The Architecture of Affordable Housing [Paperback]

Sam Davis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 25, 1995

That a country of wealth cannot provide sound housing for those in need is a national embarrassment. This book is about the design of dignified, affordable housing for those not served by the private sector, and how that housing fits comfortably into our communities. Sam Davis has written an accessible, non-technical analysis for everyone interested in the creation of affordable housing. Through discussions of cost, politics, and design concepts, as well as case studies of completed projects, he gives solutions to the dilemmas posed by the development process.
Good housing design is a delicate balance of community values, individual needs, esthetic judgments, and technical requirements. Good design can save money--seventy percent of the cost of a new dwelling is affected by planning and design. As a key ingredient in community building, housing should bestow on its inhabitants a sense of dignity, says Davis. To view this as a privilege for those who can afford market-rate housing invites both social and financial disaster. He also considers our national obsession with the single-family house and our historical ambivalence toward subsidized housing--attitudes that have often led to the stigmatization of low-income groups.
This book will be indispensable to community and volunteer groups, local governments, financial backers, architects, planners, and students in related fields.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This thoughtful account of what used to be called public housing should be of interest to a broad spectrum of readers, from specialists to the general public. It is engagingly written by a recognized authority who has served as chair of the Department of Architecture at the University of California at Berkeley. Davis is a seasoned veteran of the housing wars across the country, and this book is replete with concrete case studies dating from the past 20 years. The chief virtue of the book is the tremendous variety of public housing it exhibits; architects never seem to tire of attempting to design better pubic housing wherever they work regardless of fractious approval processes, inhibiting rules and regulations, and discouraging economics. Recommended for all collections.
Peter Kaufman, Boston Architectural Ctr.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The architecture of affordable housing has assumed as many forms as the very nomenclature. Davis presents a history of poor, low-income, social, and subsidized housing using examples of Frank Lloyd Wright, the WPA, and contemporary case studies in the most expensive state in the union, California. These examples illustrate that while the beliefs surrounding affordable housing have changed, the need has been steady, if not growing. They also illustrate many myths, one being that affordable housing most often isn't any cheaper to build than market-rate housing. The in-depth documentation of the community planning process shows just how passionate the contesting parties are and how complex the issues have become. While not offering Wright's technical secrets on cost cutting, the California case studies lend the book a credibility from which both laypeople and architects can benefit. But, ultimately, the 10 award-winning projects the author presents as evidence of "good" architecture fulfilling a social need skirt the real issue: Why is it that award-winning projects can turn into unlivable places and that less attractive ones can be wonderful places to live? While the book is valuable, Davis does not address the issue of place-making and community, which many believe is the heart of the affordable housing crisis. William Huchting --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press (June 25, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520208854
• ISBN-13: 978-0520208858
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #413,247 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thorough and thoughtful review of affordable housing design and creation, March 7, 2009

By 

David Hoicka "David Hoicka" (El Paso, Texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Architecture of Affordable Housing (Paperback)

The Architecture of Affordable Housing is a thoroughly researched 208 page book which focuses on affordable housing in the USA, with occasional comparison examples from other countries such as Canada, France, and Italy.

Sam Davis' book has illustrations on most pages, consisting of scores of photographs, building plans, neighborhood plans, 3d schematics, all carefully chosen to illustrate his analyses. He defines affordable housing as `housing that receives direct or indirect financial assistance' such as subsidy, grant, tax credit, or land donation. He compares American affordable housing, with the European concept of `social housing', which `implies that a responsible and humane society has an obligation to assist those of its members who could not otherwise have decent housing.

Sam Davis, a Professor of Architecture at University of California Berkeley, first discusses the function of the architect in affordable housing, as a reformer, a community activist, community development corporations, and discusses various goals and strategies for affordable housing design. Next, he discusses the actual process of creating affordable housing, including the conduct of public meetings, the development process, the `ripple effect' of individual design decisions on other aspects of a program, grassroots activities, building by consensus, planning board meetings, NIMBY, economic financial and political negations to achieve a positive outcome.

Davis next discusses issues regarding creation of affordable housing, such as cost and durability factors, community, site issues, prefabrication issues, contractors, regulations and codes, societal values and expectations for affordable housing. Next, he reviews a variety of affordable housing projects, comparing and contrasting, discussing issues such as density, design, attached or separate, materials and forms, planning for community, `making small seem large', flexibility, ornamentation and detailing, automobiles and pedestrian paths, including several detailed case studies.

In a significant part of the book, Davis rhetorically asks the question, `is affordable housing significant architecture?' and discusses `excellence and affordable housing' with numerous detailed examples, including photographs and plans.

Sam Davis' The Architecture of Affordable Housing, is a significant book for every affordable housing practitioner, and well worth its purchase. Davis has numerous significant thoughts and recommendations which are timely and useful for affordable housing creation.

By David Hoicka