LIVING BETWEEN
2026
In efforts to research and interact with systematic, transitional, and affordable housing design as well as the complexities that come about in this process, I designed a housing complex that would take inspiration from the structural and formal qualities of Moriyama House in Tokyo, designed by SANAA, and be placed in a small odd lot in Queens. The odd lot located at 128-06 Rockaway Blvd, Jamaica, NY 11420, is a small sheared square lot, usually labeled as valueless or unusable. I was interested in the relationship between the fragmented communal structure of Moriyama House and the density and social conditions of New York City, rethinking transitional housing as a small communal city rather than a single compressed building.
The new project was designed for recently evicted individuals experiencing housing insecurity. The design includes a front facing public resource lobby with access to a partnering law firm supporting the housing complex, as well as a public bathroom, responding to the lack of publicly accessible utilities throughout the city. This public-facing resource center acts as both an access point and a barrier, creating a transition from the intensity of the city into a space of pause, refuge, and temporary stability. The sheared geometry of the lot is replicated in the sheared forms of the buildings in an attempt to create more comfortable circulation paths, but increased built space reduces their effectiveness. Similar to Moriyama House, each structure exists as a separate volume with a largely singular use, while circulation remains entirely outdoors.
Through the design process, the project began exposing a conflicting relationship between efficiency, legality, and comfort. In transitional housing, the pressure to maximize occupancy often reduces the quality and dignity of inhabitation. This project has responded to emphasize that tension rather than resolve it completely, as attempts to maximize occupancy repeatedly reduce spatial openness, circulation, and domestic comfort. The project reflects the realities and complexities of designing transitional housing within systems that demand both maximum efficiency and human livability simultaneously. In a revised iteration, reducing the number of dwelling units would likely create a more livable communal environment.