The Suburban Riad

The Moroccan Riad turns the domestic architecture of the West inside out and upside down - literally. Where say in the typical US suburban house to look out the window is to look at one's neighbors, in the Riad the windows look out into an internal courtyard. Where in the typical US suburban house if there is an outdoor living area it is usually found in the back and on the ground, in the Riad the outdoor space is concentrated above, in a rooftop terrace.

VRT believes the Riad style dwelling has great potential for markets in the US where land has become ever scarcer in and around cities. In Los Angeles the average price per acre is 2.6 million according to a 2017 Bloomberg article. The same article states that the average price per acre in Miami is 1.7 million. The Riad offers excellent space to footprint ratios. For those who want to live in or near cities in spacious, comfortable quarters and with nice sized outdoor living the Riad might just be the ticket. VRT has drawn up plans for a cluster of riads on minimal lots - where side and rear setbacks have been eliminated in order to minimize lot size. In a future design, where land is not at such a premium, VRT plans to draw up a RIAD development where the units are positioned around an indoor garden.

As shown the lot footprint for each unit is around 96' deep, 37' wide or around 3,550 sq ft. This works out to around 12 units per acre. For Los Angeles this translates into a lot cost of $216,000.00 - high but manageable. For Miami

this translates into a lot cost of $141,000.00. - again high but manageable. If basements are included each unit

has on the order of 2,700 sq ft of basement for storage, utilities, and mechanicals, 2,700 sq ft of living and dining space, around 2,000 sq ft for bedrooms and baths, and 2,700 sq ft of deck space on the roof. The driveway parks 2 cars and the garage another 2.