TechPractices are outstanding housing projects throughout the U.S. where innovative technologies are implemented. Builders and remodelers can use these examples as models for projects of their own.
| West of Pennsylvania Snapshot |
| Location: |
Brooklyn, New York |
| Builder: |
East Brooklyn Congregations (EBC) |
| Project Scope: |
800 units, single-family attached rowhouse |
| Price: |
Average unit base: $71,000 |
| Financing: |
Not-for-profit development, interest-free construction loans
provided by EBC revolving trust, city subsidy |
| Innovations: |
Modular Development, 18-foot width fully-finished trucked to site.
Steel frame with ½-inch rigid insulation thermal break. 85% less site
work than typical modular. |
Summary
This is a story of an inner-city neighborhood solving its housing
shortage through technology and careful planning. In a tight housing
market where many residents spend a good share of their income
on rent, community action sparked by a consortium of church groups
is transforming crime-ridden areas into new neighborhoods. Extra-wide
modular units with steel frames were chosen to cut costs, limit
pilferage, and speed construction with a minimum of site disruption.
Details
West of Pennsylvania and Spring Creek are the two neighborhoods
targeted by East Brooklyn Congregations (EBC) to contain the
next phase of the Nehemiah Homes Plan, which has already built
more than 2,300 homes in Brooklyn. Nehemiah is a program sponsored
by EBC, a non-profit organization representing approximately
60,000 through their churches. EBC also advocates the creation
and improvement of area medical facilities, schools, and businesses.
EBC knew that a small development would be overwhelmed by the
surrounding devastation. To counter this context, EBC planned
to create a "critical mass" of 800 residences as the
first phase of a larger development that will total 1,200 homes.
The basic planning of the homes, a single-family rowhouse concept,
came before the funding and sites were obtained.
With thousands of people on the waiting list for these homes,
EBC scrambled for a contractor and a method that would make it
both possible and affordable. Monadnock Construction, operating
through Capsys, a modular manufacturer, came up with an 18' wide
factory-built home that enables the house to be composed of two
modules instead of four. Modular home units are ordinarily 14 feet
wide or less. They chose steel framing instead of wood for its
light weight, quality control, and cost stability. Steel studs
have a tendency to wick heat away from the interior on cold days,
so an inch of rigid foam insulation is layered on the exterior
side of the studs to insulate them.
Installation/Construction
Capsys makes the modular units. Onsite work is mostly limited
to foundations and utilities. Because sites are grouped together,
sometimes a whole city block of foundations is poured at once.
The homes are completely finished in the Capsys factory, cutting
on-site work to about 15% of that usually performed on-site for
modular construction. Because of their width, the city restricted
movement of the modules through city streets to the wee hours
of the morning.
Benefits/Costs
EBC's activities are funded by the $12 in annual dues collected
from member churches from each one of their congregants. With
a $5 million revolving trust, EBC provides interest-free construction
loans. The city provides the land and pays a $20,000 subsidy for
each unit.
Factory-built housing cuts construction waste and permits greater
quality and scheduling control. The factory's location near the
site reduces shipping costs. The speedy modular construction methods
save at least 5% on building costs, enabling the 1,338 sq. ft.
homes to sell for $71,000, which is 62% of the reported median.
Code/Regulatory
The original site chosen was Spring Creek, but the New York
City government already pledged the city-owned land to Starrett
City for their own housing development, Gateway Estates. EBC successfully
negotiated with the city for control of a large parcel in East
New York and a smaller site at Spring creek.
Feedback
There are 6,000 families on the Nehemiah waiting list. The
activism of a coalition of churches and citizens groups is key
to the development of the blocks. There are many small meetings
between EBC's dynamic "organizers", community leaders,
and members of the community to establish the needs of the neighborhood.
EBC sometimes conducts extensive surveys to determine these needs.
EBC functions as an intermediary between potential homebuyers
and decision makers such as government officials, using its church
leaders to persuade them at critical meetings.
Contact(s)
Do you have a specific question? Try the contacts listed below:
East Brooklyn Congregations (EBC)
124 Sackman St.
Brooklyn, NY 11233
718-498-4095
Monadnock Construction, Inc.
Capsys Corp.
155 3rd St.
Brooklyn, NY 11231
718-875-8160