Month: August 2018

WWW.A4ARCHITECT.COM
Project: Development in Kenya, Nairobi.
Client:
Location: Kinanie, Athi River, Machakos County
AUGUST 2018
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This is a project proposal for development on a 5.2 acre parcel of land situated at Kinanie, Machakos County.

GATED COMMUNITY HOUSING
Development has potential for gated community housing construction.
The land can be subdivided into 70 plots each measuring 1/16th acre approximately.
A master plan layout for the whole gated community with land set aside for social amenities such as playing ground and shops can be designed and set aside.
Wide internal roads, minimum 9 meter width, similar to internal roads within Greenpark, Athi river, can be done.

SECTIONAL TITLE OWNERSHIP
Each plot can then be sold under sectional title where a management company registered by land owner and shares are sold to individual house owners.
After all plots are sold and houses constructed according to controlled development architectural drawings, sectional titles can be sought for each individual.
The end result will be a housing estate resembling the one below, Akila Estate, Nairobi.

Return On Investment.
Potential buyers will be attracted by the Kinanie Leather park, people building their retirement homes away from the city and people working in the many industrial operations around Athi River.

Land Sale value for 1/8th acre currently. Kes 1.2m
Land sale value for 1/16th acre after master plan and controlled development documentation. Kes 800,000
Total income from sale of 70 plots=kes 56,000,000
Additional income will come from monthly service charges for supply of water, garbage collection and security.

PHASED CONSTRUCTION
In order to ease the impact of the overall cost of the development it is proposed to carry out the construction in phases to be jointly agreed on with the client. The Phase can be per acre, with a maximum of 5 phases.

COMPETITION
The closest competition will be from the 1/8th PRC plots selling nearby. This is mitigated by the fact that the envisaged plots are smaller, 1/16th , hence much cheaper and more attractive due to the controlled development nature.
https://www.villacarekenya.com/property/154061-KENANIE-PLOT—PRISTINE-HEIGHTS-crm/?utm_source=the-star.co.ke

Prepared By
Francis Gichuhi
www.a4architect.com
+254 721 410684
A4architect.

Buildings constructed next to rivers

According to the urban dictionary a river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river.

Development can drastically affect river banks and channels. Building very close to rivers have an inherent risk of flooding, making development unsustainable at times. development may disrupt river banks either during or after construction. This allows sediment into the river which causes pollution and may change the speed and rate of water flow. This may drastically affect wildlife could lead to flooding and erosion.  Flooding occurs often thing in riverine areas and can have multiple negative effects on people that leave close to the river bank. When Erosion occurs, a good part of the soil might be dragged away into the ocean. Not every home near rivers are vulnerable to flooding, but a majority of them are. It’s all depends on how frequently it occurs and how severe it is. At curtain places a flood may occur once or twice during your life time, but at other river community’s floods can happen almost yearly. areas that floods frequently, will deplete in value and may be left alone, even at the lower prices they will be harder to sell. Dealing with floods is a major inconvenience as your home might be inhabitable for months at a time and your valued possessions may be ruined.

Rivers form natural wildlife passages and development may abstract routes and make it impassable for wildlife. Tree-lined rivers in National Parks are especially important for the movement of some semi aquatic animals. Leaving areas like this means you are more open to welcome dangerous animals that had settled around water filled areas. Animals like snakes and crocodiles are regular visitors.

Some people take advantage of the environment and pollute by dumping trash, or waste in rivers. Some people go as far as disposing sewage in the river rendering it unsafe to use for drinking or washing. Living in a riverine area is a good idea and has a lot of interesting things to make it worthwhile. Besides the enjoyment, you can make extra money by offering rental services to people coming to visit. It’s highly recommended too to have a strong do’s and don’ts to guide people to have an environment well accommodating and safe.

Building by bodies of water may cause you to run into many problems revolving around soil issues, especially when it comes to construction in and around the surface waters such as rivers, streams, lakes and ponds. Most of these issues are related to erosion & sediment control, scour protection, foundation support and groundwater management. The closer you get to water; the more air quality tends to improve. There are exceptions, of course, but this is generally the case. There are few things more fundamental to the health of the human body than clean air. Waterfront buildings usually provide a more peaceful view from the building’s windows and decks. People invest in these places not only for the gorgeous view but other benefits as well. Waterfront lifestyles is simply more outdoorsy. Being outdoors is typically better for the human body than staying indoors for long stretches of time. Waterfront gated communities often have walking trails and pedestrian-friendly option that makes it simpler.

“A good financial portfolio is diverse and includes some real estate. Any investment involves risk, of course, but generally real estate in waterfront communities appreciates over the long haul. There is only so much land available near the water and the laws of economics reveal that when a desirable resource is limited, it goes up in price more steadily. To test if this is true, choose a waterfront neighborhood that intrigues you, and ask a real estate professional what the cost of a home was there 30 years ago compared to now. Then, compare that rate of change with other neighborhoods that are similar except not near the water. Additionally, compare the rate of change with other types of investments” info  provided by https://www.lifestylesandproperties.com/resources/waterfront-home

Two story Earthbag house

Earthbag houses are a cheap alternative housing method that are created by filling bags with earth materials. These bags are made out of three main element earth, tubular bags and barbed wire. These are mostly done by the people planning on moving in, which unfortunately is very manually demanding. when adding a floor plan to earth bag house construction plans should be added when putting up multiple levels especially; It is not recommended to put more than two stories when building an Earthbag house they need to be carefully designed to consider the special requirements.

