Alfie Stephenson-Boyles E S TAT E P L AT F O R M : A N O P E N S U P P O R T I N F R A S T R U C T U R E F O R S O C I A L E X C H A N G E
E S TAT E P L AT F O R M : A N O P E N SUPPORT INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SOCIAL EXCHANGE
Alfie Stephenson-Boyles MArch Architecture, Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL
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PROJECT OVERVIEW
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Housing estate densification offers an opportunity for London to densify whilst also addressing the physical and social isolation often experienced by the existing residents. Currently under the developer led model, housing estates are torn down, with their residents dispersed to more affordable regions, while the standardised units which are subsequently erected, though built at a higher density, continue some of the ills of 1960s housing estates, in effect creating monocultures. Much of the land surrounding existing housing blocks designed during the middle of the previous century is poorly allocated and underused. This project imagines a scenario where publicly owned housing estates form cooperatives and take ownership of their land and building assets. Through taking control of their estates, the residents seek to improve the connection with the wider community through social and economic exchange. An architect-led infrastructure of in situ cast concrete walls are deployed on the site which forms an open framework for future appropriation by the resident-led cooperative. The ‘continuous’ system of walls provide the basic structural and service framework according to a set of drivers including desire lines, light, privacy and views, and the protection of mature trees. The focus of the project looks at how this system which utilises both continuous and discrete construction methods, may provide the conditions for social exchange, in particular at the edge condition of housing estates. By embedding openendedness, freedom and control within a system which mixes typologies, amenities, open space and dwelling space in the context of housing estate densification, the project aims to provide the conditions for improving the social and economic reality of the existing residents and allowing for diversity in the housing needs of new residents and finally creating connectivity to the surrounding locality.
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INTELLECTUAL BACKGROUND: T E N S I O N S I N E S TAT E R E G E N E R AT I O N
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P R I VAT E V S P U B L I C H O U S I N G
C E N T R A L I S AT I O N V S D E C E N T R A L I S AT I O N
FREEDOM VS CONTROL
HIGH VS LOW DENSITY
M O N O C U LT U R E V S D I V E R S I T Y
HIGH RISE VS LOW RISE
C O N N E C T I O N V S I S O L AT I O N
ACCESS TO SERVICES VS EXCLUSION
S E L F - G E N E R AT E D H O U S I N G V S C O U N C I L PROVIDED HOUSING
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RESEARCH PROCESS: A S E R P E N T I N E S E R I E S O F I T E R AT I O N S
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A S H E A R W A L L M AT
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AMENITY PODIUM
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I N H A B I TA B L E PA R T Y W A L L S
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E S TAT E P L AT F O R M : A N O P E N S U P P O R T INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SOCIAL EXCHANGE
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