A shared equity housing project consisting of four modest high-quality dwellings that are designed to accommodate older single women who are on lower incomes and at risk of homelessness. The intent of this project is to provide these women with security of tenure and enduring affordability.

Each unit has an elevated sloped ceiling over living spaces, designed to catch the sunlight and create a greater sense of generosity to the modestly-sized homes, while also creating a rhythm and variation to the overall volume of the project.

The floor plan is configured to allow adaptation as the needs of the inhabitants change. Units are designed to accommodate Gold livable standards and the second living/study space is able to be closed-off, to become a second bedroom for a caregiver if ever needed.

The project is landscape-driven and the four required car spaces are carefully designed to create flexible areas that can become heavily vegetated communal outdoor spaces. The front garden is generously planted with herbs, vegetables and fruit trees, providing a generous offering to the street whilst fostering a strong sense of community amongst the four occupants.

The L-shaped units are able to be composed in a myriad of arrangements, creating a system that can be rolled-out on other sites with differing orientations.

Women’s Property Initiative Older Women’s Housing Project, written by Alexis Kalagas, originally published in Architecture Australia Mar/Apr issue 2022 :

“Built to a tight budget on a nondescript suburban block, this four-unit housing development – a pilot project designed for women over 55 at risk of aging into poverty.”

“As architects continue to range beyond the perceived limits of the discipline, driven by a desire to engage with the pressing crises of our time in an expanded vision of spatial practice, it is a reminder that the act of designing a “simple, humble project” can still be a potent force for change.”