ALLEY
SELF-SUSTAINING NEIGHBORHOOD
Alley is a mixed-use affordable housing complex in Asheville, NC that improves upon traditional subsidized housing and breaks down the social and economic barriers that divide struggling people with their community.
The open path provides a solution for pedestrians and invites them inward. Once invited, visitors are welcomed by commercial spaces that promote donations towards sustaining the Alley. These funds are directed towards housing for residents, allowing those in need to engage in a vibrant living experience that many affordable housing solutions fail to provide.
A community art studio on the ground floor also drives Alley’s economic system. Attached to the cores along the eastern perimeter are largescale, removable murals that are created by local artists and sold in auctions. Proceeds from these sales are funneled back to the residents of the Alley to perpetuate this sustainable loop.
