Sun_Food_Water design prototype
Butterfly House
Affordability is defined based on monthly costs, with reductions for incorporating solar gain & PV-generated energy, water collection, and food production.
Investigations began with the smallest possible square footage, the 250sf Tiny House. Four other prototypes were created:387sf Butterfly House; 624sf Stack House; 665sf 20x20 House; and 1,226sf 91 Fuller House.
All five prototypes were taken to within 90% permit-ready drawings. In May of 2019, construction documents were delivered to the Buffalo Erie Niagara Land Improvement Corporation (BENLIC) and a building permit was secured in the Town of Tonawanda for 91 Fuller Avenue. Prototypes are intended for city sites and include neighborhood-friendly, privacy enhancing contextural elements such as wraparound porches, as well as full basements for an additional code-compliant bedroom or office, and dry basement storage capacity similar to a larger house.
Design Goal: Small Affordable Houses that ‘play big’. Production Goal: Secure a permit every year for a new affordable house. Community partnerships to-date include BENLIC and PUSH Buffalo.
Term / Students
Fall 2017: Shannon Riley
Spring 2018:A. Volungus, E. Badawy, S. Brice, A. Chiffy, M. Hange, MJ Kook, B. Laconte, J. Machovec, J. Nichols, G. Reeb, C. Rivera, J. Wakeley
Fall 2018: D. Chan, M. Hange, B. Huang, D. Kwong, K. Marsh, M. Shayo, J. Devries, J. Dziama, R. Goff, T. Horvath, K. Kalyoncu
Spring 2019: V. Bianco, R. Codrington, K. Donnelly, J. Galasso, G. Latchford, W. Lin, M. Mansfield, J. Neu, J. Nijjar