youCUBE是一个18个单元的住房开发项目，在一个狭窄的、63’x264’的城市地块上探索密度和可负担性的潜力。该项目位于Waterfront Drive的北端，占据了一个看似不起眼的场地，附近河流的能见度有限，周围是被忽视的工业环境。

youCUBE is an 18 unit housing development that explores the potential for density and affordability on a narrow, 63’ x 264’ urban lot. Located on the north end of Waterfront Drive, the project occupies a seemingly unremarkable site with limited visibility of the nearby river and neglected, industrial surroundings.

由于预算不多，又有定制房屋建筑的背景，开发商需要一个可以由住宅承包商使用标准施工方法建造的设计。作为回应，该项目挑战了传统的多户住宅设计，采用了模块化和更实惠的独立住宅配置，超越了简介，包括广泛的户外空间和灵感的建筑内饰。

With a modest budget and a background in custom home building, the developer needed a design that could be built using standard construction methods by residential contractors. In response, the project challenges conventional multi-family housing design with a modular and more affordable configuration of individual dwellings that goes beyond the brief to include extensive outdoor space and inspired architectural interiors.

最终的构图将三层和四层的联排别墅聚集在一个共享的广场上，该广场高出人行道6英尺，暗示了隐私和安全，同时又不脱离街道。广场提供了通往所有套房入口的通道，并为下面的车辆通道和居民停车场提供了一个新的车道。每个单元都有一个屋顶天井，可以360度欣赏河流和城市天际线的壮观景色。这两个空间一起将居民提升到了工业环境之上，捕捉到了以前无法到达的景色，并在一个过渡性的环境中雕刻了一个永久的社区。

The final composition clusters three and four storey townhouses together on a shared plaza, which is elevated six feet above the sidewalk to suggest privacy and security without disengaging from the street. The plaza provides access to all of the suite entrances and shelters a new driveway for vehicular access and resident parking below. Each unit culminates in a rooftop patio with spectacular 360° vistas of the river and city skyline. Together, these two spaces lift residents above their industrial context, capturing formerly inaccessible views and carving a permanent community into a transitional setting.

为了保持项目的成本效益，设计包括两种标准单元尺寸–18’x20’或18’x28′–各自有两种内部布局选择。第一种布局将生活空间更传统地放在主楼，而另一种则将它们移到上层，以获得更多的光线和视野。与房屋类似，地下室是现浇混凝土，而上层则是传统的木结构组件。

In order to keep the project cost-effective, the design consists of two standard unit sizes – 18’ x 20’ or 18’ x 28’ – that each have two interior layout options. The first layout places the living spaces more traditionally on the main floor, while the other moves them to the upper levels for greater access to light and views. Similar to a house, the basements are cast-inplace concrete, while the upper levels are traditional wood-frame assemblies.

这些立方体用简单的白色灰泥覆盖，将光线反射到广场上，并与邻近的建筑形成现代的对比。除了简化施工过程，公寓的垂直设计还为沿人行道边缘的户外设施留下了更多空间，包括小块绿地、小天井和为居民提供生活工作机会的商业套房的入口。

The cubes are clad in simple white stucco that reflects light into the plaza and provides a modern counterpoint to the neighbouring buildings. In addition to streamlining the construction process, the condominiums’ vertical design also leaves more room for outdoor amenities along the sidewalk edge, incorporating pockets of green space, small patios and entrances to commercial suites that offer live-work opportunities for residents.

在内部，每个单元都被建筑 “包裹 “所定义，这一设计元素将内部塑造成一个宽敞的、充满光线的体积内的开放式房间的流动序列。每次只接触到两面墙，当它在空间中交织时，就划定了楼层和夹层，创造了戏剧性的俯瞰下面的空间。

Inside, each unit is defined by an architectural ‘wrap’, a design element that sculpts the interior into a fluid sequence of open plan rooms within a spacious, light-filled volume. Touching only two walls at a time, the wrap delineates floors and mezzanines as it weaves through the space, creating dramatic overlooks to the spaces below.

包边与立方体的墙体发生反应，折回到自己身上，或继续向上形成窗户的开口。天花板高度高达36英尺，将日光从顶层一直过滤到底层。包层成为建筑外壳的简单性和内部生活的复杂性之间的调解人。

The wrap reacts with the walls of the cube by folding back onto itself, or continuing upward to form window openings. Ceiling heights soar up to 36 feet, filtering daylight from the top level all the way to the ground floor. The wrap becomes the mediator between the simplicity of the building’s shell and the complexity of living that occurs within.

Architects: 5468796 Architecture
Area : 15000 ft²
Year : 2015
Photographs :James Brittain
City：WINNIPEG
Country：Canada