Modern Sustainable Living for a Working Class Neighborhood
Santa Fe Apartments
Sustainable Affordable Housing Proposal for OHFA Funding Application
Tulsa, OK | 2024
Development Partner: Walterbach Homes
40 Affordable Housing Units
Budget: $8.4 million
Through careful and thoughtful design strategies, this project aims to create a highly attractive and sustainable affordable housing complex to a highly diverse working class neighborhood that is rightly skeptical of any large developments that may result in gentrification, increased cost of living or taxes, etc.
While this neighborhood lacks many typical amenities, it still offers strong proximity to local services and easy connections to bus services, as well as close pedestrian access to local schools, parks, cultural centers, and more. Between these features and a strong need within this particular community for high quality affordable housing options, this site was an ideal candidate for a housing project like this.
This goal of providing high quality housing while maintaining reasonable cost of living in relation to the current local population resulted in a clear set of design priorities and strategies:
Highly efficient building and apartment layouts maximize the usable space for residents while keeping construction costs as manageable as possible
Interplay of exterior massing, materials, and detailing provide a high quality aesthetic with deceptively simple massing, construction strategies, and common materials
Energy efficient design and detailing is prioritized in order to minimize long-term equipment costs as well as resident utility bills
Large windows help efficient apartment spaces feel much larger and more comfortable
Apartment layouts avoid inefficiencies such as dedicated hallway space while still providing spacious kitchens, in-unit laundry, and accessible clearances throughout.
Lee Simon Design supported the development team’s fundraising efforts by creating a series of evocative and info-dense investor presentation decks that highlighted the benefits of this project’s proposed design strategies for owners, operators, and residents alike.