[Nexis4Jersey]

From Sea to Vacant Lot: A Shipping Container Condo Rises in Newark

By Alexis Stephens | March 16, 2015


Rendering of the container condo headed to Newark (Credit: C+C Architecture)

The current floor plan of each apartment includes an open living room, dining room and kitchen space; three bedrooms and two bathrooms (including a master suite); and laundry in each unit. The floors will be made out of poured concrete; closed cell foam insulation will exceed current standards. Other sustainability measures include the structure’s base, which will be built on pile footings to allow for better rainwater absorption and an option for residents to install solar panels in the future.

Cooke says the firm started looking at repurposing shipping containers a few years back when they were re-designing their own Newark office. They weren’t able to pull the financing together in time, but have been exploring the idea of using containers for affordable housing ever since.

“The neighborhood has not seen a lot of for-sale housing in a number of years since the real estate crash,” says Jeff Crum of CAPC. The organization acquires vacant lots and abandoned properties with the aim of stabilizing communities like Lincoln Park. “We’re trying to reinvigorate the neighborhood and create homeownership opportunities.”

(Credit: C+C Architecture)

Read more at : http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/ship...newark-housing