Located in the outskirts of Marfa, Texas; the brief called for a feasible multi-family housing development that focused on controlling costs and providing housing that met the needs of a large swath of Marfa’s demographics.
We focused on obtaining variances that reflected the planning knowledge we have gained through years of practice in New York City. We’ve excluded non-residential portion of the building from coverage in order to a setup a podium that attempts to effectively address the street line. We sought relief from parking requirements based on the proximity of an adjacent under-used parking lot less than a block away. We asked for a height variance for the sake of economy and feasibility.
Furthermore, we biased our unit mix towards the 2-bedroom range, assuming that these units are the most flexible in terms of potential occupants. We focused on future convertibility within these units; We made sure that they could be divided into studios in the future, but that they could also be joined into single, larger units, should density regulations change (we proposed the maximum number of units permitted on the site) or should market demand drive up the need for housing for families (as shown in the top floor units, which are depicted in their merged state).
We proposed a sidewalk widening around the lot as a response to the observation that Marfa is severely lacking in sidewalks. Unlike New York, Marfa’s right of ways are fully devoted to vehicular traffic. The few properties that include sidewalks, do so within their property lines. We thought that this should not be the case. Marfa is a small city, but if it is to chose a path of greater density, pedestrian ways will be required to cater to those “urban pioneers” who come to the city with limited resources looking to take part in Marfa’s growing art scene.
