ARCH_419 International Housing Studio: ‘San Juan. Tropical Thresholds’

Puerto Rico’s housing stock is mostly composed of low-density developments of detached, single-family, modernist-style, concrete houses. These uninsulated, flat-roofed, one-story dwellings are the most common form of housing for all income levels since this model was introduced in the late 1940s.

In San Juan, increasing concerns over security have dramatically transformed the urbanscape and social relationships between citizens who, seeking protection from intruders, install gates and grilles and cut down vegetation to improve surveillance to the detriment of shade, which is crucial in this climate. Noise also presents a challenge for guaranteeing privacy and conviviality, especially in this intensely social and musical culture. These physical and social conditions, combined with a year-round warm and humid climate, have led to a hostile built environment that expresses unsociability and fear.

This studio explored the safety, social, and climatic advantages of collective living, as well as the potential conflicts that arise from sharing space in a society accustomed to detached houses. Students engaged these conflicts and concerns as a fundamental way of questioning the cultural codes embedded in our living environments. A concept’s success hinged on developing an attractive living option with a passive and resilient construction that could contribute to a more sustainable model of a compact city.