as two
or as
a
conventional bedrooms and a sitting room;
and a crib alcove
study End bedroom for the mother
for an infant.
.................................................................................................. ........................
In the design solution proposed here,
all
for
of
considered
and
family
degrees.
The
household's
was
'choicefulness'
these
options
incorporated
notion
of
to
were
varying
flexibility
of room
use
sleeping,
leisure
private
work
space,
activities.
public realm,
In
the extent
is directly
or
the
of
proportional
applied in two rather distinct realms: the
to the size of the household,
private and the public.
larger aggregations of people that present
Within the
sitting
clusters
options
as to the apportionment of
there are a
bed/
number
of
space
.................................
more
likelihood
activity.
since it is
for conflict of
For example,
use
or
while the single
TI,'
Alternate layouts for a 'spare room':
and foyer,
ment
and as 'a semi-independant
as an office
Studio
apart-
...........................................................................................................................
the
room'
'great
idea,
there
is a
such
a
the
larger
with
relatively
second
living
tions.
in
shared
units
room.
This might be variously used as
noisy play room,
a
a formal parlor, or as a
some interior
variations
rooms',
are
the
redefined
minor structural altera-
They can be opened up further
to
rest of the unit (for a daycare room,
perhaps)
or
partitioned
off
completely
(for an office) or even plumbed and equip-
study or work room.
With
way that they might be
on
units' living space is modeled
family
remodelling,
further
The
'spare
possible.
ped
'granny'
as a small semi-independant
or 'mother-in-law' unit.
where they exist, were planned in
.................................................................
e
:................
they
Though
are
sparingly
rather
represented here, I have also experimented
notion of
interstitial
rooms,
with
the
both
within and between units.
used
between bed/sitting clusters in
units,
larger
They are
where it seemed that
the
more
intra-household options are in order.
In
some cases there are interstitial rooms or
clusters
smaller
tural
belong
most
located in one of
units,
two
adjacent
so that with some
modifications,
to either one.
the
struc-
room(s)
This proved to
can
be
practical where there are three con-
tiguous lots.
As an example, it is poss-
ible to remodel either a single bedroom or
the entire middle bed/sitting cluster in a
five bedroom unit so as to annex it to the
adjacent single family unit (see diagram).
Example of the use of an interstitial
units.
12
4.....
room
between
.......... ........
While
it is unlikely that this option
to
the
frequently,
that
flexibility
additional
represents adds a
it
used
be
relinquish space will
or
annex
that
to the overall project
adaptability
of
dimension
will allow response to fluctuating housing
demands.
can also be addressed on
the
may
not
the desire to really control
the
Flexibility
furnishing
satisfy
level.
home environment,
While
this
it does have its place.
in housing intended for more
Particularly
transitional residents,
modular furniture
I
rear-
or partitions can be used to easily
range
space within a room.
definition
of
space does
This sort of
not
meet
privacy between
the
family
requirements
for
territories,
but can be used to create
a
reading nook in a large living room, or to
divide a bedroom.
go
The notion of private, transitional, and shared
space applied to a bedroom for two children.
In
this instance, a bunkbed-armoire unit is used to
define and to separate the two sleeping alcoves,
while the open area adjacent to the entry serves as
a common play area.
possible
Another
device is a
system
of
These
demountable screens or partitions.
are most appropriate for visual privacy or
for
can
be
issues.
ter
'that,
for
prefer
Insofar as flexibility
is
measures.
these screen elements would be
or
for
redefinition
of
an
'interstitial' room. A two bedroom cluster
could be subdivided,
or the third room of
a three room cluster might be
off
for
use.
devices
either individual
A word of caution:
partitioned
or
household
such screening
should be accepted for what
.'126
............
they
............
convenience
and able to
how
best
more
and
cost
privacy
families or households may
simple rearrangements,
on
without
Some
willing
dependence
shielded
scheme
be
must
is
physical
they can enhance the privacy of
for alterations to the basic clus-
useful
all provisions for
be weighed against
access from bedroom to bathroom
concerned,
In
factors
doors.
closed
needed.
walls if accoustic privacy
and
individual family zone so
instance,
solid
the
an
adjunct to careful placement of rooms
the
for
They are not an adequate substitute
flexibility,
As
of territories.
demarcation
doorways,
are.
'make
do'
with
where others would
drastic
and
definative
Ultimately, the decision as to
to respond
to
changing
needs
rests with the members of the household in
question.
The designer's role is to make
such a choice possible.
................
...............
