{"id":398324,"date":"2025-09-04T22:01:17","date_gmt":"2025-09-04T22:01:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/398324\/"},"modified":"2025-09-04T22:01:17","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T22:01:17","slug":"loha-co-living-building-adds-much-needed-density-to-west-los-angeles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/398324\/","title":{"rendered":"LOHA co-living building adds “much-needed density” to West Los Angeles"},"content":{"rendered":"

Living units have been arranged around a central courtyard<\/a> in Barrington 1503, a residential project by California<\/a> studio LOHA that was designed to skilfully address the “complexities of communal living<\/a>“.<\/p>\n

For a rectangular site in West Los Angeles, the studio designed a complex that consists of four distinct but connected volumes totalling 24,200 square feet (2,248 square metres).<\/p>\n

Facades are clad in charcoal-coloured aluminium<\/a> panels and raked plaster.<\/p>\n

\"BarringtonLiving units are arranged around a central courtyard in Barrington 1503<\/p>\n

The four-level complex offers 79 private bedrooms \u2013 spread across 18 apartments \u2013\u00a0along with shared spaces for cooking, dining and lounging.<\/p>\n

According to LOHA<\/a>, the project introduces “much-needed density” to a neighbourhood that is filled with college students and new residents. The University of California, Los Angeles campus and Santa Monica College are located in the area. A more typical development would have accommodated far fewer residents, said LOHA<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Communal living projects offer an “essential and viable alternative” to the traditional housing models in Los Angeles<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"WhiteDappled light falls upon the site’s network of exterior corridors and stairs<\/p>\n

“Los Angeles faces dramatic increases in the cost of living, further exacerbated by the overwhelming prevalence of single-residence homes,” said LOHA.<\/p>\n

“The co-living model is growing rapidly, driven by increasing demand for affordable housing and a stronger sense of connection among residents.”<\/p>\n

\"WhiteThe stairs are lined with white railings<\/p>\n

Barrington 1503 was designed to offer a mix of social and private spaces, with layered transitions between the two realms.<\/p>\n

“At the heart of Barrington 1503’s design is the concept of a spatial social gradient,” the team said.<\/p>\n

“As underscored by the Covid-19 pandemic, the success of co-living depends on skillfully balancing shared community spaces with well-defined private areas.”<\/p>\n

\"KitchenEach of the building’s 18 apartments contains a kitchen<\/p>\n

The building reads as a cube that was carved up to form the four volumes, which vary in size and shape. The volumes are set around a central courtyard that is open to the sky and ushers in sunlight.<\/p>\n

Dappled light falls upon the site’s network of exterior corridors and stairs<\/a>, which are lined with white railings and connect the four volumes. These circulation elements facilitate both movement and social interaction.<\/p>\n

\"BarringtonBarrington 1503 is open to all types of residents, not just students<\/p>\n

“These pathways are more than just thoroughfares,” the team said. “They are spaces of connection, allowing for chance encounters and fostering an organic sense of community.”<\/p>\n

Each of the building’s 18 apartments contains a kitchen, living space, and either four or five bedrooms. There are between two and four bathrooms in each unit. All units come furnished.<\/p>\n

\"LOHA-designedLOHA used various tactics to distinguish between public and private realms in the apartments<\/p>\n

The bedrooms range in size, from approximately 104 to 130 square feet (9.6 to 12 metres). Each comes with a full-sized bed, although a queen-sized bed could fit in most of the rooms, according to LOHA.<\/p>\n

While the units will likely be attractive to students, the building is open to all types of residents.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Bedrock<\/p>\n

LOHA, Studio Dwell and more complete 23-building neighbourhood in Detroit\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

The units stray from the typical rental apartment in a couple of ways.<\/p>\n

First, they come with more bedrooms than are commonly found in a conventional apartment in America. Second, a tenant rents an individual room and is then paired up with roommates. In a more conventional context, tenants band together to rent a full apartment, rather than renting individual rooms.<\/p>\n

\"StaircasesThe complex’s design is meant to serve as a model for future co-living projects<\/p>\n

The architects used various tactics to distinguish between public and private realms in the apartments.<\/p>\n

In the living rooms, sliding doors and windows open toward the inner courtyard, providing a connection to the building’s social life. In contrast, bedroom windows were placed along perimeter walls and look out toward the city.<\/p>\n

\"Charcoal-colouredFacades are clad in charcoal-coloured aluminium panels and raked plaster<\/p>\n

Interior finishes include plywood<\/a> cabinetry and wooden floors. The team used colour tones to signal transitions between public and private zones.<\/p>\n

“A soothing sage green coats the kitchens and living areas, evoking lightness and tranquility, while the hallway walls darken as they lead to the bedrooms \u2013\u00a0subtly signaling a transition into more restful, intimate spaces,” the team said.<\/p>\n

Overall, the complex’s design is meant to serve as a model for future co-living projects.<\/p>\n

“The project thoughtfully addresses the complexities of communal living, providing an environment that supports both interaction and solitude in equal measure,” the studio said.<\/p>\n

“Barrington1503 not only embraces the promise of co-living but brings it to life with architectural precision, creating a model for 21st-century urban housing that is as functional as it is inspiring.”<\/p>\n

Other co-living projects in America include a complex near Hollywood by Bittoni Architects<\/a> that is clad in white stucco and contains 23 bedrooms, and a pale pink building in Massachusetts<\/a> that contains 30 units and a host of shared amenities.<\/p>\n

The photography is by Eric Staudenmaier<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Project credits:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Architect:<\/strong> Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects (LOHA)
LOHA team:<\/strong> Lorcan O’Herlihy (principal-in-charge), Brian Adolph (project director), Nicholas Muraglia (team lead), Kenji Hattori-Forth (project team)
Client:<\/strong> Rize Alliance<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Living units have been arranged around a central courtyard in Barrington 1503, a residential project by California studio…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":398325,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3939],"tags":[137487,4021,4020,557,137489,130551,4022,77,6333,137488,556,126129,126130,16,15,659],"class_list":{"0":"post-398324","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-aluminium","9":"tag-arts","10":"tag-arts-and-design","11":"tag-california","12":"tag-co-living-and-co-housing","13":"tag-courtyards","14":"tag-design","15":"tag-entertainment","16":"tag-housing","17":"tag-loha","18":"tag-los-angeles","19":"tag-sectionall","20":"tag-sectionarchitecture","21":"tag-uk","22":"tag-united-kingdom","23":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115148285889741910","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/398324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=398324"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/398324\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/398325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=398324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=398324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=398324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}