Backyard Bungalow, Los Angeles, California

It is undisputed that housing in Los Angeles is unaffordable and unequitable. Progress is slowly being made to increase the availability of affordable homes by building high-density housing along transit corridors and in downtown areas. Still, much of Los Angeles is made up of single-family neighborhoods, where high-density housing typologies would be disruptive. Though frequently vilified by progressive planners and architects, many of us still aspire to own a single-family suburban home. Who could fault a person’s desire for privacy and open space? The failings of single-family houses are that they are land and energy intensive and thus diametric to affordability, public transit, and minimizing our carbon footprint. Allowing for greater density, in a way that is sensitive to the scale and qualities of suburbia, is one way to mitigate these downsides.

Mid-density bungalow courts are particularly relevant case-studies when considering ways to transform L.A.’s single family lots, both because of their architecture and their social benefit. The small size of the units makes them more affordable and the complex’s scale and layout allows it to easily co-exist alongside single-family housing. As we began to tackle this design challenge, we interviewed a number of young renters, ages 25-35, asking what they liked and disliked about their current living situation. All of them wished they had access to more private outdoor spaces, even those that live at a bungalow court. They explained that while the shared central court provides greenery and space to be outside, they didn’t feel like they could use this space for BBQs, for their children to play, for them to garden, or to feel at ease taking a nap outdoors.

Our proposal is a hybrid of the bungalow court and the single-family suburban home. As with the bungalow court this project is made up of detached units, but it swaps the typology’s communal court for a suburban model of individual backyards, balconies and terraces. Our plan also re-orients the detached units to allow for greater privacy within each home. The front yard, the symbolic and most unused element of the single-family suburban home, was eliminated. This project brings down the cost of housing by building small, increasing density, and through the use of modular construction methods. The units are designed to maximize opportunities to extend the living spaces outdoors. Each unit has their own back yard and screened views into their neighbor’s yard. Each unit’s second floor balcony is large enough to be used as a workspace and the roof terrace is designed to accommodate a vegetable garden and deck. Above the roof deck, a trellis accommodates four to eight solar panels/small unit (sixteen panels on the larger unit). Space above the garage can be used for shared activities.

Our site organization allows for a total of six units – five 1-bedroom and 1.5-bath units of 576sf each and one 2-bedroom unit of 1,344 sf, for a total buildout of 4,213 sf. Each of the smaller units also have a private 384 sf back yard, an 128 sf balcony, and a 288 sf roof deck. The large unit has a 1200 sf yard, a 192 sf balcony, and a 576 sf roof terrace. In effect the small units each get 800 sf of exterior living space and the large unit gets almost 2,000 sf. The site strategy also allows for fewer units to be built, with any unbuilt area used as common recreation space.