Shotgun Row

In the wake of the financial crisis, a local municipality found itself with a collection of six adjacent, intact “shotgun-style” homes from the 19th century. This vernacular housing type consists of narrow buildings with windows along one side and a series of rooms separating front from back. Every house was essentially the same, but interiors or rear portions had been poorly altered by owners over the past century.
Working with a non-profit committed to reinvigorating the urban core through home ownership and creative placemaking, we developed a simple, efficient and easily built prototype that was accepting of the differences between buildings and allowed for a high degree of customization by eventual private owners. The residences feature a studio at the street and living functions at the rear, with sleeping and bathing distributed between. In an effort to alleviate the claustrophobia of a small structure, circulation is pressed toward the window wall, allowing for a long, light-filled, interior vista from front to back attenuated by a sweeping gallery wall.
The residences were quickly purchased, based largely on demand for single-story residences in an urban area. The residences have been especially popular for people with mobility impairments, whose homes were easily modified for increased accessibility standards. The effect of six homes going from vacant to owner-occupied has had a drastic impact on the neighborhood – a community garden has sprung up, regular block parties occur, and property values are rising spurring further growth.