As part of the Region of Durham’s commitment to rapidly address housing issues while providing affordable, innovative and sustainable residences, the Durham Modular Supportive Housing project will deliver 47 self-contained bachelor suites in the town of Beaverton, completing the entire project in 12 months from design to occupancy.

Utilizing the prefabrication construction process not only allows for an extremely rapid delivery, the off-site, indoor manufacturing of the units ensures that quality control is particularly consistent, while the predictability of design and construction eliminates unforeseen costs, facilitates building assembly and site organization, and reduces waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

The project is divided into two connected buildings tied together through a glazed one-storey link; one volume hosts the residences, while the other, more public volume houses services for the inhabitants as well as the greater community, including a dining space, work rooms, meeting rooms, and wellness support offices. The long sloped roof of the public building bridges the aesthetic connection between the neighbouring single-family homes and the larger multi-unit residence. Outdoor amenity features include an exterior garden, bike storage, tables for dining and basketball hoops.

Located in a rural neighbourhood near Lake Simcoe, the project is inspired by the vernacular architecture of the surrounding context. The sloped roof, dark exterior cladding and light wood accents of the exterior harmonize with the existing built environment. Clad in natural and stained cedar, the project expresses its modular construction through articulating their connective joints, while the interior takes moments to reveal module connections, such as in the two-storey dining space, where the intersection of four steel beams is left exposed. As the project is sited in a beautiful natural setting, openings punctuating the envelope take full advantage of the views of the surrounding greenery.