“The bedrock attribute of a successful city district is that a person must feel personally safe and secure on the street among all these strangers.”
Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities
A large, walk-up multifamily housing development in Boston’s South End. Focused on resolving the tension between privacy and community-building, it uses abundant outdoor space, private terraces, and communal circulation to encourage spending time outdoors and interacting with neighbors. Though this specific development was required to be completely residential, the ground floor is open and flexible enough to be converted to retail or other uses if needed.
The building is constructed of mass timber and features abundant green roofing, giving both interiors and exteriors a rustic and homey feel. In order to balance conflicting interests of density and privacy, the units are spacious and multi-floored, while still being oriented towards the outdoors and the communal spaces.
“The first fundamental of successful city life: People must take a modicum of responsibility for each other even if they have no ties to each other. This is a lesson no one learns by being told.”
Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities