ISA Wins a Merit Award for their Signal House Project

Congratulations to ISA on winning a Merit Award for their Signal House project.

Signal House is a missing middle prototype addressing the nation's shortage of attainable urban housing. The single-stair, walk-up infill building, located less than a block from a key transit hub in Philadelphia's Fishtown neighborhood, fits three units on a modest lot that would more typically be slated for use as a single-family rowhome. An interlocking organization incorporates mezzanine levels and bi-level unit layouts, going vertical as a way to add square footage and livability as well as light, air and views on an otherwise landlocked parcel. 

The building's broader urban context includes a boisterous mix of elevated rail infrastructure, industrial buildings, late-night bars and restaurants, and busy arterial streets. Situated in this visually and sonically loud context, Signal House forms a camouflaged beacon, assertively addressing its surroundings with opaque, industrial black metal cladding rising nearly 70 feet tall, well above its three­story domestically scaled neighbors.

Check out the short video highlighting this project:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU6QdUyV_0s