..X-:.X-:-X-:-X-:.X-:
...............
...............
..............
. ..:-X.:-:-:-:-X-X-X-:..............
...............
. . . . . . -A
. P VF T I!] Il i' S OF I H A I 11' V
0 . . .
By
now,
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . o . . . . o
much has been said regarding the
of
of single-parent families,
range
variety
o
of their needs
the
preferences,
and
and of the advantages inherent in flexible
or adaptable accomodations.
housing
shared
proposed design.
tion
is
The notion of
the
Further, the reintegra-
of work into the home and the incor-
poration
posited
of daycare facilities have
as
appropriate measures
redefinition of 'ideal' family
is
to
fundamental
likely
that
some
will
been
in
the
life.
it
find
o
o . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . o o o . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .
_N
proposal strange or radical.
to
. . . . . . . .
In an effort
illuminate the thought processes
led
will
to
the specific design
here
elaborate
solution,
somewhat
on
hypothetical living scenarios that
the basis of design decisions.
into
two
household,
individuals
type;
and
categories:
a
that
the
I
the
formed
These fall
generic
'most likely' combination of
or
families
the variations,
for
each
unit
which cover a
lot of ground.
this
.............
The single unit family
This
would
most probably
be
a
parent with one or two children.
working
Some of
these units have a spare room which can be
used as an in-home office.
For the parent
without a job or job skills,
there is the
option of running a small in-home
operation
based
daycare
or using the space for a
enterprise.
home-
Another alternative is
to remodel this space to provide space for
a live-in babysitter or for a
who
can watch the kid(s) during the
The
are
grandparent
single units without a
'spare
day.
room'
appropriate for parents for whom
communal
resources
are sufficient -
at the cluster
the
scale
a conventionally employ-
ed mother with an older child, perhaps, or
a
parent
child.
..
.......
........ ......
.....
with part-time custody
of
the
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F
Hypothetical inhabitation of a single unit -- by a
The spare room is
mother with two small children.
set up as an office.
........................................................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
...........................
...........................
AX-A-441
The two family household
These vary in size and
arrangement.
smaller units (4 bedroom,
two
The
2 bath) are for
parents with one or possibly two kids
each.
The
larger
units would
somewhat larger families.
these
units have spare
same
range
of
These
adaptations.
fit
two
Again, some of
rooms,
potential
with
uses
the
suite,
a
parent and child in the
and a grandparent in the spare
propriately remodeled.
might
find
a
spare rooms are about
the same size as those in the single unit,
it seems unlikely that all
since
question will be
in
parents
to work at home,
able
for other
flexibility
of
willing
the
or
and there is ample
internal
arrange-
ments.
It
is also possible for these units to be
shared by an assortment of individuals and
families.
shared
A
four bedroom unit might
by two singles in one
be
bed/sitting
Note: See sketch, p.122.
cluster
a study,
cove for the child's visits.
and
room,
ap-
A part-time parent
two-bedroom
right for a bedroom,
other,
just
and an al-
-TE STWE -goo"M 1-5 1:JMAT1;ILY LJ5Er' AS A' Ft'IVRMLA'KA1-7 USED TN Ot-4V.
j:),gL.Op~ r-p^VTEN-r
NoCSo~4~
1IN-1I40MFE OFICE
AW~4L-r- H -s'i'N
'-rVEVA$ZlOU. MEl7D-S
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IZ-E7
A
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~.~
ejNaLE
-
I-~1Er%
C4-V)5-tE P SHgt
BY -MI-e- -Two
1E^-cM "/k-e
4- 13r=>l-?C, t ; -Th-EY
4IIJc;rot&S
C1 AT~ING~*
CHLV1R:4 CW14o MICANM-t, 50tjf.Jp4,-l jM-OZJ
5LJF'E;-VI5(Oe1N)
-Ms: 5rrr NC, -pco -t Sm-v-Es A,-::,
^
-P^R-p
m lx-
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USMV A40 A^
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A Vb-5K
,^6
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-1.'U-
F?'g. 44OrtECUXVZ
INFVP2JIAL-
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1B
c'1?- 5N~aC- COUWTL oqie
Or.- H4Ot5L-14oLD dA42-aLuNr-, .
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A.5 ,6N
0OFeN
PLA.r
-5LeEpItACI/
WY~VIP'4r, T-~r->
Hypothetical inhabitation of a five bedroom shared
unit by two single parents with older children.
