Residential
We design unique, innovative, and inclusive housing solutions. Our multidisciplinary approach to residential design ranges from conversions to master planning to interiors across affordable and supportive housing, student housing, senior communities, and high-rises.
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The key to the housing crisis is targeted supply: more attainable housing options with more space for Gen Y and Z, more services for the aging population, and more affordable housing for those most in need.
—Kelly Farrell, Residential leader
27 Items
Pearl House (160 Water Street)
New York, New York
Vanbarton Group engaged Gensler to convert its downtown office building into a premier residential building to introduce new housing to New York City.
1 St. Clair West
Toronto, Ontario
After determining that demolishing 1 St. Clair West was not viable, Slate Asset Management enlisted Gensler to reposition it as a mixed-use development.
Lyra
Monterrey, Mexico
The Lyra is a master plan for a sustainable community in the Cumbres area of Monterrey that aims to create positive environmental impact and social value.
Holliday Street
Birmingham, United Kingdom
Raybone Developments’ Gensler-led project, Holliday Street, is a residential-driven development located on the site of a former open-air car park in Birmingham.
CSULB Parkside North Residence Hall and Housing Administration Building
Long Beach, California
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) enlisted Gensler to help reach the university’s goal of achieving net-zero status by 2030.
The Landmark
Los Angeles, California
The Landmark residential tower integrates into the modernist grouping in the Brentwood neighborhood while featuring a distinct, contemporary language.
Aspire Post Oak
Houston, Texas
Rising 40 stories tall, Aspire Post Oak is designed to provide an unparalleled sensation of high-rise living in a residential tower in Houston, designed by Gensler.
Wind Town (Vėjo Miestelis)
Svencelė, Lithuania
SBA Urban worked with Gensler to create a design concept for the first Wind Town in Svencelė, the wind capital of Lithuania, putting the area on the tourism map
The Hub at Prairie Shores
Chicago, Illinois
The Hub is intended to bring modern amenities to the ever-evolving residential community at the Bronzeville neighborhood’s Prairie Shores housing complex.
Metro Loft 219-235 East 42nd Street Conversion
New York, New York
The office-to-residential conversion of the former Pfizer headquarters will be the largest conversion in New York City history upon its completion, adding over 1,600 apartments, amenities, retail, and offices.
Galleria Residences, Public and Amenity Spaces
Overland Park, Kansas
Galleria Residences, Public and Amenity Spaces
La Posada at Pusch Ridge
Oro Valley, Arizona
La Posada at Pusch Ridge is a senior living community designed to embrace the natural environment and enrich the life experience of its active adult users.
The Line
Miami, Florida
Located in world-renowned Coconut Grove, The Line is a luxury, twin-tower, 800-unit apartment high-rise rising 40 stories into the Miami skyline. An immersiv...
Solhouse 6035
Metro Vancouver, Canada
Solhouse 6035 is a serene, inclusive residential tower by Bosa Properties, featuring indoor and rooftop amenities in Burnaby’s Central Park District.
The Bon
Boston, Massachusetts
Located in a vibrant Boston neighborhood and adjacent to mass transit, The Bon is designed as a new paradigm for purpose-built, multi-unit housing.
U.S.VETS Houston Third Ward
Houston, Texas
U.S.VETS Houston partnered with Gensler on a new development that provides veterans with a place to reintegrate into civilian life and call home.
128 Southwest Seventh Street
Miami, Florida
Gensler is working with Focus on the design of a new 517-unit apartment building located on the grounds of the former Miami Starlite Motel in the Brickell area.
The Residences at Rivermark
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
The Residences at Rivermark is a transformative project in the beating heart of downtown Baton Rouge’s growing and dynamic cultural scene.
8th Grand & Hope
Los Angeles, California
8th Grand & Hope is a striking 50-story luxury residential tower in downtown Los Angeles that redefines urban living in Southern California.
Mira
San Antonio, Texas
Mira is a residential, mixed-use development designed by Gensler in the heart of a burgeoning urban district at the edge of Tobin Hill and the San Antonio River
Urban Awning
Los Angeles, California
Urban Awning is a new constructional, environmental, and social model of affordable and supportive housing designed by Gensler.
Relevant Group
Los Angeles, California
Relevant Group has enlisted Gensler to develop three residential high-rises in downtown Los Angeles, each with its own expressive design.
Central Park House
Metro Vancouver, Canada
Bosa Properties enlisted Gensler to design Central Park House, a new 41-story residential tower.
ITC Colombo One Hotel & Residences
Colombo, Sri Lanka
ITC’s inaugural international hotel elegantly portrays Sri Lankan architecture and local charm in a luxury development with unrivalled views of the Indian ocean.
The Apex at CityPlace
Overland Park, Kansas
The Apex at CityPlace, a new mixed-use, luxury apartment community in Overland Park incorporates key pandemic-influenced considerations.
