Affordable infill housing that uses zoning, air-rights acquisition and mass-timber construction to expand what a narrow Harlem lot can support.
The project begins with the physical limits of a 27-foot-wide infill site and the R7A zoning envelope. A sequence of massing operations negotiates those planes, incorporates additional air rights and uses the final form to emphasise the entry and reinterpret the familiar Harlem stoop.
The plans combine studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom homes with shared amenities and outdoor space. HPD guidelines inform the layouts while the vertical organisation creates a mix of private, semi-private and communal conditions.
The sectional work tests how the stepped mass, vertical circulation, façade assembly and mass-timber system operate together across the narrow site.
Shared programmes are distributed through the building rather than confined to a single amenity floor. The proposal includes a boutique café and stoop, coworking and children’s play areas, semi-private indoor/outdoor space and tenant roof access.
The project tests how zoning, structure and programme can work together to make a small urban site more productive without reducing the housing question to unit count alone.