

The Wynwood Co-Living building is a 725 bed co-living building designed by nARCHITECTS in collaboration with executive architect Corwil Architects for London-based co-living developer The Collective. In the Fall of 2021, The Collective filed for bankruptcy, and the project – which was at 90% Construction Documentation, had received most of its entitlement and been approved by both the UDRB and WDRC, and was poised to begin construction, now has an uncertain future.
Wynwood’s physical context – gritty, post-industrial, and characterized by long, low, and largely opaque buildings – is on the verge of significant change: it will soon become a mix of big, urban, new buildings and rehabilitated old ones. The design of the 360,000sf 12-story building responds to these simultaneous and changing realities and dynamically changing datums: we have broken up the massing with volumes that shift at horizontal datums, and introduced gaps – “Crevasses” that create porous connections to the neighborhood. The liveliness of the building is directly related to and inspired by the colorful and energetic walls of Wynwood and the emerging urbanism defined by Paseos – porous connections that invite the public to explore intimate and exciting spaces deep within the blocks. The “Canyon” – a new urban void that can be experienced by passersby who walk through the Paseo – extends this reinterpretation of the courtyard type vertically, creating an unprecedented connection between the public realm and the inner life of this co-living building.


On a social level, the building is like a fractal. Social spaces range from the intimate to the large, shared by a small group of units clustered together, a floor, a neighborhood within the building, the building is a whole, and ultimately by the general public.


Client: The Collective Wynwood
Location: Wynwood, Miami, FL
Status: Construction Documentation (Project Cancelled)
Dates: 2018 – 2021
Sq Footage: 360,000sf
Program: Co-living, mixed-use building with 725 beds within 180 residential units and 70 lodging units; shared workspace, shared dining, games rooms, library, wellness center and pool, underground parking garage, and other amenities.
Design Team: Eric Bunge, Mimi Hoang | Suemin Jeon, Isabel Sarasa | Zachary Weimer, Maria Diego, Gogo Zhu
Collaborators: Architect of Record: Corwil Architects
Design Concept: The Wynwood Co-Living Building (previously “The Collective Wynwood”) is a 725 bed building that wraps a variety of unit clusters around the vibrant and diversely programmed “Canyon” – a new take on the courtyard building type, adapted to Miami’s climate. As the central organizing feature, this 12 story open space distributes 82,000 square feet of shared amenity and outdoor spaces. A Paseo-like urban path allows the general public through the site, introducing them to the Canyon above. Fissures in the exterior massing break up the volume, bring daylight deep into the living areas of the units, and provide a surface for art: a defining characteristic and requirement for Wynwood.