La Maison Issue No. 1 | Page 17

September 2016

12

The Micro Trend Gets Big

As tiny homes take over the United States, the trend comes to New York in a new way — micro apartments.

By Aphrodite Takos

Photos courtesy of Cameron Blaylock and Mekko Harjo.

No fear for small budgeters, having a small apartment is now considered chic. Kips Bay’s new Carmel Place, is only the beginning for the micro apartment trend. Though the modular homes have existed for years, the U.S. has only now reached the frontier of a downsized lifestyle.

Located at 355 East 27th Street, Carmel Place is NYC’s first ever micro apartment complex. Apart of Mayor Bloomberg’s initiative to introduce more houses to the market able to accommodate the city’s growing small household population, apartments smaller than 400 square feet were once banned as a safety hazard for immigrants coming to America. Though tenement housing is a thing of the past, the law still stands to protect New York City habitants.