Residential Building: The Latest Architecture and News

A week of architecture news has highlighted the growing connections between environmental change, public systems, and the evolving role of architectural practice. Extreme weather events in different regions have drawn attention to the vulnerability of settlements, infrastructure, and territorial networks, while new approaches to housing demonstrate how changes in procurement, construction, and governance can influence architectural outcomes. At the same time, the recognition of established practitioners points to the lasting impact of architectural ideas across generations, as the profession continues to engage with questions of resilience, systemic change, and the broader conditions shaping the built environment.

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Contemporary housing architecture faces the pressing demands of the global housing deficit and growing urban populations. In architectural practice, we see recurring experimentation with new forms of collective living, taking on the task of offering spaces for personal, family, and community development. The six unbuilt projects presented here show us different facets of the decision to densify: the relationship with pre-existing and planned nature, the availability of urban or suburban land, the development of complementary intermediate spaces that support collective life and ease the experience of density, the replicability of densification models, and the relationship with the neighborhood that accommodates population growth.

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The Martin, a residential building designed by OMA's David Gianotten and Mariano Sagasta, has been completed in Amsterdam's Bajes Kwartier. Located within the Central Cluster of the 7.5-hectare redevelopment, the project is the latest completed component of OMA's master plan to transform the former Bijlmerbajes prison complex, which operated between 1978 and 2016, into a mixed-use, energy-neutral neighborhood. The completion follows that of The Jay in 2025, while a third residential building, The Cardinal, is expected to be finished in 2030.

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Studio Libeskind, in collaboration with HJ Design Partners and Seoul-based SAMOO Architects & Engineers, has designed a new high-density residential development in Seoul, South Korea. The Daechi Ssangyong 1 Redevelopment Project replaces an existing five-building, 630-unit complex in Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, with six new residential towers up to 49 storeys tall and nearly 1,000 housing units. The project is being developed for the Daechi Ssangyong 1 Redevelopment Union by Samsung C&T, with construction expected to begin in 2027 and be completed in 2030.

The context of the ongoing war marks Ukraine's place in the international consciousness. Architecture, however, most often transcends the span of a human life and can therefore be a tool for imagining the future. The practice of architectural design, whether speculative, conceptual, or practical, serves as a means of bringing to life ways of living and interacting beyond our current realities. In this selection of conceptual projects submitted by ArchDaily readers, we see material, spatial, and symbolic strategies that seek to address contemporary contexts in the residential, educational, and commercial sectors.

As the line of conflict has been relatively static since late 2023, Ukrainian cities continue to be subject to new architectural and urban development projects. In this article, we have compiled a selection of unbuilt projects in the cities of Vinnytsia, Lviv, and Kyiv. The selection includes residential, commercial, and mixed-use architectural designs, as well as an educational complex. Two residential projects have also been designed as prototypes without a specific location, as a potential response to the loss of infrastructure and unstable conditions in the region.

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Henning Larsen, in collaboration with KHL Architects & Planners, Arup, and Flaviano Capriotti Architetti, has proposed the design for a 14-story residential building in Taipei for Continental Development Corporation. The project, titled Northern Lights, has a gross floor area of 3,464 square meters and is scheduled for completion in 2029. Situated adjacent to Daan Park, the development includes 46 residences and is positioned within a dense urban environment while maintaining proximity to one of the city's primary green spaces, which is described as a key contextual reference in the design.

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OMA's Metropolitan Village, also known as Taipei Xinyi–Wenchang Residence, is a new high-rise residential tower located in Taipei's Xinyi Central Business District. The project, led by David Gianotten and Chiaju Lin, with HCCH & Associates Architects Planners & Engineers as local collaborator, provides 11,961 m² of residential floor area on a 736 m² site. The 95 m, 23-storey building follows the concept of a "vertical village," reflecting the increasingly fluid boundary between living and working identified by the architects in post-pandemic Taipei. Commissioned by Continental Development Corporation, the project broke ground in 2024 and is scheduled for completion in 2027. Recent images show construction progress, with the highest structural element now being installed.

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Heatherwick Studio has unveiled the first images of the design for the transformation of the Daegyo Apartments in Yeouido, Seoul. The project, the firm's first residential project in South Korea, was presented by Thomas Heatherwick to the Yeouido Daegyo Residents' Union at a meeting of their General Assembly on February 28, 2026. The development was first announced in mid-2025 as a community-led residential redevelopment, with the studio remaining involved throughout all phases of the project from concept to completion. The design is set to transform four residential buildings from 1975, aiming to establish a distinctive and appealing character, distinct from the average apartment building in Seoul.

