Micro Apartments are starting to appear in New York City, with developer and designer, nArchitects, creating new apartments that offer compressed lifestyles.
The development includes 55 rental homes that range from 24sqm to 33sqm, and has been labeled My Micro NY.
Having won a design competition, adAPT NYC, nArchitects, have their site occupied and in construction.
Located on 335 East 27th Streets in New York, the development will have small apartments that use fold out beds to allow for more space.
Communal areas, such as garden roof tops, gyms and fitness areas, as well as kitchens and laundry services, means less private space, and more communal space.
nArchitects proposal creates 55 new micro-units utilizing modular building construction that could be replicable in future developments. The project focuses on quality and livability through features that highlight the use of space, light, and air, such as 9'-10" floor-to-ceiling heights and juliet balconies. By incorporating setbacks as a governing design logic, My Micro NY could in principle be adapted to many sites, at a range of heights and floor area ratios, and at nearly any location in a block. The 250 to 370 square-foot micro-units achieve affordability for low- and middle-income households without any direct City subsidy or financing, in part through its use of modular design to significantly shorten project schedule and save on financing and conventional construction costs. It is expected that the project will complete the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure in the fall with construction beginning at the end of 2013.