In the SRO I lived in, the hallway on each floor was in a T-shape.
The short hall -- the top of the T -- was for larger units along the front facade of the building with bigger windows and private baths. The long hall was mostly for "dorm" style units with a few one bedroom units in different places and one floor had a shared public kitchen and public living area which saw little use.
I see no reason for a public kitchen area. If you have a kitchen nook in every unit with a deep sink, a small fridge and space for appliances, a household of one to three people has no real need for a full-service kitchen to feed just themselves.
The living area in that building was rarely used by residents. I sometimes went and sat in it while one of my sons cleaned.
The living area was an attractive nuisance and there were frequently homeless people sleeping on the couches in there who got into the secured building somehow. With "sociable" rooftop spaces for residents to use, there is no real reason to devote limited interior space to a gathering room of that sort.
There was a landing space at the front where the stairwell came up so in practice the T-shaped hallway was more like an L shaped hallway plus landing area. The landing area really could have used a bench for residents to set stuff down or wait for someone.
I see no need for that in this building, but the stairwell and elevator area could have a bench on each floor. Then if you are elderly and need a breather before carrying your groceries further or you are wrangling a small child or something, there is a place to do that.
The bottom of the T ended in a doorway to a fire escape. People frequently opened this door in hot weather to create a cross breeze which was a security issue as homeless people routinely hung out in the alleyway below and management took to putting signs on the door about keeping it closed at night and not letting people in.
A door to a fire escape is fine but maybe needs an operable window that will allow a cross breeze without compromising building security.
The bathrooms were down by the fire escape. In my plan, they should be at the other end of the hall near the stairs and elevator to facilitate shared use by all floors.
The short hall -- the top of the T -- was for larger units along the front facade of the building with bigger windows and private baths. The long hall was mostly for "dorm" style units with a few one bedroom units in different places and one floor had a shared public kitchen and public living area which saw little use.
I see no reason for a public kitchen area. If you have a kitchen nook in every unit with a deep sink, a small fridge and space for appliances, a household of one to three people has no real need for a full-service kitchen to feed just themselves.
The living area in that building was rarely used by residents. I sometimes went and sat in it while one of my sons cleaned.
The living area was an attractive nuisance and there were frequently homeless people sleeping on the couches in there who got into the secured building somehow. With "sociable" rooftop spaces for residents to use, there is no real reason to devote limited interior space to a gathering room of that sort.
There was a landing space at the front where the stairwell came up so in practice the T-shaped hallway was more like an L shaped hallway plus landing area. The landing area really could have used a bench for residents to set stuff down or wait for someone.
I see no need for that in this building, but the stairwell and elevator area could have a bench on each floor. Then if you are elderly and need a breather before carrying your groceries further or you are wrangling a small child or something, there is a place to do that.
The bottom of the T ended in a doorway to a fire escape. People frequently opened this door in hot weather to create a cross breeze which was a security issue as homeless people routinely hung out in the alleyway below and management took to putting signs on the door about keeping it closed at night and not letting people in.
A door to a fire escape is fine but maybe needs an operable window that will allow a cross breeze without compromising building security.
The bathrooms were down by the fire escape. In my plan, they should be at the other end of the hall near the stairs and elevator to facilitate shared use by all floors.