I.1E, 1~ s~PE 'woNiS
-5~~LavsL A4S
Vf4"ATr 5QN-WD
SleT Ur-~ Ae5
A& .S-TPIO
l4pe jeWN:/I~-~ JC)Otl. r-is , HOw~VCR
WROH N06tY -F4..j IL-Y AzrnvrnEs. i1i14
*-
~'.-
Ap g--t-INT
, '50MEF-
FIc)NT Tm.F?-f AL. ?Aj-9'R
L 6cm-IT
AcPr--,F
?4pc.r- ^e
F-De~pD LJV\I Mr-, APZEa~TbN
jjiE: CZANDF^-E- ?A-4TT4teY A4.o
1 or--~ A CoN V SN I~N G:- -5PIE
V:61? acccA61 CNAt- Cf41 L[:DCAZI?-G
'e5
Th- EP-4nnc'N
rrl0c
Ico1-.
3YTACZF9L,1
*P-T 4~L
h
1
~L~fl1~L
00
Y
C)J
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9
L4
~2
-4TVW.i-T
W~~CI -J,
) C- I r'A=oR-.
3e,. -- -
T"S -- -r-D -
VS UV$z:P A'4
WO~5i*B
A- 131KRZZP
-n~e
la~
Hypothetical inhabitation of another shared unit by
a parent with one child , another parent with shared
custody of two children, and a grandparent.
.....
......
.......
......
..
......
it ir'L40me
%e.-r4:K--P#4mN-r.
AL.C~OVE:~N-T~4E FT~ct~t
U OFF INVOV'J
4 F MNjSffr' Wrfl1 Lnrr,.1
cuLTIZ*-
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rr- is ,-T4U', CoNcDUC4VE -rr I N-~::.Z
aAODMN
tA1
THE: Ir-rMi4eN o~~c*"4vi Nc,c0ATI+E1~zjm~5 )iF-gTiALTh~ ~NC~ ~A4~XEN-A' c 2 T- CoN veN aW'4C- FR'jW- a*1IL-'p
-rIC
--
The multip.e household
is merely an expansion of the double
This
format.
household
bedrooms
range of
the
the
With
resident mix increases.
additional
for
possiblities
In general, I see
might be used for a secondary living
as
well as for any of the
above.
the
upper floors might be used as
With six
study
eight bedrooms it would be a
workable
suite -as
house for a transitional program.
other hand,
of
families
commitment
the
it can work well for a
that
to a shared
have
On the
outlined
In addition, interstitial rooms on
it as a more transitional model.
to
uses
room
or
playrooms
common
or be annexed
a third bedroom
for
a
to
a
larger
family.
group
sufficient
lifestyle.
Over
long run it might work best for a mix
of housemates -
singles, parents, kids
-
since it could evolve into a very workable
extended family,
kid-population
would
implied by this
certainly have less
overwhelming
unit
and the somewhat reduced
the resident
situation
likelihood
of
adults.
This
type has several spare rooms.
They
~
.....
..........
.... .
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-
Hypothetical inhabitation of a multiple shared unit
as a transitional housing program for mothers with
one or two children.
..........................
,.
ESTT-Y LEVE---
'ic:M
M 13r"scse-ceo
-TME
pr A
imT A BEr iacx-m/ OFFIC-G- "jT~
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.
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IS ^T'PZ0gMeTr
LR Ur= A--. A
" KIP~S' WiNC-Ac" '-ABEv
.
& ?Y rOOM FOl<
2
OR 3 KIDS.
IN
-HIS C2A- I IT- V5 SAaro
TSY
-TWD KI vS - ONE- ' E
-)LL-rnME ' - ONE
M
TE-cK
AN cxmr
TWO.rc00M !LtT..
cr: -Tgs:
1-Door
SpAcE-.
OLD EMOL)GH
i5P c
APSE~r.A -. rrtTL-D
PAENT5.
I
-TI4tS
2
"4r' Fl-cVr- cwS-Er
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CAOUrt..E
'.
Cl-IL--
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F'DmT ~SUrTE )I
SI4ARED '1Y
&O ADUL-T - ONe- A -FAZEMTW \-r- 'AED
C11STYH
~THEE
T
OTER
Hypothetical
-
inhabitation
-ZINCL.E -
of
the same unit
by
a
a couple with one child, a single
mixed household:
adult, and two single parents with one child each -one with part-time custody.
............................................................
....................
VT
i
(A)NCLUJJSIO)N
the needs of single parent families
While
are many and varied, they are not entirely
The
families.
