Three Up

There is a design for modern apartment living in the San Fernando Valley that has been scientifically engineered to be the best and most efficient use of space that will provide satisfying living to the residents contained within. Or it’s just comparatively cheap to build.

The three up is my term for the bog-standard repetitive 3 story new developments that dot the landscape north of Ventura Blvd and south of Victory. They’re so common I can only imagine the plans are available on some free website or at the library. Download the CAD for nothing and get to work.

Each shares a similar architectural feel. Rising three stories high. Not with any sort of great ceiling height within the spaces. Car parks on the bottom floor, cut out from under what will be kitchen living on the first floor. Next to the car park is the entrance way. The remainder of the ground floor usually given to laundry. A washer dryer setup can be considered a form of luxury in these parts.

Each floor contains a balcony. Juliet style. This is not the type of balcony that you set up a big green egg on and get to smoking foods to your heart's content. This is more a balcony to provide extra support to residents yelling at people on the street. Good for a brief tirade. For any further gusto you’re going to have to come downstairs.

Two more stories of bedrooms and other living arrangements. I cannot fault the size. While there are a lot of steps to climb, the number of rooms that can fit is impressive. I have to give it up to the design.

Another beauty in the plan is that these units are specifically designed to fit a maximum number of dwellings into a relatively small area. The Valley has been famous for single family homes. In the space that one of these post-WW2 family compounds would have taken you can fit three 3-ups, both containing two individual dwellings. Conservatively, 3 bed 3 bath. That’s six unique units with the potential for 18 residents living in the space that used to be occupied by one happy family of 5. I do believe the math tells us that those numbers are roughly keeping up with population growth. The problem with this math is that there are not enough of these higher density units being built.

This is an interesting thought in itself because it seems like little is getting built BUT these units. They are everywhere. Everywhere that I walk at least. Dotting the landscape. Little boxes. But big. And not on a hillside. And we all know that it’s not what’s on the outside that counts.