Container Condo To Be Built In Detroit
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05.13.08
A 17-unit condominium built from shipping containers is being proposed for Detroit, on lots now vacant or containing burned-out homes. According to the Detroit Free Press, "The project would stack empty containers four high, cut in windows and doors, install plumbing, stairways and heating, and add amenities such as balconies and landscaped patios." Architect Steven Flum says that "it solves several problems at once, including the need to build environmentally sensitive buildings cheaply. The project is going to cost about $1.8 million, about 25% less than a normal condo project of similar quality would run."
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When the iT House was proposed three years ago by taalman koch architects, (
It is a Minibox, designed by Enrich Strolz of Holzbox in 1998, all of sixty square feet. According to 
Allison Arieff literally wrote the book on modern prefab back in 2002 (with Bryan Burkhart). It was an exciting time, and we all had great hopes and dreams, not all of which panned out. She is interviewed by David Keeps of the Chicago Tribune, and discusses the successes, failures and its future. A few key questions:
Garden sheds are becoming all the rage, for good reason; they are an economical way to get a little more space, they are riding the home office boom and they are a gateway drug for modern prefab. In Britain they have built them for centuries, and the experience shows.
Cameron Scott of 
We used to scoff at yurts as being a bit crunchy granola for TreeHugger, but have become quite fond of them after seeing how light a footprint they have, and how comfortable they can be. While the Mongolians developed the yurt as a form of mobile housing, most we have seen are have been permanently installed.
Howie Oakes spent years developing a truly portable yurt, and his own words explain it better than I could:
"I have been interested in nomadic homes for a long time, and became fascinated with the yurt after weathering a number of Burning Man dust storms in a small yurt that a friend built. I started looking into what was available, and saw that the typical western yurt had moved well beyond its roots as a truly nomadic home. I think that these yurts do indeed make excellent low impact housing, but I wanted a yurt that my family could easily transport and setup wherever we went."
...
Two years ago we wrote about 
It looks more like a landing craft that just hit the beach, but in fact it is a mobile artists studio that was built in 2003 by Kortknie Stuhlmacher Architecten of Rotterdam in collaboration with artists BikvanderPol, as part of a municipal art program in Utrecht. The architects note:
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The Wall Street Journal takes a chainsaw to modern prefab, sounding shocked, shocked, that there are sometimes problems due to site conditions, client changes or cost overruns. There are also teething problems with new designs and clearly a few issues between builders and designers; Charlie Lazor's fabulous
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I love the stair, of course completely illegal in North America. 
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We were very excited when Sami first showed us 
Joyce Dopkeen/The New York Times
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One of the problems with modern prefabricated housing is the challenge of achieving greater densities and adapting to more urban milieus. Tim Pyne is trying it with his 
We are longtime fans of UK architect Tim Pyne, one of the prefab pioneers with his lovely
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Archigram imagined 
Itamambuca in the state of Sao Paulo has intense humidity, hot sun, heavy rain and lush vegetation, and evidently lots of bugs and other things running around.
Architect Greg La Vardera of Lamidesign (see his Plat House on 
There has been a proliferation of garden shed designs recently; they are a great way to get more space without permanently adding on to your house, and can be a great place to work, work out or just get away from everything. They also often do not need building permits or zoning permissions. (for more information on the concept, visit UK site
Components: Five models. One dress. Three ladders. Two lights. 12 white folding chairs. Cupcakes. Mix them together and what do you get? Party Dress, designed by sisters Dana and Karla Karwas, " a music pavilion worn exclusively by five women seamlessly injecting architecture into fashion by using the body as space. Step inside the dress, taste a sweet cupcake, and enjoy an evening of chamber music."
It is like a collective version of Archigram's clothing for living in, or 
Here is an interesting idea from Dezeen for a prefabricated house; Tokyo architects 
