ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN -IV

semester : V,PRIME CAP

HYBRID HOUSING
A Contemporary Building Type for Multiple Residential & Business Use

INTRODUCTION :

A hybrid is defined as “something of mixed origin or composition in which the positive characteristics
of different elements are combined in a single being”. Applied this concept to Architecture, Hybrid
Buildings - term coined by Joseph Fenton in 1985 – are those which aggregate different types of
functions of the city.

They go beyond the Mixed-use building by being able to integrate public and private sphere in a
single structure, with a great formal and programmatic versatility. Being recent its specific study,
tied in such a way with the needs of the urban fabric, it does not yet have any archetypes to which it
should follow or obey. An important factor, which makes hybrid buildings all more relevant, is the
ability to easily integrate future adjustments and settings.

AIM:

To design a hybrid building which facilitate a relation between the individual and the city, so, one
common characteristic is their permeability, whether physical or conceptual with the surroundings,
derived from, as mentioned, a strong relation to the urban framework.

SITE AND DESIGN FOCUS:

Design integrates a Commercial program with a dense Residential program in an area of the Chennai
city(20 acres ) that functionally, sits in the cusp of the public scale and activities with the residential
surrounding neighborhood. It has in mind the principles of creation of a compact city in detriment of
a dispersed city, its integration of different uses rather than segregation.

PROGRAM:

The Program for this Hybrid Housing project is a suggestion of a set of different environments and
typologies for a wide range of people (couples, friends, professional profiles, families, elderly people,
disabled people) that reflect on the contemporary housing demands.

The challenge is to think not only in square meters of each cell, public spaces but also to express the
relationship between housing cells, open spaces and the urban fabric.

A successful design must factor in these conditions, as well as consider new configurations of the
required program. Future needs, social, functional and spatial necessities can also be taken into
consideration to generate a distinct and more meaningful proposal.

i).Residential :
This program aims for an experiment in different types of domestic space, exploring its
programmatic potential and spatial richness. Here, are included people with different backgrounds
and different permanence times in the city, permanent residents (families / elderly people) and
semi-permanent (students).

Housing Cells Typologies:

 University/College Students : 30 units, 80-90 m2 each

 A Couple with two or more children : 30 units, 90-100 m2 each
 A Couple with one child : 30 units, 70-80 m2 each
 A Couple with no children : 30 units, 60-70 m2 each
 An Elderly Couple : 30units, 60-70 m2 each
 A Single-person studio : 50 units: 30-40 m2 each

Community Private Areas: Laundry Rooms / Fitness Room / Terraces / Rooftop terraces / Music
Room / Youth Room / Resident Community Room / Communitarian rooms for students /Bicycle
Parking / etc. These communal spaces should be considered, as to help foster a vital community of
residents.

Deliberately, there are no area limitation here assigned, they are left to the consideration of the
designers. Nevertheless, they are included in the Maximum Total Area of the Residential Program.

The Residential Program should not exceed the Maximum Area of 15000m2(3.7 acre)

ii).Commercial:

The presence of Commercial facilities, apart from responding to the concrete needs of the site, can
also have a benefic contribution in its overlapping and combination with the residential function. In
the Commerce sector, functions that not only relate to the residents needs but also bring added
value to the neighborhood, can be considered.

The Commercial Program can include a series of functions: Shopping – Bookstore / Design store / Art
Gallery / Pharmacy / Souvenir shop / Hair Salon / Health food shop / Bicycle repair shop /
Convenience store.

iii).Offices – Small offices / collaborative working space;

iv). Entertainment – Music clubs / Bars / Restaurants These can help activate the urban space and
act as buffer between the different sectors of the building.

v).Exterior public space: This would ideally be a space where social relations can be enhanced. The
needs of the neighborhood children and elder citizens that are most likely to benefit from this new
public space should be kept in mind. Ludic activities, children playground, games and sportive
activities, like Basketball, Tennis, water features or swimming pool can be also integrated.

The Exterior Public Space should account for 60% of the Ground Floor.
Note:

1.There is no fixed area for any element. The total areas, as with which elements will compose this
sector are left to the discretion of the designers. Other functional need that the designer detects as
lacking in the urban context shall also be accepted.

2.Circulation:

For both Commercial and Residential sectors of the building, the areas for interior circulation are
not assigned, but should preferably not exceed 20% of the overall building. Exterior circulation is not
accountable.

3.Parking :

Even though it is not the main focus of this exercise, parking facilities could be considered.
Underground parking is restricted to one level and can be able to contain up to 200 vehicles. The
vehicle Parking is an optional element that may bring value to the proposal.

4.Sustainability :

In a project with this dimension, sustainable approaches: waste management, energy production
and consumption, could be taken into account.

5.Rules and regulation :

Development Regulations, Volume II, SECOND MASTER PLAN FOR CHENNAI METROPOLITAN AREA,
2026

6.Massing :

The overall proposal must be harmonious with its surrounding.

7.Structure:

Structurally, no engineering calculation is to be presented, but structural elements should be

represented in order to provide some degree of realism and feasibility to the project.