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This week's news landscape brought together diverse approaches to built and cultural heritage, ranging from the design of a Museum of Jesus' Baptism at a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Jordan to major transformations of modern industrial sites and the development of major cultural districts. The World Monuments Fund's support for 21 locally led heritage projects foregrounds conservation strategies that reinforce the role of architecture in safeguarding both material and intangible heritage. Across this week's highlighted projects, adaptive reuse, landscape integration, and the reconfiguration of civic space emerge as recurrent strategies for extending the life and relevance of existing built environments. The projects also reflect broader contemporary concerns, including material research in timber construction, zero-waste urban installations, large-scale residential efficiency, and infrastructure upgrades linked to global events like the Olympic Games. Framing these developments within a wider territorial perspective, discussions on relocating capital cities worldwide offer an example of how geopolitical discourses continue to shape architecture, revealing the evolving relationship between the built environment and structures of power over time.

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Moscow-based architecture, urban design, and research practice Meganom is nearing completion of its residential skyscraper at 262 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, New York City. Designed for client Five Points Development, the project dates back to 2015 and brings together an international team that includes Norm Architects as interior architect, SLCE Architects as architect of record, and untitled architecture overseeing architectural supervision and project management. Rising 860 feet over 52 stories, the tower contains 26 residential units within approximately 140,000 square feet and draws conceptual inspiration from aeronautics, envisioning apartments as elevated "shelves" that frame expansive views of the city.

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Timpaan, Blauwhoed and White Arkitekter, together with SeARCH, Space&Matter, Atlas Architects and DS Land Landschapsarchitecten, have been selected for the proposed development of The Erven, a timber-based neighbourhood planned for Hoofddorp in the Amsterdam metropolitan region. The winning proposal forms part of a major phase of the Lincolnpark area and outlines approximately 519 homes designed around four courtyards, or erven, inspired by the traditional Dutch farmstead.

The City of Rotterdam, developers BPD and Synchroon, and architecture firm MVRDV have officially begun construction on The Sax, a major residential project located on Rotterdam's Wilhelminapier. Designed to contribute to the city's ongoing densification efforts, the development will deliver 916 apartments within two interconnected towers. Once completed, The Sax will make Wilhelminapier the most densely populated area in the Netherlands, making the project an example of compact urban growth. The design comprises two towers, combining a wide mix of housing types and shared amenities with strong connections to public transport and sustainable mobility solutions, including parking for 1,800 bicycles and a fully automated car garage. With its silver façade and undulating balconies, the building's form echoes the shape of a saxophone, reflecting the character of Rotterdam.

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Sierra Blanca Estates, a real estate development firm, has officially announced plans to build a new residential neighborhood in the coastal city of Málaga, Spain. According to the developers, the proposal is intended to address the city's growing demand for housing in the capital of the Andalucía autonomous community, located along the Mediterranean Sea in the southern Iberian Peninsula. The new neighborhood is planned for the El Bulto area and would include a 21-storey building designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.

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MVRDV has released images of "Out of the Box", a 12,025 sqm residential tower in Tianmu, one of Taipei's northernmost neighborhoods. Designed for Win Sing Development Company, the project began in 2019 and was developed using a system of standardized elements digitally distributed based on criteria such as habitability, efficiency, and access to community services. These elements are expressed in the tower's irregular, gridded façade, which features a layered marble cladding.

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Architecture evolves, particularly in how it reflects the relationships between people, their behavior, and the environment. Even subtle variations in these dynamics can influence how we think and live in our communities. According to the World Bank, 56% of the population currently lives in urban environments, and it is estimated that by 2050 this number will reach 70%. This projection echoes the speed and magnitude of urban growth, posing challenges for architects and design firms, from the viability of buildings to the sustainability of the built environment, encompassing residential architecture and other typologies that influence daily life.

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Architects from all over the world are invited to participate in the "Best House in the World" competition, a new international contest designed to discover and reward innovative residential architectural designs that have not yet been built and are still in development. The inHAUS brand, with the sponsorship of Geberit, Porcelanosa, Schüco, Joquer and S&P, presents the challenge of industrialized construction for the most daring and creative projects. These are real projects, with actual clients and real plots, designed by architects striving to achieve new standards of excellence and quality in their residential constructions. Dare to challenge the innovative off-site construction system by inHAUS!

The housing crisis, the need for effective land management policies, and the growing demand for housing aid are global challenges, and Spain has taken significant steps to address these issues in recent years. While this effort is closely tied to rehabilitating obsolete buildings, it also tackles the challenges of densification and gentrification. These factors have prompted the exploration of new housing models and ways of living, leading to the development of affordable residential buildings designed to accommodate large numbers of inhabitants while maintaining high-quality living standards.

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Architecture firm SO – IL has revealed plans for a new residential condominium project planned for Brooklyn's Fort Greene neighborhood. Named 144 Vanderbilt, the development offers 26 condominiums and amenities spanning almost 90,000 square feet. According to SO – IL, the architecture takes cues from Brooklyn's historical heritage, while incorporating a modern twist, as the staggered building prioritizes community interactions and comfortable urban living.

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