'normal'
her (and their) waking hours occupied with
translation
of
everyday
chores.
of
single-parent situation requires some
examination. I will confine myself here to
as I see it,
those that,
primary importance.
lem
of work:
place,
the
pertain to
the
Access to childcare is of
issue.
housing
So, too, is the prob-
the location of
the
work-
hours and wages. Efficiency within
home
housework
bother --
--
the
rather than having all
of
problems into the narrower constraints
the
with her children,
'quality time'
those
from
distinguishable
should be able to emphasize
potential
for
getting
done with a minimum of fuss and
is important,
in that a
parent
day
There
should be time left in the
for the undistracted pursuit of
activities as play,
on.
storytelling,
Communality,
such
and so
or neighborliness,
or
cooperation are all ways of expressing the
notion
of having someone there
whatever
along:
burdens
duties
share
that
come
and single parents often have fewer
resources for
this
or
to
self-reliance.
Along with
need for neighborly resources
the need for a sense of belonging.
a home and community can do a lot
...................................
.
. .
.
. .
. . .
.
goes
Having
towards
...
. . .........
.......
.................................
...........................
X ..................
validating
real
the single-parent family as
family,
rather
than some
sort
a
of
a
beneficial
'trickle-down'
effect
on
other family housing.
And of course feeling
The foregoing discussion of the family has
safe and secure and part of a neighborhood
cited historical models, most noteably the
societal
is
important to children
without
those
models.
the
cripple.
the
full
--
particularly
quota
role
of
Flexibility in the arrangement of
The
it
nostalgia.
these
way in which various rooms
aside
are used is inextricably tied up with
the
dwelling is inhabited,
The
ability
to
and by
redefine this
how
whom.
would
be
they
lation,
The
without creating a patched up
or
were
This is not
it may be
true
justifiably
the march of
progress
were obstacles to bonafide
in
the
quality of
life
these concerns are not unique to the
but building a case
mere
that
shunted
--
that
improve-
in
we may have a situation of
this
the
being thrown out with the bathwater.
*ideal' American family has been rede-
fined over the course of our history.
temporary ambiance.
single-parent family,
by
country --
baby
While
models
ments
conducive to accomodating a shifting popu-
Now,
farm or sweatshop.
ad-
home is an issue that should. be
dressed.
extended family and the home workplace, be
have come a long way from the
communal
for an ideal housing type for this hereto-
This
fore neglected family type cannot but have
factors
egalitarian
vision of our founding
reevaluation
has been
We
fathers.
prompted
by
too diverse to delve into here --
suffice
it
to
say
that
among
these
is more appropriate to the married
office
reasons,
the salutary effects of
building
the
on
the national economy and
stability of the workforce
insignificant.
suburb-
For
the
were
on
not
greater part
of
this century, it has been considered right
and
proper for kids to be raised
in
the
healthful atmosphere of the suburbs, while
dad commutes to work.
contacts
ever
consuming,
we
more
and
time
begin to hear it said that
for dates,
family.
his
who
office
on
would,
rather,
But there remain the issues
The
or of the need for privacy.
day
present-
adult is so accustomed to having
not
being
able to get away from
chores) would be appalling to many.
the
home
of
The
The ideology of the Family has
not yet caught up with this
futurism:
it
all
(either the from the job or from household
in
computers.
of
it
job of the future will be located
aid
his
her 'own space' that the very idea
the
and conducted with the
with
of separation of activities, of isolation,
Now, with commuting
expensive
does not rely
welcome the additional time to spend
or
becoming
who
individual
notion
into
of moving the workplace
the home does,
points
however,
to recommend it.
The
back
have
some
savings
in
still supposes the nuclear family, without
both time and money that would be effected
taking
are
year-old
machine.
into account the havoc that a twocan
One
wreak
on
a
home
might argue that
the
xerox
home
not inconsiderable.
separation
blamed
for
Then,
of work and living
the
sense of
.......................................................................................
too,
have
the
been
alienation
so
:e..............
.
15
..................
. . . . . . . .. . . . . .
Of course,
tion
to
working at home is not a solu-
that is applicable to all people
all
jobs.
But to an ever
or
increasing
number
who
of single parents are career women
have
decided to have a
rather than take a chance on
child
alone
'missing
degree, people are seeking new job defini-
boat'.
tions,
tain amount of meeting and networking
A
new services that can be marketed.
number
of
associated
occupations
with the home are natural can-
ditates:
in-home
catering,
crafts
childcare,
and so
conducted
entrepreneur.
