Affordable Courtyard Housing Typology

The project is an affordable housing community for senior citizens, located in the South Congress neighborhood of Austin. It serves a population that no longer needs or can afford a big house, yet wants to retain independence, enjoy a tight knit community, and stay close to the amenities of the city.

Designed to be 3D printed with earthen materials, the project maximizes the capacity of existing print beds by arranging six small dwellings in its perimeter. Mirroring this layout, it generates a courtyard that becomes the heart of the small community, providing an intimate and safe environment for the sociability of the new dwellers.

A larger community can be built out of the addition of several of these courtyards, connected by pedestrian streets and car alleyways, and served by small ancillary buildings. Because of its simplicity and economy of means, this project can easily be adapted to serve other populations, such as veterans, single mothers or graduate students.

With its architecture of load bearing walls and flat roofs, the project takes inspiration from the Native American and Spanish Adobe constructions, to create a communal housing typology that offers affordability, as well as a sense of protection and belonging.