Botánika Osa Peninsula, Curio Collection by Hilton
Puerto Jiménez, Península de Osa, Costa Rica
The Botánika Osa Peninsula residences in Puerto Jiménez offer an indoor-outdoor experience by merging with the surrounding forest, balancing nature and comfort.
Franklin Tower
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
PMC Property Group transformed a vacant, outdated office building in Logan Square into an amenity-rich residential building with ample outdoor and retail space.
INSIGHTS
Insight
Conversions+™ by Gensler Turns Stranded Offices Into Valuable Real Estate
Our conversion algorithm and services help developers quickly determine if buildings are viable for conversion to residential, hotel, senior living, or healthcare uses.
Blog
Lifestyle Living Is Redefining the Home in the Age of Belonging
We’ve identified five major trends shaping the future of living environments.
Blog
How Two Innovative Shelters Reimagine Refuge for the Homeless in Chicago
By prioritizing privacy and dignity, trauma-informed design can provide essential refuge and promote sustained healing.
Blog
How a New Vision for Flexible Co-Living Conversions Can Support Housing Affordability
Gensler and The Pew Charitable Trusts studied building typologies in seven cities to better understand the potential in this unique office-to-residential conversion model.
Blog
Unlocking the Missing Middle: Why the U.S. Housing Model Needs a Redesign
How zoning, building codes, and financing reforms can unlock affordable, well-designed housing.
Blog
Trends to Watch: What Other Cities Can Learn From New York City’s Conversion Boom
As U.S. cities experience high commercial real estate vacancy rates and housing shortages, developers have an opportunity to invest in and convert stranded assets.
Blog
A Radical Solution to the U.K. Housing Crisis: Building a New London in the Thames Estuary
How should the U.K.’s government be addressing the housing crisis? Here are four steps to a radical solution.
Research
Finance the Future: Strategies for Equitable Neighborhood Development
We explored how to effectively translate ESG commitments into financially viable equitable developments that address the housing crisis disproportionately affecting low-income and marginalized communities.
Blog
How Design Can Integrate Social Value Into Residential Developments
Design plays an integral role in fostering social value within residential areas.
Blog
Maximising Urban Space: 3 Strategies for Solving the U.K.’s Housing Crisis
Addressing the U.K. housing shortage will require a multifaceted, strategic approach, recognising the urgent need for land to accommodate new homes and infrastructure.
Blog
Luxury + Convenience: Why Branded Residences Are in Demand Across the Globe
In the residential sector, we’re seeing an increased demand for high-end, branded residences that offer hotel-style services and amenities.
Blog
What Can San Francisco Learn From Successful Building Conversion Programs in Other Cities?
By taking cues from other cities, San Francisco has an opportunity to make it easier to repurpose buildings, address the housing crisis, and revitalize downtown.
Blog
Rethinking Housing: Innovative Solutions to California’s Homelessness Crisis
DignityMoves Founder and CEO Elizabeth Funk discusses why new thinking is necessary to help solve the housing and homelessness crisis.
Blog
What We’ve Learned by Assessing More Than 1,300 Potential Office-to-Residential Conversions
We’ve developed a process for evaluating existing office buildings to determine if they are candidates for multifamily residential conversions.
Podcast
Attainable and Affordable Housing: Creating Homes for All
Gensler’s Global Residential Leader Kelly Farrell and housing experts discuss how we can prioritize and design for more affordable and attainable housing.
Podcast
Office-to-Residential Conversions: Mandates, Myths, and Possibilities
Experts weigh the opportunities, myths, and challenges of converting increasingly vacant office buildings into much needed housing.
Trends in Residential
Community becomes the most sought-after new amenity for residential development.
Residents continue to seek community connections and wellness-driven living, and residential developments can respond with a mix of public-private amenity spaces and services such as membership-driven clubs, fitness centers, and coworking spaces.
Cities discover new opportunities to develop attainable “missing middle” housing.
Lowering interest rates and more incentives will boost the creation of duplexes, townhouses, and starter homes that attract the middle-income earners that businesses — and cities — need to thrive.
Developers uncover innovative solutions to build housing on unconventional lots.
With rising construction costs and limited land, residential developers are looking at flexible solutions, such as conversions, mass timber, and prefabricated construction to reduce costs and boost production in areas with few or no available sites.
RESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP
Kelly Farrell
Lifestyle Sector Leader, Managing Director, Principal
Kelly is a global leader of Gensler’s Lifestyle Sector and a Managing Director of Gensler’s Los Angeles office.
Sean O’Gorman
Residential Leader
Sean O’Gorman is the Global Residential Practice Area Leader and leader of the North Central region’s Residential practice.
Robert Fuller
Lifestyle Sector Leader, Studio Director, Principal
Robert Fuller specializes in complex projects that include planning and urban design, new buildings, office-to-residential conversions, and repositioning.
