How to deal with Hong Kong's housing shortage while racking up brownie points among space-averse micro home fanatics? Architecture firm AFFECT-T's plan, presented at the 2013 Hong Kong-Shenzhen Biennale, is to fill abandoned factories with pared-down two-story bamboo shelters. As Co.Exist notes, though the prototype looks a little threadbare, it benefits from the insulation and weather-protecting provided by the large warehouse encompassing it. If implemented, the proposal could create a lot of low-cost transitional housing in sought-after locations.
As Dylan Baker-Rice, principal at AFFECT-T, told Co.Exist, locating is key, because "living far away from the city center is one of the primary reasons many who have no housing choose to forgo public housing when it's offered." Bamboo, which was once used for housing in the area, was chosen because it "grows abundantly and quickly, requiring less resources to plant and harvest than wood, and is one of the most sustainable building materials in China."
AFFECT-T is currently in talks with the Hong Kong government to put their plan into practice. According to Baker-Rice, another boon for the potential residents of the intra-factory bamboo abodes would be "a sense of shared space and community," where neighbors who "share living accommodations on the same floor are encouraged to interact and share resources." Not bad, especially considering that at least one high-concept variation on the idea has already made waves in Prague.
· Tiny Houses Made Of Bamboo, Hiding Inside Abandoned Hong Kong Factories [Co.Exist]
· All micro home coverage [Curbed National]
· All Hong Kong coverage [Curbed National]