The completion last year of the sinuous six-story Las Americas housing in León, Mexico, made a statement in a city of densely built one- and two-story single-family homes. But it wasn’t just the structure’s size or raw concrete that stood out. Arranged around two landscaped courtyards, cross-ventilated apartments were given city and courtyard views and access from an exterior, fenestrated walkway. Getting it built was a feat even in Mexico, where the climate is mild, labor is cheap, and building requirements appear, at least, to be less stringent. Surely something like that would never get off the ground in the States, where developers have very specific formulas that often include double-loaded corridors and minimal outdoor space in order to squeeze the most profit out of their investments. In fact, the architect of Las Americas, SO — IL, had designed a building with similar sensibilities to the Mexican experiment for San Francisco, but escalating costs derailed that project.

Concrete blocks, set at a slight angle, clad the building’s exterior (1) and interior courtyard, where a flexible-cable net offers surprising enclosure along the suspended walkways (2). Photos © Naho Kubota (1), Jonathan Hokklo (2), click to enlarge.