The past few years have seen universities around the world forced to consider some creative solutions for housing their students due to a shortage of affordable student housing stock. We’ve seen a college in the US consider housing students on a floating river barge, an increased focus on intergenerational living and a surge in home-sharing, to name just a few examples. However, there are many creative student housing projects that have been born out of a desire to focus on sustainability and affordability, or driven by a passion for repurposing existing structures rather than the current housing crisis. Here are five of our favourites:
- Denmark: Urban Rigger
Urban Rigger, located in Copenhagen, Denmark, is a floating student housing complex constructed from repurposed, carbon-neutral shipping containers.
Urban Rigger was designed by BIG|Bjarke Ingels Group with the aim of being able to be replicated in harbour cities with limited space and a need for affordable housing. The first Urban Rigger community now has 72 apartments in Copenhagen Harbour. Urban Rigger’s ‘blocks’ are created by stacking nine shipping containers in a circle which creates twelve 23-30 sqm studio residences around a central courtyard, all resting on a floating platform. Each ‘block’ of containers has three apartments on the ground floor and nine apartments on the first floor.
Students first moved into the first Urban Rigger block in 2016, and since then, new Urban Riggers have been added to the fleet. Click here to take a virtual tour of Urban Rigger.
- Denmark: Jaegersborg Water Tower
A great example of adaptive reuse of a building, the Jægersborg Water Tower, Denmark, serves as both student accommodation and a youth centre. Danish architectural firm Dorte Mandrup Arkitekter was given the job of transforming the top five storeys of the tower into affordable student housing in 2006. Danish Architecture Centre reports that: “to break up the monotony of the tower’s shape, distinctive bay windows were installed on the exterior of the building, creating new geometrical spaces and letting in more light.” Three external terraces were also built to help “disrupt the cylindrical shape”. The refurbished tower includes three communal areas in its centre.
- France: Former French Prison Conversion
A former prison in Grasse, France is being converted into student housing in a project called Néo Campus, The project will create 77 student apartments, ranging from 14–23 m2, spread across two buildings. The former prison will be one of the buildings, and the other will be newly constructed. The apartments will be modern and fully equipped, and some original features of the prison, such as cell doors and railings, will be preserved. The property will also have co-working spaces and communal areas. The project is being developed by MJ Développement in partnership with the Grasse Mairie and architect Gilles Giovenco.
- France: Cite A Docks
Cite A Docks is a unique 4-story student housing project in the city of Le Havre, France, designed by Cattani Architects. Operated by Crous Normandy, the project was born out of a desire to provide environmentally friendly, affordable student housing.
The innovative Cite A Docks complex is made entirely from shipping containers, featuring 100 studio apartments, each with a 24-square-metre area which includes a bathroom and kitchen. Metal walkways connect the buildings.
- Alaska: Flight8MA pilot training school’s Boeing 727 student dorms
What could be more fitting accommodation for student pilots than a Boeing 727 converted into a student pilot lodge? Jon Kotwicki, owner of Flight8MA Pilot Lodge, located in Big Lake, Alaska, first bought a Boeing 727-200 from the University of Alaska Anchorage to repurpose as an educational tool for flight and mechanical students, as well as use for student housing. This was followed by the purchase of a Douglas DC-6, and a DC-9. Kotwicki and his partner have been lovingly restoring the planes, which include a living area, a full kitchen, cosy bedrooms, a spacious bathroom and even a BBQ and outdoor seating on a wing deck!
The Boeing-727 is expected to be completed by the end of this year. The DC-6 restoration is complete and has begun to welcome guests, while the DC-9 is also expected to be available at the end of this year. You can take a full tour of the DC-6 via Jon’s YouTube channel. If you happen to find yourself in the neighbourhood, a stay in Flight8MA’s DC-6 can be booked via Air BnB.
