Modern 4 Plex Community

Sited on Lethbridge’s growing west side, DJB was commissioned to help develop a housing community that would appeal to a younger demographic. In proximity to schools, the university, and grocery stores, there was a natural attraction to the site which we hoped we could contribute to. Our solution for the project was a cluster of nine identical 4-plex buildings around the perimeter of the site, with a courtyard for parking in the centre. Our design for the 4-plex structures made use of the classic “pinwheel” plan, in which 4 living units could be bound together and have each unit face a separate direction. Cantilevered decks are what simulate this torquing motion, in which the spatial logic of the plan can effectively be understood from the exterior. Entries to each living unit find their natural placement at the perpendicular meeting of the rotating volumes, in which larger architectural gestures are able to frame more subtle moments (such as protected entries).