And this Week – April 30
This is a new feature of At Waters Edge. I hope to send it out each Friday. The first three articles tie in neatly with my newsletters on solving the housing crisis.
Monocle Minute on Design – April 28, 2021
SMARTEST RESIDENTIAL BUILDING / 14 ACCOMMODATIONS
Inside job
The breathtaking design for this residential building in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, tucked in the courtyard of a 1970s apartment block, evolved from pure necessity. “We had to fit all construction elements through an opening only 2.3 metres wide,” says Raphaël Renard of French firm Mars Architectes. “Working with timber was simply the logical solution.” Fortunately so, as its masterful employment elevates this project into a class of its own. Imbued with the natural warmth of the European Douglas fir, each of its 14 apartments boasts a balcony, ceiling-height windows and fine wooden flooring. Residents also have access to an inner courtyard that helps to provide a sense of community.
Laudably, the architects devoted just as much care to the surroundings, creating a haven of more than 30 regional plant species in what had previously been a barren concrete enclosure. This regard for detail and wellbeing that is frequently lacking in new builds sent Parisians clamouring. On completion last October, rental contracts were snapped up from developer Gecina within a few days. “The feedback from the residents says that they are delighted, so we are happy too,” says Renard. Indeed, 14 Accommodations shows that, in expert hands, architecture is only enhanced by being in a tight spot. mars-architectes.com
Nate Berg, Fast Company – April 29, 2021
HOW ONE DEVELOPER IS TURNING FARM STORAGE INTO SLEEK APARTMENTS
Home Depot Architecture
If you click on the hyperlink, the article is a four minute read. – Excerpt:
“On a half-vacant block a few miles outside of downtown Detroit sits an unabashed oddity. Nearly 200 feet long and 23 feet high, it’s a gleaming half-cylinder of metal surrounded by trees. Built out of a military-style Quonset hut and plopped into the dwindling remnants of a residential neighborhood, this alienlike arched steel structure may be the world’s most unexpected new apartment building..”
The Economist – April 25, 2021
PEOPLE SPEND MORE, TAKE MORE RISKS – AND DEMAND MORE OF POLITICIANS
What history tells you about Post-Pandemic Booms
This article explores three lessons from previous post-pandemic eras – Excerpt:
“The situation is so unfamiliar that economists are turning to history to get a sense of what to expect. The record suggests that, following periods of massive non-financial disruption such as wars and pandemics, GDP does tend to bounce back. But it offers three further lessons. First, while people are keen to get out and spend, uncertainty lingers for some time. Second, the pandemic encourages people and businesses to try new ways of doing things, upending the structure of the economy. Third, as the example of “Les Misérables” shows, political upheaval often follows, with unpredictable economic consequences.”
The Economist – April 8, 2021
COVID-19 IS A DISEASE OF THE POOR AND THE POWERLESS
The Biggest Losers from Covid-19
Excerpt:
“The pandemic has reminded key workers that without them society would grind to a halt. In its early phase homebound folk in Britain stood outside their front doors once a week and applauded the “heroes”. Yet as Camilla De Camargo and Lilith Whiley, two sociologists, argue in a paper, giving essential workers “an almost mythologised status and value” obscures the human suffering that many have endured.”
Quotation of the week:
“Never wrestle with a pig. You just get dirty and the pig enjoys it” George Bernard Shaw
