The Union Flats
Additional Info
Award Winner : David Baker Architects
Architectural Excellence : The Union Flats brings 243 modern homes—including 40 flexible live-work lofts—to a transit-oriented site. The building aligns with a public promenade that forms a focal point for its signature features, including a corner art gallery and a towering open-air stair marking the entry. The building has active edges on three sides—on the fourth, a garage buffers homes from the noise of adjacent rail. The lively streetscape features residential stoops and benches along both the promenade and a new street. Flex lofts lining the main boulevard are set back for generous widened sidewalks and patios. Three levels of housing—from studios to two-bedrooms—top the double-height ground floor in a volume visually lifted by textured concrete columns. Homes encircle a central court featuring a pool and green-roofed pavilions housing co-working, lounge, and wellness spaces—and even a dog spa. A broad visual connection through portals from the street reveals glimpses into the inner life of the building.
Cost Energy Effectiveness : The exterior materials were selected for their natural beauty as well as their strength and low maintenance needs. FSC Certified machiche, a durable hardwood, was used to designate residential outdoor spaces. All exterior units are set off by a warm wood facade at the stoop, or above, by a hanging balcony with wood-slat detailing. The unit entries are separated by board-formed concrete fins that add texture to the facade.
All circulation is open-air, from the residential corridors to the entry stair tower to the bridges that connect the housing to the garage. This feature reduces resource use as well as limited conditioned space.
The modules were shipped from the Idaho factory fully finished, complete with kitchen appliances and bathroom fixtures. Once the mods were picked and set in their final position, crews entered the units only for installation of finishes across mate-line openings and to do minor repair of sheetrock, which occasionally cracks during transit.
Design Firm Name : David Baker Architects
Engineering Firm Name : DCI Engineers
Green Building Description : The Union Flats is LEED for Homes Mid-Rise Platinum Certified. The design exceeds California’s already strict energy standard by 23%. The building massing is self-shading, in response to its solar orientation: Recessed balconies line the south facade; to the east and west, articulated bays provide shading while opening homes to light and views. Open-ended corridors promote cross-ventilation. These corridors wrap a five-story garage (244 parking spots, including 16 electric vehicle charging stations) placed at the rear of the site to buffer homes from the noise of the adjacent railroad tracks. Residential units include no-VOC paints, EnergyStar appliances, low-flow fixtures, high-efficiency mini-split heating and cooling, and domestic hot water preheated by rooftop solar-thermal panels. The landscaping features drought-tolerant plantings, a high-efficiency irrigation system, and integrated stormwater treatment, including planted roofs on the courtyard's freestanding amenity pavilions.
Installer Firm Name : Cannon Constructors North
Occupied Date : 8/1/2018
Owner Firm Name : CityView
Production Start Date : 8/1/2013
Project Location City : Union City
Project Location State Name : California
Technical Innovation : This project's 408 modules are “saw boxes”—two identical units built end to end and shipped from the factory as a single box. Once on site, the modules were split apart and set opposite one another across a site-built, double-loaded corridor to form 215 of the 243 new homes.
On the building’s primary facade, the design alternates full-length modules and modules with recessed balconies both horizontally and floor-to-floor to create a “non-stacked” appearance. At the remaining facades, longer- and shorter-length modules were alternated in a more conventional arrangement, resulting in a series of vertical bays.
Responding to the practical need for the wood-framed mods to be protected from ground moisture, we incorporated private residential entry stoops that provide a separation of ground-level units from public realm connect each directly to the sidewalk for engagement and convenience. These connections are a key element in activating the streetscape and surrounding community.
Total Square Feet : 289987