Untapped density: site design and the proliferation of suburban multifamily housing

Suburban multifamily housing is an often overlooked housing typology that is the fastest growing housing market in the United States and holds strong potential for achieving smart growth goals in suburbia. This paper focuses on understanding the roots of suburban multifamily site design and development. Through case studies of suburban multifamily development in Oregon, Arizona, Florida, and Massachusetts, this paper looks at the specific ways in which regulation, typical development practice, and design culture have shaped the current pattern of suburban multifamily development. It then proposes ways in which current planning, development, and design practices might shift in order to take advantage of this growing housing trend to create multi‐modal, more livable, and less congested suburban communities.

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