2012September
"Tiny Homes Hit the Big City"
Hari and Karl Berzins decided to build a tiny home for their family in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains to free themselves of the financial burden of owning a large home.
They knew that moving two children, a dog and a cat into a 168-square foot space would be a challenge, though it would also eliminate the need for a mortgage and cut their utility costs.
But they didn’t expect it to completely change their lives, Hari Berzins said.
...More"LEED Platinum SoMa Studios On the Cutting Edge of Urban Prefab"
The SoMa Studios, a 23-unit apartment building in San Francisco’s trendy South of Market district, is believed to be the first modular-built urban infill apartment complex in the nation. The stylish four-story LEED Platinum building was deposited, module by module, on a 3,700-square-foot lot between a parking garage and an apartment complex, after being trucked over the Bay Bridge from a Sacramento factory.
Watch how “Prefab in SoMa Stacks Up in 4 days!” here.
...More
"New York Micro-Studios: Living Well in 275 Square Feet"
Scott Elyanow makes his tiny space work with ‘purges’ and clever storage. A New York pilot program signals growing interest in shrinking housing.
Scott Elyanow had clung to the red, long-sleeved sweatshirt with the words “Marblehead High School” for 20 years. It had softened with age, like the memory of the long-ago love who had given it to him.
But Elyanow was nearing 40, and what he had gained in years and wisdom he hadn’t gained in living space — his apartment measures 275 square feet, including the bathroom, kitchen and an entryway with overhead clearance of 5 feet, 7 inches. So he took a picture of the sweatshirt for a keepsake, then tossed the worn piece of clothing into a “purge” pile, a system Elyanow has adopted during his seven years living in a so-called micro-studio apartment in New York City.
...More"Cities Court Creatives with Micro-Units"
As wealth disparities in the United States have reached Dickensian proportions, housing disparities have followed. Condo developers are creating increasingly lavish apartments for the super-rich, while those with modest budgets find themselves priced out of city centers.
That’s an issue not only for housing advocates, who lament the human toll of housing stratification, but also for mayors who believe their cities’ futures depend on attracting “young creatives.” One solution is to encourage the building of micro-units, apartments of about 300 square feet or less.
...More"San Francisco’s Urban Tech Boom"
Pinterest’s recent move from Palo Alto to San Francisco has sparked chatter in the high-tech world: Is the Bay Area’s innovative center of gravity shifting away from suburban Silicon Valley to urban San Francisco?
The answer is a qualified yes. The tech migration is not just a phenomenon of San Francisco – it’s happening in New York’s downtown Silicon Alley and East London’s once rundown and raw Silicon Roundabout. This emerging model of “urban tech” just seems to fit downtown San Francisco especially well.
...More"SoMa Studios Go Tiny and Prefab"
Patrick Kennedy of small apartment fameis back at it, with a new 23-unit prefab apartment project. The new Soma Studios at 38 Harriet street is designed by Trachtenberg Architects with Taeko Takagi, with construction only taking a mind-bending 90 days. ZETA and Panoramic Interests are building the four-story, car-free project to reach LEED Platinum, with green features like solar hot water heating and a dedicated City-CarShare pod. The tiny units will all be rentals, and will feature energy efficient fixtures and appliances and built-in furniture.
...More