Despite two story Earthbag houses being discouraged it doesn’t mean they can’t be build, but the engineering required to build may be very complicated and some may require a cement foundation. Earthbags can be made up of an any type of soil but knowing the different compositions and mixtures of soil could help, curtain types of composition could provide stronger walls and may also provide more stability, builder primarily use a mix of clay and sand, the clay acts as a glue to hold the sand together while the loose and gritty particles from the sand provide stability. Coarse, jagged sand helps the other sand by giving it multiple sections to adhere to the clay. No matter the mixture, topsoil should not be used. Debris found in topsoil may decompose and weaken the structure.

Two story Earthbag houses are available on the internet ranging from about $200-$400, although those are basic floor plans as they recommend the user to seek advice from a constructer or engineer. These plans do not come with electrical wiring and plumbing setup. Looking at different two story Earthbag houses most of the blue prints for sale have a theme and give it a netter overall aesthetic, the houses have multiple levels and are fairly big; some are used as shelters when if an incident occurred e.g. tsunami and earthquakes

The bottom floor is split into section with some of walls containing thinner layers and supported by a wooden frame or a cement layer used as the plaster because of how strong cement is. The houses do not commonly have as many rooms upstairs although the space is similar, with even some houses only having bedrooms upstairs.

When constructing a two story Earthbag you may run into a few difficulties besides construction, because it is not widely known or used, dealing with building officials like banks and insurers may be difficult. Despite the integrity being tested it is not included in the building codes in most places except in the city of Hesperia and in San Bernardino County in California, thanks to architect Nader Khalili’s work with local building officials.

Earthbag houses in south America
Earthbag houses are a cheap alternative housing method that are created by filling bags with earth materials. These bags are comprised of three main element earth, tubular bags and barbed wire. Different regions fill the bags with different or additional materials e.g. in Colombia earth bags are filled with plastic as well as the earth materials because plastic does not degrade for thousands of years, it is covered with adobe or plaster so that the plastic does not offgas or degrade.

Adobe is “essentially a dried mud brick, combining the natural elements of earth, water, and sun. It is an ancient building material usually made with tightly compacted sand, clay, and straw or grass mixed with moisture, formed into bricks, and naturally dried or baked in the sun without an oven or kiln.” (source from https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-adobe-sustainable-energy-efficient-177943) In the Philippines long sandbags add stability, but using barbed wire between layers of shorter sand bags, is also fine.

It takes much longer to fill the long bags than the short ones. Building with earth materials is an ancient practice that has been updated recently to accommodate modern living. The earth bag method was created by an Iranian architect called Nader Khalili. It is at the low cost of $28 a square foot, the low cost is complimented by a gentle environmental impact, making it a promising solution for low income Areas.

Khalili was working in Iran creating adobe houses in Iran’s country side teaching villagers how to make their home, however when he came to the United States of America, he realized that adobe homes weren’t always practical but the earth elements could still be used. Khalili soon created supeadobe which was made by stacking sandbags on top of each other like they were bricks and using barbed wire as a type of mortar; he was asked by Nasa to create a housing method that would require minimal amount of materials.

Earthbags can be made up of an any type of soil but knowing the different compositions and mixtures of soil could help, curtain types of composition could provide stronger walls and may also provide more stability, builder primarily use a mix of clay and sand, the clay acts as a glue to hold the sand together while the loose and gritty particles from the sand provide stability. Coarse, jagged sand helps the other sand by giving it multiple sections to adhere to the clay. No matter the mixture, topsoil should not be used. Debris found in topsoil may decompose and weaken the structure.

When creating the Earthbags, the Bags should be filled on-site, right before they are placed. Earthbags can be filled in many ways e.g. As the walls get higher, bags could be lifted in place partially filled and then finished by handing up cans of dirt.

As bags are filled, they can be sewed closed with a twine, but this isn’t essential. some builders have constructed bag stands that hold a big bag upright, that way person can shovel soil into it. An alternative would be to place the open end of the bag, folded in with neat corners, against the sealed end of the adjoining bag. Tightly placing the bags keeps them closed and ensures the wall’s structural strength. Bags should be placed where the bags on the previous row meet so that they are covered by the bags on the subsequent row, just like brickwork. After a row of bags has been laid, the tamper presses the bags down into place.

This keeps the earth from shifting and keeps each layer level. The compression also forces the dirt inside the Earthbag to become a solid self-supporting form, that way if a bag was to be removed, the dirt wall would still stand. Between each layer of bags one or two strands of barbed wire is placed along the top of the row to hold the next row of bags in place. Even if the barbed wire pokes a hole in the bag, the tamping of the dirt ensures that the wall remains solid; the barbed wire may cause holes but large holes can be patched using duct tape. Ounce complete the wall should be plastered as soon as possible to avoid exposure to the sun for long periods of times

When constructing an Earthbag you may run into a few difficulties, because it is not widely known or used, dealing with building officials like banks and insurers may be difficult. Despite the integrity being tested it is not included in the building codes in most places except in the city of Hesperia and in San Bernardino County in California, thanks to architect Nader Khalili’s work with local building officials. Still, even if a bank is interested, there might be other difficulties.

Because Earthbag houses are rare, it is difficult in many areas to find a similar home. Banks use evaluated values of comparable homes to set a base value for the loan applicant’s home. If there are comparable homes, but haven’t been on the market in the past six to nine months, then they can’t be used as comparable values. If an appraiser can’t determine the value of the home, then banks can’t give the money to the person to build or buy the house.

When working with Earthbags you should look at these qualities
Can it stand a large amounts of pressure without stretching or breaking
Cheap for common use
How long will it last without degrading, especially when covered or protected by plaster
Earth bag are the newest form of green architecture made up of many pros and cons, the cons are mainly due to the hard labor that a person has to do putting the house together and unless you have friends and/or willing to help out it will take a long period of time, strenuous to your body or will be expensive to hire workers to do it for you.