In the future, we’ll be living in alleyways.

Recently, ArchDaily featured the winning project of the New Vision of Loft 2 Competition, “Live Between Buildings!” With living conditions in Toronto becoming more dense every year, we took notice of the interesting designs.

Live Between Buildings!

New Vision Loft 2 Competition was organized by A10, an online news website that focuses on the architecture scene in Europe, as well as Fakro, a roof window manufacturer. The point of the competition is to explore new ways of living within the world’s quickly crowding cities. In major urban centres, high-density living is the way of the future, so we just might see some of the winners’ entries coming to life one day.

The first place winner was Live Between Buildings! by Mateusz Mastalski and Ole Robin Storjohann. Instead of attempting to design super tall, slender towers for housing, Mastalski and Storjohann targeted the narrow alleyways you would find in any major downtown core.

Almost the entire exterior, or at least the top of their designs would incorporate Fakro roof windows to allow the penetration of natural light. It seems like the housing unit can be built in any shape, making the variety of possible “floorplans” endless. At first glance, it seems as though these units are perfect for a single person, maybe a couple, but when you think about it, these designs can be applied between any two buildings. The size of the alleyway is the only thing limiting how large the home can be.

Would this work in Toronto?

So, do you think these designs would work in Toronto? Would a home builder or condo developer be able to sell a whole community of these along a downtown street? We think it’s possible. Why not fill in the gaps between buildings?

We like this idea because it’s realistic. Most of the time, these design competitions receive entries that are just plain impossible, but Living Between Buildings! is a viable option for the future of downtown living.

One issue that we could see arising is that many of the alleyways in Toronto are used by cars. So, the homes would either have to be built only where the alleyways aren’t used by traffic, or elevated so that a car can pass beneath them. Another issue could be noise - if you’re in a home sharing a brick wall with a bar or club, you’ll never sleep.

So, what do you think? Could you live in a home like this?

All images from ArchDaily.