iLive is the opportunity for people with physical disabilities within the lower-income population to live in Downtown LA in an affordable model which offers coliving and coworking in a friendly and healthy environment that fosters community life. 

“Being part of the community and living as independently as possible are among the most important values and goals shared by people with disabilities, their families, and advocates. A home of one’s own—either rented or owned—is the cornerstone of independence for people with disabilities.”

—The Arc

iLive explores affordable coliving and coworking models to address the needs of people with physical disabilities by adapting existing industrial buildings and implementing artificial intelligence. 

Physically Accessible: Housing and work spaces are designed for singles and couples with physical disabilities, fitting their specific needs and improving the minimum requirements established in the City Code

Economic Independence: iLive offers opportunities to work on-site, allowing the residents to live and work in the same place. iLive admits Section 8, Section 504, Section 811, Housing Choice and Non-Elderly Disabled Vouchers. Sharing living spaces reduces living costs and on-site agriculture generates incomes for residents. 

Affordable for Lower Income Populations: The median earned income of disabled people is less than the half of people who are not, iLive addresses people in Extremely Low Income, Very Low Income and Low-Income categories, providing a new way of living for these more vulnerable sectors. 

Adaptive Reuse: iLive adapts existing industrial buildings located in potential rezoned areas of Downtown Los Angeles. Conversions of industrial warehouses offer an opportunity to locate new developments in current relatively low-cost areas that are strategically located in proximity to commercial and civic centers. This is an opportunity to anticipate the logic of the private market, as these areas will increase their cost values as conversion and land use changes occur. 

Artificial Intelligence: iLive uses AI to locate existing industrial buildings within LA according to the following parameters: one-story buildings within the Industrial Zoned Areas, and within the Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC) ordiance areas. Custom interior floor plans are also generated by AI.

Coliving and Coworking Community: iLive aims to improve the quality of life of the residents by providing private spaces required for personal comfort and needs and by designing shared spaces for community socializing. Social bonds emerge through the participation in shared activities and common spaces. By including coworking, it is feasible for a lower-income population to be included, as it provides an economic opportunity to residents. 

Design: iLive’s design is based on the combination of a set of modular components, which generates the different spaces required, and gives flexibility and possibilities for use. iLive uses artificial intelligence to generate layouts of the component system adapted to individual existing warehouses. 

The flexible component system components adapts to any size, proportion, and scale of building, which generates a wealth of spatial options . Each component is designed to provide natural light, air, and different degrees of privacy. Components define each set of programmatic spaces and accommodate all the required elements for each space: piping, toilets, wet cores, closets, and furniture. 

Aeroponic Vertical Gardening: iLive brings vertical gardening into the heart of the existing warehouses to bring light, air, and green space inside the building—into a coliving and coworking environment. The incorporation of vertical gardening through the aeroponic system makes possible that people with disabilities have the opportunity to work in a communal environment. This is a key factor not only as an economic possibility, but it is also a shared activity which generates a sense of community through coworking and the exchange of responsibilities. Residents will garden with robotic assistance in order to make the job easier.