Statement

From Carlton Avenue, the community appears as a field of small, distinct houses. Below and connected to each of those structures, however, is a spacious second level, housing the more private programs such as the bedrooms and full bath. The two story houses nest to form a continuous green surface at the first level’s roof height, creating an artificial ground upon which the second floor of the houses sit apart from one another.

The Mat that is created by the nested array of houses is far from a solid mass. The shapes of the respective houses (of which there are 4 types), are designed so that, as they are nested, they create courtyards and leave ample space for common driveways by which residents access their private carports. The planted garden courtyards and driveways allow generous light to the lower floors of the houses.

Creating such a dense system makes it possible to fit all of the required housing units on the site while keeping the overall building height under two stories. In addition, by creating two levels of landscape systems and by incorporating parking into the array of houses, we are able to provide over 100,000 square feet of green space - far over the 15% of the gross area that is required.

The houses span two distinct levels: the public level, which meets the houses’ second floor, and a more private level, at the first floor. This reversal of the traditional upstairs and downstairs relationship stems from a mediation of the site’s slope: the green roofs (atop the first level) meet the site’s highest point at Carlton Avenue and extend outwards. Thus, the green roofs read as an extended public green from the sidewalk at Carlton Street.