HOUSE by Shigeru Ban will consist of a 332-unit, 12-story condominium totaling 500,000 SF of residential and 50,000 SF of retail area.
The 2.86-acre site is in the community-rich neighborhood of Buena Vista in Miami, minutes away from the Design District and Wynwood.
The neighborhood, historically defined by single-family homes, is undergoing densification. To blend with the existing fabric, this design dematerializes the building’s mass through stacked “boxes” that step in and out, breaking up the façade massing.
Typical urban living consists of large-scale apartment buildings with repetitive and indistinct units that have no sense of individuality. HOUSE transforms this typical model by breaking down the large building mass into smaller scale units (“boxes”) that alternate between wood and glass, and stagger in and out, creating a varied façade that gives distinction to each unit.
Every apartment has its own unique terrace, many have trees and lawns, giving residents the feeling of living in a house with a yard. Looking up at the building from the street, residents can identify that their own home (unit) looks different from their neighbors’, giving them a sense of uniqueness and pride in their home.
To increase a sense of well-being through biophilic elements, the building has an abundance of plants, natural materials such as wood cladding and stone floors, and natural light inside the units.
Amenities including Community Gardens, Outdoor Pools, an Edible Garden, Community Kitchens, Gym, and Spa bring people together in a natural setting.
The façade showcases the biophilic design vision by maximizing the use of natural materials and green landscaping throughout the interior and exterior of the building.
The building cores consist of board-form concrete, expressing the wood formwork’s pattern and texture in concrete, which harmonizes visually with the wood veneer façade cladding.
The building structure is formed with an innovative and sustainable method that incorporates the wood formwork as the final interior finish. Traditional methods discard the formwork after each use, leading to extensive material and energy waste.
Approximately 35,000 SF of solar panels are arranged on a light-frame trellis structure on the rooftop, providing renewable energy and shading for the amenity spaces below. The extensive balconies and façade projections naturally shade the windows, reducing solar gain and glare.
Category:Multi-Family HousesYear:2025Location:Dade County, Florida, USAArchitects:Shigeru Ban ArchitectsDesign Team: Shigeru Ban, Dean Maltz, Benjamin Albertson, Ana Hernandez, and Haolan LuoGeneral Contractor:Moss & Associates LLC.Client: Yakol Capital PartnersPhotographer: Courtesy of the Architects