My
growing
since
accomplished
are
network
im-
work-at-home
Also, nowadays, most cleri-
tasks can be transported to the
office,
so
with
many of them
computers.
work
A
most of which are
well suited to the
manently
the
A
are
home
now
growing
most careers involve a cer-
that can be
sense
solution
munity
accomplished
of all this is that
situation,
parents
one
J,
.. . .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. . .. .. ..
the
ideal
in
which
those
who go off to work will have
--
resources
the
both formal and informal
to enable them to leave their children
good hands;
--
in
and in which parents who stay
at home to work can have both the fulfillment
of
rearing their children
to
and
have them supervised
some work is accomplished.
..........................
...
.. Pi.. .. .. .. .. .
from
would be to develop a close com-
resources
...........................
and
there is a considerable portion of
home base.
through various
marketing schemes,
cal
on.
so on,
tailoring,
of the nation's retail sales
segment
being
traditionally
While
the
the
while
*llilli
REFEIENCES
Action
for
Boston Community
Inc. ,
Development ,
and
Communtity
Planning
A Guide for
Developing a Shared Living Project,
Groups, Boston, 1973.
Department of Architecture at
Architecture Research Unit,
University of Edinburgh, Shared Open Space, 1972.
the
Allen, Marjory, Planning for Play, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1969.
Bachelard,
1964.
Gaston,
Cherir eyev,
Serge
The Poetics of Space,
and
Christopher
Beacon Press, Boston,
Alexander,
Community
and
Privacy, Doubleday, Garden City, NY,1965.
Denner,
Anne
and
Jacqueline
Dana,
D'Enfant,
L'Environment
Editions de Seuil, France, 1973.
Department of the Environment, Children at Play, Her Majesty's
Stationery Office, Design Bulletin 25, London, 1972.
Fox, Clara, "Shared Housing: Its Rationale, Forms, and Challenges"
(Eugenie Ladner Birch, Ed.),
in The Unsheltered Woman,
New Brunswick, NJ, 1985.
Research,
Policy
Urban
Center for
Francis, Pat Therese, "'Where do you live?' Women in the Landscape of Poverty", in Heresies, no. 11, 1981.
"Kitchen
Joan,
Greenbaum,
Heresies, no. 11.
Hart,
Culture/Kitchen
Experience
Children's
Roger,
Publishers, Inc., New York, 1979.
of
Dialectic",
Place,
in
Irvington
........................................................ o
.
*
::;:: :4:; :; :4:..***-**"**
;:4*:4::4::k:
......................
X: X
............
.....................
The Architecture of
Hayden, Dolores, Seven American Utopias:
Communitarian Socialism 1790-1975, MIT Press, Cambridge,
1976.
____
The Grand Domestic Revolution, MIT Press, Cambridge, 1981.
Redesigning the American Dream: the Future of Housing, Work
and Family Life, W.W.Norton, New York, 1984.
Hewes,
Jeremy Joan, Build Your Own Playground, Houghton Mifflin,
Boston, 1974.
Klein, Carole, The
York, 1973.
Single Parent Experience,
Jaqueline, "The Shelter-Service
Leavitt,
Parents", in The Unsheltered Woman.
Avon Books,
Crisis
and
New
Single
a Problem on
Milne, Phillipa, "Housing Single Parent Families:
Adelaide,
Trust,
Housing
Australia
South
The
Increase",
the
1976.
Raimy, Eric, Shared Houses, Shared Lives, the New Extended
Families and How The Work, J.P. Tarcher, Inc., Los Angeles,
197(9.
"A Manual on Transitional Housing" (unpublished)
Sprague, Joan,
Women's Institute for Housing and Economic Development,
Boston.
Wright, Gwendolyn, Housing the Dream, A Social Histor
in America, MIT Press, Cambridge.
of Housing
Housing Designed for
John, Polly Welch, et. al.,
Zeisel,
Families, A Summary of Research, Joint Center for Urban
Studies of MIT and Harvard University, Cambridge, 1981.
..
1...........2
....
.i.*........................
.....
CR1].)IT
....................
photo from Hewes,
Build Your Own Playground
12
photo from Hewes,
op.cit.
13
photo from Denner
and Dana,
14
photo from Hewes,
op.cit.
22
painting reproduced in Wright,
_Housing the
Social Histo ry of Housing in America
page 11
L'Environment D'Enf ant
...........................
Dream,
. ....
A
0. 0.
.
.
.
. 00.
.
.
.44
..m.
~
i PF4 .