Studio 804 is a design/build program at the University of Kansas School of Architecture and Urban Planning.  As a final, single semester comprehensive experience, Studio 804 provides students with critical knowledge that prepares them for their future work as young architects in a rapidly changing and challenging profession.  The vehicle used for this exhaustive experience is the design and development of an affordable building during which students explore and develop architectural solutions which promote efficiency, sustainability, and creative us of materials.

Increasing efforts to reclaim forgotten and blighted neighborhoods have provided impetus for creating an affordable prefabricated architecture, accessible to the owners in cost and aesthetic while consciously engaging the pre-existing context of the neighborhood.  We remain committed towards continued research and development into affordable and innovative housing solutions while striving to elevate the degree of design aptitude and urban planning strategies into inexpensive housing options.

We are currently working on our tenth building.

Our goal is to provide students with an experience encompassing all aspects of the design and construction process, from working with building code and zoning officials, hiring third party inspectors to communicating with engineers and neighborhood associations, signing contracts, doing estimates and driving nails. 

The primary focus of this exploration imbues the educational experience as a means to provide affordable buildings within marginal neighborhoods.  The urban residential crisis in Kansas City, Kansas demands that our work be a part of the renewal of the city.  Building in these neighborhoods helps reinforce the climate for positive change within the city through the language of modern architecture. Recently we have responded to the needs of Greensburg, KS, devastated by a tornado in May of 2007.

All aspects of the building process, with the exception of the licensed trades (electric, plumbing, and heating/air conditioning), are carried out by the students over the course of a single semester.  This includes everything from initial design to finished construction and documentation.   

In an effort to work as expeditiously as possible, we employ methods of prefabrication, building in modular units in Lawrence and shipping the final product to its final destination.  This process limits construction waste, requires unique design solutions, and most importantly, allows students to continue to live in Lawrence throughout the process. 
 
The result of this intense five month period provides the community with an affordable building while furthering the students' knowledge and experience in applicable professional architectural and building practices.