Urban Infill Regeneration Over 55’s Apartments
Southgate & Sarabia Architects (SASA) have been commissioned to be part of a positive regeneration project, in Manchester to create housing to meet the diverse needs of the over 55 demographic.
The Francis Road, Urban Infill Regeneration Apartments in Withington, will not only create attractive, functional and sustainable living space for over 55’s; it will also generate confidence in the area.
The site chosen to build the twenty-six new one and two-bedroom apartment complex was formerly an industrial factory. With emphasis on beyond National Space Standards and complying with Building for Life 12, National Design Guide and HAPPI guidance, this complex, offers an intelligent set of layouts and a piece of architecture linked to its former industrial form and urban grain.
Despite the site’s existing tight urban grain and enclosed set of boundaries it has a very accessible frontage and rear vehicle access. SASA have used ‘urban design cues’ to better its neighbourhood context; thus enhancing public and private spaces while improving pedestrian safety and accessibility in and around the site.
It has been designed as double fronted, with a primary elevation and entrance off Francis Road. To the rear an active north-west elevation and entrance provides passive supervision and flexibility to the properties. Fully accessible routes to all entrances and internal layouts support a variety of users with universal access to all floors.
Parking and cycle storage provision is located at the rear of the site. This will enable removal of street mounted car parking off Francis Road, allowing better definition of public footpaths and reduction of pedestrian and vehicular crossover.
The new designs will significantly reduce the building’s carbon footprint compared to the original, and created a positive change in terms of its urban setting. The apartment building itself is a double sided, arranged around a central access corridor, providing active façades to both primary elevations.
While the proposed building is three storeys high, the restricted building height via a low-profile roof design, maintains scale with other adjacent buildings. Standardised and stacked apartment layouts help achieve a regulated and well-proportioned façade. With large openings and expressed brick head details, retaining the character and scale of the sites former industrial facades.
Design detailing reviewed options around window size and decorative delineation, carefully balancing natural daylight, ventilation and overheating requirements. The repetition in windows gives designed elevations a timeless elegance that will be easy to maintain.