NEWS
In The Media
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Architectural Record
Architectural Record Interviewed Gensler Residential Leader Brooks Howell About Resia Ten Oaks
The multifamily residential development’s efficient module construction approach yields “over double the square footage, with higher-quality construction, at comparable cost.”
January 06, 2025
In The Media
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Building Design+Construction
Gensler Principals Weigh In On the Top 10 Trends in Luxury Multifamily Housing
BD+C quoted Gensler Principals Brooks Howell, Kelly Farrell, and Robert Fuller in a feature on the top 10 trends in the luxury multifamily housing market and the importance of delivering exclusive, personalized service.
November 05, 2024
In The Media
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Forbes
The Pew Charitable Trusts and Gensler Explore Transforming Office Buildings Into Affordable Co-Living Residential Buildings
Forbes spotlighted the feasibility study and shared rendered floor plans of the dorm-style units, which “could be profitable for a developer at a rent of $815 per month on average.”
October 28, 2024
In The Media
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The Economic Times
The Pew Charitable Trusts and Gensler Aim To Tackle the U.S. Housing Crisis
The Economic Times shared a proposal by The Pew Charitable Trusts and Gensler to create 150-square-feet microapartments.
October 27, 2024
In The Media
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The Pew Charitable Trusts
Converting Office Buildings to Co-Living Dorm-Style Apartments Offers a More Economically Viable Solution
The Pew Charitable Trusts shared research published with Gensler on a more viable approach to office-to-residential conversions using a design that reduces construction costs and adds low rental housing in downtowns.
October 22, 2024
In The Media
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Urban Land Institute Los Angeles
Urban Land Institute LA Featured Steven Paynter as a Homelessness Summit and Expo 4.0 Speaker
Gensler Building Transformation Leader Steven Paynter shared ideas for creating new paths for housing to help people in need and address the crisis. Watch the video.
August 22, 2024
In The Media
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Bloomberg
A “More Radical, More Ambitious” Solution to Tackling Britain’s Housing Crisis
Gensler Cities & Urban Design Leader Ian Mulcahey discussed the vision to build an entirely new offshore city in the Thames Estuary to help address the housing issue.
July 31, 2024
In The Media
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BTR News
How Design Can Integrate Social Value Into Residential Developments
Gensler Europe Residential Leader John Badman explored how to foster “environments that naturally reduce vacancies, encourage resident retention, and organically form cohesive communities.”
July 02, 2024
In The Media
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CBS News
The Brooke on Bagley Transforms a Vacant Lot Into “An Equitable, Active Hub for Community and Hospitality-Driven Living”
CBS News interviewed Gensler Design Director John Jourden about the opening of a new mixed-use, mixed-income housing development in Detroit near the recently renovated Michigan Central Station.
June 11, 2024
In The Media
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Building Design
Building Design Interviewed Gensler Managing Principals Julia Simet and Duncan Swinhoe About Conversions in the U.K.
Julia Simet and Duncan Swinhoe discussed the potential impact of office-to-residential conversions, challenges of the U.K. planning system, and the importance of adapting to client needs.
March 21, 2024
In The Media
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Houston Chronicle
Factors Impacting the Profitability of Office-to-Residential Conversions
As Houston considers tax incentives to spur office conversions, Senior Living Leader Brooks Howell and Residential Leader Kelly Farrell discussed how developers need to balance project costs with expected revenue.
February 19, 2024
In The Media
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Dezeen
Gensler Designed EVE Park, a Residential Complex in Canada With Integrated EV Parking Garages
The development’s circular clusters of homes promote community and “a residential experience centered on connection to the outdoors,” says Gensler Cities & Urban Design Leader Oliver Schaper.
February 02, 2024
In The Media
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Business Insider
Strategies for Office-to-Residential Conversions in New York
Gensler Principal Robert Fuller, who is leading the transformation of 160 Water Street, discussed cost-benefit analyses that clients should consider during the design stage.
September 10, 2023
In The Media
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Business Insider
There’s Growing Demand for Office Conversions as Cities Seek to Address Multiple Crises and Create Housing
Steven Paynter discussed Gensler’s work on office-to-residential conversions, including advising HUD and developing an algorithm, which has been used to assess over 950 buildings.
August 27, 2023
In The Media
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Green Building & Design
The Residences at Rivermark is a Transformative Office-to-Residential Conversion in Baton Rouge
Residential Leader Brooks Howell shared how Gensler reimagined an older office asset into The Residences at Rivermark luxury apartments.
August 23, 2023
In The Media
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NPR
The Advantages and Challenges of Converting Vacant Offices to Housing
NPR’s “All Things Considered” explored office conversions with Studio Director Robert Fuller, referencing Gensler’s recent work on projects including Franklin Tower.
August 04, 2023