Assignment 02 Subject: Writing in Architecture Student: B004 Harsimar Arora Project of discussion: Marmalade Lane, Cambridge, UK co-housing scheme by Mole Architects
Cohousing is a type of intentional community where residents actively participate in the design and management of their living spaces, often with shared facilities and community spaces. The architectural debate on cohousing revolves around the design and layout of the physical spaces and how they can support the social and communal aspects of the community. One significant debate is whether cohousing communities should be designed around a shared central space or whether residents should have their own private spaces with shared facilities dispersed throughout the community. Some argue that a central shared space, such as a common house, is essential for fostering community interaction and cohesion. Others argue that dispersed shared facilities allow for greater privacy and independence for residents. Another debate is around the size and scale of cohousing communities. Some believe that smaller communities with a few dozen households are ideal for fostering a close-knit community and facilitating decision-making. Others argue that larger communities with more diverse members and a wider range of resources can offer greater resilience and sustainability. There are also debates around the types of buildings and materials used in cohousing communities, with some favouring environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient designs, and others prioritising affordability and accessibility. Overall, the architectural debate on cohousing centres around finding a balance between promoting social cohesion and community interaction, while also providing residents with the necessary privacy and independence they need to thrive. Marmalade Lane, Cambridge, UK by Mole Architects is an example of such an establishment where shared spaces and communal facilities, designed to foster community spirit and sustainable living, are integral to the development.This scheme puts its residents’ 1 wellbeing and collaboration at the heart of its design. This scheme puts its residents’ wellbeing and collaboration at the heart of its design. Marmalade Lane is a celebration of the beauty of the building process- a collaborative process between architects, clients and engineers. Its resultant fabric seems to showcase regard of participation and marrying multiple perspectives in design. One significant design outcome is Mole Architects’ well-conceived architecture across scalesfrom the individual dwelling configurations to cluster organisation to neighbourhood development. It is the first council-backed cohousing scheme in the city. The development comprises 42 homes – a mix of two- to five-bedroom terraced houses and one- and two-bedroom apartments.
The steep angle of the slate roof houses and the repetition of the linear clusters create a regular order and repetitive visual language. The same applies to the terrace roofed row houses. Cambridge’s most obvious architectural mannerisms that the design draws on include white-painted brickwork, periodically exposed gault bricks, and projecting white window reveals- ultimately creating a familiarity and association with Cambridge’s built fabric. The elevations also see repetitive elements such as large, projecting roof valley drainage hoppers, punched-in porticos with wood panelling and orange doors with or without circular windows. These add a hint of Europeanism, the evidence of a possible enduring architectural unification. The primary material used is brick. The only external facade related dwelling design choice that the home-owners made was that of the brick colours, this ‘generated a rich elevational pattern while avoiding chaotic randomness’.2 The rest was standard to all dwellings. The variety of the brick palette stretches across greys and reds provides just enough contrast across the adjoining façades- creating an overall visual harmony. This customisation option almost acts like an element that breaks the visual regularity of the facades, and serves as a unique identity to each family’s decision. Another significant outcome is the innovative and highly effective treatment of the public realm. The spaces designed include a flexible "common house" with a playroom, guest bedrooms, laundry facilities, meeting rooms, a large hall and kitchen for shared meals and events, as well as extensive shared gardens that serve as the community's central gathering place and have areas for growing food, playing, socialising, and quiet reflection. There is a separate workshop and gym. This wide range of resources Every resident participates in community administration and has a stake in the common areas. The multi-national group contains young families, retired and young professional couples, and single-person houses of all ages, fulfilling the group's objective for mixed, intergenerational living. The plan incorporates both private and communal spaces to satisfy K1 Cohousing's needs while blending into the larger neighbourhood. Residences are organised in terraces that front both existing streets and a new one, Marmalade Lane, making sure the development has an external as well as internal focus.3 The expansive communal garden is enclosed by the terraces, which have an open southern aspect to maximise sunlight. The Common House, which faces south onto the garden, serves as a bridge between the cohousing and public spheres and as the main "civic" structure for the K1 Cohousing neighbourhood. The plan contains 146 bike parking places, shared waste storage areas, and car parking is kept to the periphery. Apart from these notable architectural features, the project achieves certain creditable technical outcomes. The terraced houses are 7.8m front-to-back and either 5.2m or 6m wide. The flexibility of internal configurations is enabled by factors such as duo-pitched or gable-end roofs, ‘the ability to manipulate ground-floor layouts and switch the positions of bedrooms and bathrooms on the first floors, and dormer, rooflight, and shelf-terraces on top floors.’ There are
27 internal layout configurations. Having such a wide range of dwelling sizes and spaces meant it was possible to match the almost infinite needs of the users. The cohousing movement tended to produce plans that perform better environmentally than the norm, studies suggest that CO2 emissions from cohousing can be half those of standard housing estates. BIM softwares were used to project the energy efficiency of the homes, which were built with prefabricated timber frames, cross-laminated wood, and triple glazing. Electrical ducting, triple-glazed composite aluminium and wood windows, and quick construction on site allow for the building of a single house in just two days. The triple glazing allows larger windows and thus more natural light penetration, and well lit homes. Air-source heat pumps housed in neat-appearing brick boxes along the front elevations, and massive mechanical ventilation and heat recovery system units both contribute to the building's environmental efficiency. The timber frames guarantee efficient thermal efficiency and airtightness (and hence reduced energy expenses for inhabitants), consistently high build quality, and allows floor plans to be customised to meet individual demands. One immediately knows that the architect and engineers worked in cohesion. The resultant visual language of the development is a clear derivation of the highly collaborative nature of this project. Technical solutions and architectural aspirations seem to have been tackled in a joyous manner. Space making and configurations have been executed to appear as if they are a favourable amalgamation of the two. The client and developer relationship also seems to be participative- the visual harmony has been maintained despite customisations due to the defined prefabricated output possibilities.
Citations: 1:https://www.architecture.com/awards-and-competitions-landing-page/awards/riba-regional-aw ards/riba-east-award-winners/2019/marmalade-lane 2:https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/buildings/building-study-marmalade-lane-cohousing-by-m ole-architects 3:https://archello.com/project/marmalade-lane-cohousing