The Modern Trinity; Affordable, Sustainable, Urban Infill Housing

Abstract

We are in an affordable housing crisis yet there are large areas of our cities with abundant vacant infill sites with the potential to address this problem. For example, in the Lower North District of Philadelphia about 3 in every 10 rowhome properties are vacant. Rather than recreate the former cramped row homes, this project proposes a new typology of smaller more affordable homes reoriented on the site to provide greater access to sunlight, fresh air, and green space. While not every location is feasible for this approach, the Lower North is ideal because 1. It contains an abundance of 800 potential, vacant infill lots, 2. Land prices are currently low enough to make multiple lot purchases more financially feasible, and 3. Since the area’s median household income is well below the city average, these smaller homes are more affordable so local residents could stay in their neighborhood and escape the gentrification currently happening nearby. The Modern Trinity home is based on the regional Philadelphia Trinity House typology in which 3 single rooms are stacked vertically to create a house with a very small footprint. This design requires 3 adjacent vacant lots, but rather than 3 homes lined up along the street front, units are repositioned along the northern boundary with large south-facing windows overlooking a large communal green space formed from the other 2 lots. The southern orientation ensures all units have abundant sunlight for passive solar heating, daylighting, and PV power. Operable windows for cross ventilation and passive shading from overhanging balconies reinforce the sustainable design strategies.