Architect Helmut Jahn's design for a new single-room occupancy building on the edge of Chicago's former Cabrini Green project gets high marks, but some criticize the cost of using high-end architects for affordable housing.
"Helmut Jahn is perhaps the last architect you'd expect to design the type of housing for single, poor adults that people once sneeringly called a 'flophouse.' He puts his trademark modernist stamp on condominium high-rises where the most expensive units are being hawked for $2.2 million."
"But on Thursday, a new single-room occupancy, or SRO, building that resembles a glistening, streamlined train will open at 1244 N. Clybourn Ave. on the fringes of the fast-disappearing Cabrini-Green housing development."
"Ironically, given Jahn's association with the energy-hogging Thompson Center, the $14 million, 96-unit building is touted as a model for saving energy, its roof sporting twirling wind turbines. As a bonus, its tiny units boast drop-dead views of the downtown skyline."
"But some veteran affordable-housing architects are expressing muted criticism that Jahn's new SRO building is too costly and thus takes a disproportionate share of precious funds that would otherwise go to build other, much-needed housing for the poor."
Thanks to ArchNewsNow
FULL STORY: Architect gives twist to affordable housing
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
New Park Opens in the Santa Clarita Valley
The City of Santa Clarita just celebrated the grand opening of its 38th park, the 10.5-acre Skyline Ranch Park.
U.S. Supreme Court: California's Impact Fees May Violate Takings Clause
A California property owner took El Dorado County to state court after paying a traffic impact fee he felt was exorbitant. He lost in trial court, appellate court, and the California Supreme Court denied review. Then the U.S. Supreme Court acted.
How Urban Form Impacts Housing Affordability
The way we design cities affects housing costs differently than you might think.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.