New York City has unveiled designs for its first micro-unit apartment buildings.
The ‘My Micro NY’ proposal is the winner of the adAPT NYC competition, which was launched in July 2012 and requested proposals to develop a new model of housing with apartments smaller than legally required by zoning codes.
The winning proposal is for 55 micro-units measuring between 250ft2 (23m2) and 370ft2 (34m2) that will provide housing to one- and two-person households. It has been designed by nArchitects with Monadnock Development and Actors Fund Housing Development Corporation making up the winning development team.
Speaking at the launch Mayor Bloomberg said: “The growth rate for one- and two-person households greatly exceeds that of households with three or more people, and addressing that housing challenge requires us to think creatively and beyond our current regulations.”
Each apartment unit of the ‘My Micro NY’ development comprises of two distinct zones: a ‘toolbox’ containing a kitchen, bathroom and storage and a ‘canvas’ that provides a flexible space that will serve as the primary living and sleeping area.
The ground floor of the development will feature a café and multipurpose spaces for lectures and creative activities. It will also include amenities that encourage resident interaction, such as an attic garden, a ground-floor porch with picnic tables, den areas and a multi-purpose lounge. The building will also have a laundry room, residential storage, a bike room, and fitness space.
My Micro NY’ will be the first multi-unit building in Manhattan developed using modular construction. The prefabricate building modules will be manufactured by Capsys at its indoor facility in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. After site work, foundations, utilities and the construction of the ground floor is completed using traditional methods, the modules will arrive on the site and hoisted into place in around two weeks.
Residents expected to move in by September 2015.
