The Unfinished 1.0

A Prefabricated and Foldable Housing Strategy for California Migrant Farm Workers

Fall 2020 @ USC

Ojai, California

The project speaks up for the disadvantageous migrant farm worker group in Ojai, Central Valley California. It focuses on the individuality of migrant workers by responding to the compact, over-finished while unaffordable modular housing types. The proposal builds up a two way interaction between the site and the city. Daily schedules of different worker types are carefully investigated leading to spatio-temporal relationships that reflect users’ “critical periods” of occupying spaces. Spatial accommodations among neighbors could be achieved to maximize both public and private spaces through movable and customized construction systems. It not only builds a stable and adaptive living environment to encourage the migrant farm workers to settle down with families and actively engaged with the collective community, but also fills the gap of the seasonal growing pattern by introducing new crops and tourist activities.

Analysis Diagram: research on the avocado fields and the housing problems of migrant farm workers

The three systems: fixed, foldable and sliding walls of living units are customized with different users' needs and accommodations are made among neighbors' schedules. During daytime, private spaces are compressed while public spaces are expanded for maximum gathering spaces. Skybridges are created by folding pieces out of the shipping containers, while the remaining voids become skylights and openings. There are also extensive floating platforms for people to interact with each other, so there's a fluid flow between the residential and community spaces.

People use the foldable wall system to expand their public spaces during daytime. They also take advantage of the sliding furniture screens and fabric screens to customize their own spaces. Clear neighbor accommodations are made throughout a day, such as children from family units occupy in the afternoon and workers with a later schedule occupy at night.

Unit configurations

by looking at daily schedules of residents

Site-scale Interventions

The site-spread system provides shading and seating stations for farm workers, so both their living and working environments are improved with the new interventions. They are also extending to the other side of boundaries to build a two-way interaction with adjacent suburban areas. Tourism is boosted with grape plucking and festivals, so the community is still active during fall and winter. It fills the gap of the growing seasons.