CJRR - Apartment Complex & Community Center

Looking at a Boston distressed property list, I found a large plot of land with huge potential in an impoverished neighborhood: 100 Business St, Hyde Park. The neighborhood has a section with poor infrastructure. A racially diverse population mostly populates this section of Hyde Park. Near this area is the purple line, along with a field across the small river present on the bottom of the picture below.

In this building, I envisioned these specific materials to be used:

1. Bamboo
2. Slag-Based Concrete (“Green Concrete”)
3. Cork*
4. Recycled Steel

I also wanted to include Solar Panels and Permeable Paving

Bamboo and Green Concrete offer a cheaper alternative to their traditional counterparts (Hardwood and Regular Concrete). Along with the cheaper cost, they offer a greener alternative, bettering the environment. Bamboo does not last as long in comparison to Hardwood, but because of its abundance, maintenance every few decades would erase this issue.

Cork and Recycled Steel are a bit tricky. While they may rival/match their traditional counterparts in cost, because of their high quality makes up for their cost in the long run, lasting longer and serving their purpose greater. Along with this, they offer great green benefits.

There’s a large array of solar panels along the third-floor building roof, reducing energy costs for the building. Permeable Paving would be present outside and on the green roof, reducing the need for extensive maintenance for water drainage.

Researching the plot of land and the surrounding businesses, I decided to also incorporate 98 Business Street into my plan. There are businesses on this plot, but I’ve decided to allocate space to relocate these businesses. The idea I had going into this was to make a hybrid building. What I mean by this is, I’d have this building be a large apartment complex, but also a community center. The “community center” portion of this building would be the Ground floor, where people could come in and attend a specific event scheduled during that day. And, businesses would also be in this space. On the Ground floor, there would also be a few apartments present for disabled people. These apartments would have a security door shielding them from the public. This building would have most of it be two floors with one large section spanning three floors. On the second floor, there would be apartments with a recreational area for the tenants, complete with an atrium lighting up the area nearby. The third floor would feature apartments too, but the portion of the building that doesn’t span three floors would serve as a green roof, also for the tenants to use for recreation. The building has three fire exits, a dual-elevator setup, and solar panels along the roof of the third building. Outside the building, there’s underground parking for the tenants. Along with that, there’s a fenced playground for families to use. Also, a bridge could be proposed to span across the river, connecting to the field nearby. This field has a large football field, a skatepark, and plenty of room for picnics.

1. Advancing racial equity

Because of the location of this plot, right in the heart of a racially diverse community, the benefits of this building (Secure, modern housing, communal unity and collaboration, stimulation of local economy by housing small businesses) would primarily be enjoyed by racial minorities. In addition to this implicit benefit, those belonging to racial minorities would be prioritized by management in selection.

1. Promoting a community’s economic development

The local economy, especially small businesses, would be greatly boosted by this plan. There’s allocated space for four businesses on the first floor. These rooms would be for small businesses to help bolster the local economy. Along with this, on the second floor recreational area, there’s a space for a food vendor, which would also go to a small business.

1. Creating educational opportunities

On the 1st floor, there’s a space allocated for community use. The thought is, management would take requests for those who want to use it and would prioritize important events. For example, educational opportunities like teaching English to non-native speakers, technological literacy, etc, would be prioritized.

1. Supporting military veterans and their families

Veterans, like racial minorities, would be prioritized in the admissions process to the apartments.