Apr 21, 2014 08:43 AM EDT By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

In an attempt to solve housing shortages, students at the Savannah College of Art and Design have designed and developed alternate living arrangements for urban residents.

SCADpad (135-sq ft; 8 feet wide, 16 feet long), small enough to fit into a parking space, features all the necessary amenities normally found in a regular house - toilet, bed, desk and kitchen. These affordable mini-houses ($40,000), also include personalized interiors and exteriors, interactive controls, green amenities, modular wall systems, sustainable waste management, and multifunctional, multipurpose 3-D printed furniture.

All electronics in the SCADpad can be controlled through an iPad - lighting can be transformed from a deep blue to a bright orange and the windows can be frosted (privacy) and unfrosted (greenery) when required.

Plus interactive wallpaper in certain miniature homes plays music when touched; energy consumption can be reduced as the houses heat up quickly and although the windows can't be opened, SCADpads have air conditioning and ventilation fans' facilities.

The world's urban population is currently at 3.5 billion and is estimated to grow up to 5 billion by 2030, according to UNFPA.

At present, 81 per cent of the U.S. population resides in urban areas. The team said that 50 percent of America's 105 parking spaces are vacant. They said that housing crisis can be solved by filling the spaces with the unique SCADpads. These small housing communities can be constructed within two months.

The project, currently in prototype phase, aims to provide suitable housing for ever-increasing population by converting unused spaces like car parks. Three pilot SCADpads were developed in midtown Atlanta parking structure in 10 months.

Paula Wallace, president and co-founder of SCAD, said that SCADpad is so far the University's boldest innovation. The sustainable community entirely focuses on urban design, adaptive reuse, architecture, interior design, service design, interaction design, design for sustainability and fine art.

"The result is a now solution - a sustainable urban micro-housing community that projects relevance far beyond form and function to the Vitruvian principles of utility, strength, and delight. SCADpad creates an environment for inventive and artful living," Wallace said, Iwantpop reports.

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