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15-square-meter social housing units will accommodate up to 7 people. The city’s mayor disputes the criticism. Find out!
The municipal government of a Brazilian city launched a project for tiny social housing units, causing controversy. The homes, measuring 15 square meters, accommodate up to 7 people. The city’s mayor responded to the criticism, attributing the discontent to the “woke left”.
The incident took place in Campinas, São Paulo, where architects criticize the size of the housing units. Keep reading to learn more.
Campinas municipal government introduces tiny social housing units
In response to criticism from renowned architects, Mayor Dário Saadi (Republicanos), on a social media platform, described the situation as “an invention of the woke left, which does nothing for the population and seeks to hinder the work of those who do”.
In total, the project has 116 homes intended for around 450 people who currently live in the Mandela Vive Occupation. The families have occupied this risk area for seven years, on the outskirts of the city, near Viracopos International Airport.
The announcement of the affordable homes came from Cohab, the Popular Housing Company. The proposal is for the tiny dwellings to emerge as a solution for families of different sizes.
Challenge to the 15 m² housing project
In an interview with Folha, PUC Campinas Architecture and Urban Planning professor Fábio Muzetti believes that issues such as sanitation, water supply and energy will improve for families compared to the space currently occupied.
However, the professor emphasizes that the idea of three or more people inhabiting a 15 m² space seems unfeasible.
“These people will continue to live in precarious conditions, only slightly more humanized… They will begin to create ‘additions’ in their own way, disrupting the neighborhood’s urban planning. This triggers a slumification effect,” explains Muzetti.
Amid the questions, inquiries arise about how the investment could be better applied. Eleusina Holanda de Freitas, the architect and urban planner responsible for a housing project in the city in 2010, considers the measure ineffective. She states:
“The reflection needs to be about more than simply meeting the need for housing. There is an agency and resources for this, so why was nothing done before if there is a plan? These conditions violate the guidelines of the UN itself, which stipulates a minimum of one room, a bathroom, and a kitchen”.
Finally, in a statement, Cohab responded to the questions, stating that the families currently live in wooden shacks measuring 4 to 5 square meters.
