Sinita Khela, co-housing colonia

this project concerns the transformation of an existing building in the city of antwerp into an affordable co-housing space. co-housing, pr collaborative living is a concept that attempts to offer a solution to the problem of isolation and alienation within society today, seen especially within larger cities. community, social connection and sustainability are driving themes for this design as the space serves to connect inhabitants with one another and through this allow them to garner a sense of involvement with their shared living environment. co-housing tries to recreate the community spirit more typical of the suburbs as neighbours once again actively get to know eachother. alongside private living quarters and outdoor space, co-housers also benefit from a variety of shared common spaces. in this way, they define their own shared living space according to their shared priorities, interests and common ground. it is also smarter and more efficient to co-house, given that many unnecessarily privately owned large or expensive items can be shared without losing their value. the quality of living therefore increases at the same cost as traditional living. on top of all of this, co-living provides a tidy answer to the problem of ever growing density within the city.