Upliving - Student Accommodation

This research proposal looks into the future at an increase in student population, an increase in basic living costs, the looming issues with densification of Wellington City, and its development to the transport infrastructure. The project aims to create accommodation for students going through university while providing a simple and cohesive mode of transport linking the CBD. The biggest motivator for Upliving is Wellington’s great potential for infill buildings in spaces such as cracks between buildings; above roads; atop buildings; underutilised areas within an urban context; temporarily empty sites awaiting future development; and car parks (particularly with the development of transport infrastructure, eliminating the need for as many vehicles within the city). The development would be funded by universities in collaboration with the city to help compensate for the rising education costs and rising living costs. It will provide better transport within the city, opening up more potential for development with less infrastructure to facilitate the currently high vehicle usage. The goals of the architecture are to accommodate students, maintain a minimal building footprint, effectively use circulation spaces to minimise an inclination to damage of property, create flexible spaces, maintain a simple structure for rapid construction, provide active communal spaces, establish connections to university campuses, generally link the Wellington’s CBD, use underutilised spaces, and maintain a contemporary identity that blends into the urban context. There are many aspects involved in this research portfolio, including the notion of research by design through the use of an in-depth iterative process, precedent investigations, client/occupant research, detailed design explorations of large and small scales, an outcome, and a critical reflection highlighting possible changes and a direction for further development.