LARIMER AVE COHOUSING |  SUSTAINABILITY & URBAN DESIGN

 PITTSBURGH, PA | 2014

Larimer was a thriving neighborhood located in central Pittsburgh. It has been suffering from neglect and several restoration acts have been in place to restore its former charm. Through the placement of a Public Library and affordable cohousing units, this area can be better integrated with its surrounding community. This Urban Design Studio project focuses on working with a constant shift of scale encouraging the production of a complex scheme.

Small Scale | Designing Each Unit

Users of this project range from families with small children to elderlies. Therefore a system consisting of a variety of floor plans was integrated while following specific regulations regarding the economic and social requirements. Each home is designed with a sustainable focus: harvesting rainwater and sustaining a green roof were amongst the priorities. Homes were designed to embrace styles present in the original neighborhoods while still creating a new type of vernacular to provide Larimer with a new sort of identity. 

Intermediate Scale | Designing Clusters

CoHousing communities thrive based on the level of interconnectivity. By pushing the social boundaries of a standard townhouse complex and alternating the direction of each home, each cluster allows for more interaction from neighbor to neighbor. By offsetting each home, there is also a hierarchy created with regards to the notion of a front yard (public) and backyard (private). Second story green roofs are carefully designed to allow for a sense of privacy yet interconnectivity between home to home. Exposed wooden framing reinforces a structure system on the individual home as well as on the larger cluster scale.  Each cluster has its own Community Garden, children's play area, and private parking area.

Large Scale | Designing the Site

Larimer Avenue is slowly being repopulated as a retail district. By placing the Common Houses along this front edge of the site, this main road is being reenforced as a commercial/institutional district. Placing the Larimer Public Library up toward the north edge of the site, the adjacent neighborhoods will be encouraged to retreat to the quiet wooded area away from the bustling commercial zones. The overall site plan gathers inspiration from Georgian style plans by creating an alignment down the center for a main quad where larger events and gatherings can take place. A master system of controlled topography water drainage allows for water collection to occur near the designated Community Garden spaces.