| Supported by in-depth field survey, this study attempts to provide an overview of public housing in Guangzhou. The author visited 11 public housing sites in Guangzhou, such has LongGui Garden, GuangDan Garden, and JinShaZhou Garden. To better understand the construction process and the common design of public housing units, the author visited construction sites and took detailed measurements of sample apartment units. The author also conducted interviews with housing applicants to find out their demands and rating of various apartment styles. The author then interviewed successful applicants to learn about their experience after moving in. Finally, the author redid 10 architecture blueprints and compared them to the actual measurements onsite, so as to better understand problems encountered during the construction process.On the other hand, to broaden understanding about the state of public housing in PRC, the author performed actual field studies in Beijing and Hong Kong, whose city planning is comparable to that of Guangzhou. For example, the author visited 7 major public housing districts in Beijing, like Beijing LiJing Garden, ShouKai ChangXin Garden, as well as 22 residential complexes in HK, such as FuAn Garden and GuangYuan Village. The author conducted interviews with residents to find out their opinions on various apartment layouts and general comments of local public housing. During the visit in HK, the author examined 152 figures of public apartment layouts covering 13 complexes, which was found on HK public housing committee’s official website. This exercise was very helpful to gain insight of the design pattern there.Since a finding of this study is that furniture sizes are crucial to apartment design, the author thoroughly examined sizes of common furniture like beds, dressers, sofas, and dining tables being sold at IKEA, WeiJiaSi Plaza, and Taobao mall. The author then performed statistical analyses on 1734 furniture products with 5470 measurements, the results of which were used to set the sizes of furniture modules used in this study.Through learning the history of apartment unit design in China, this study summarizes important factors of considerations that guides the design process. The study then analyzes the pros and cons of current public housing in Guangzhou based on actual field studies. In the meantime, this study analyzes common characteristics of applicant families of public housing in Guangzhou based on current regulations, and summarizes their common needs. Additionally, through excellent understanding of the unique climate and culture of Guangzhou, the author opines on several regional characteristics that Guangzhou apartment should exhibit. Finally, through learning from the design experience of scholars from various regions, along with demand analysis done in the earlier part of the study, as well as Guangzhou government’s guidelines on public housing, this study computes the range of various measurements of Guangzhou public housing unit. From there, design parameters of various functional spaces are calculated and 150 functional space designs are proposed. Through coordinating modeling parameters, the author designed 114 spatial modules, which were used as inputs to create model units of Guangzhou public housing that meet the usability requirements.This paper attempts to achieve the right balance between theories and practices, as well as regional architectural styles and applicants’need. Consequently, the proposed designs of public housing unit meet the usability requirements and applicants’demands. This paper provides useful design data and templates for future developments of Guangzhou public housing, while provides practical parameters and educational material for the academia. To the extent that this paper contributes to the design theories of Guangzhou public housing, it can be used as a great piece of reference for future developments of the field. |
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