Prefab box apartments to be built on Paris’ rooftops

A French architect plans to build prefab apartments on top of existing buildings in Paris. Aside from being eco-friendly, these properties would cost 40% less than market price.

French architect Stéphane Malka wants to solve the housing crisis by creating prefab apartments and placing them on top of existing property in Paris. Nestled on top of buildings and thus involving no land plot or ground acquisition costs, this new housing would cost 40% less than market price, according to Malka.

Dubbed “democratic houses” by their creator, these box-like housing units could soon be adorning Parisian rooftops. Not only are these apartments eco-friendly and built from recyclable materials, their installation — which involves assembling them from prefabricated kits — would also be quicker and much less disruptive than regular construction.

Obtaining building rights would also be fairly easy, Malka explains, they would be granted in exchange for the renovation of the existing building’s common areas. He also describes the units as “modular systems” that can be adapted to suit each resident’s needs.

Malka wishes to build the first instance of this project along the iconic Canal Saint-Martin in the 10^th arrondissement, as an example of what the project might look like across the capital. As per the above image released by the architect, the three example apartments are designed to fit in the empty space on top of a corner building on the Quai de Valmy.

Much like a life-size game of Tetris, prefab housing units could be stacked on top of buildings or fitted into crevasses above and between existing structures across Paris. According to Malka this would help fight urban sprawling which in his opinion “kills the social link” of a city.

Photo credit: Stéphane Malka Architecture