Missing Middle Housing is a transformative concept that highlights the need for diverse, affordable housing choices in sustainable, walkable places.
We are the chief architects of the Missing Middle Housing movement.
Opticos principal Daniel Parolek coined the term Missing Middle Housing in 2010, transforming the national conversation about the need for more diverse housing choices at affordable prices. Since then, we’ve been driving a radical paradigm shift, urging architects, urban planners, and builders to fundamentally rethink the way they design, locate, regulate and develop homes. Americans want and need more diverse housing choices in walkable neighborhoods; homes that are attainable, sustainable and beautifully designed.
Missing Middle Housing Site Planning and Architecture
Meeting the Demand for Walkable Living
At Opticos, we design custom urban housing types that are different from anything else on the market. We don’t look at the housing types that have been built and sold in the recent past. Instead, we’ve studied a broad range of market segments and we design the kind of homes that people want today. Our designs are new and different, and they’re creating walkable, urban neighborhoods that people want to call home. In doing this, we deliver remarkable efficiencies for our clients while developing high-quality living environments for home buyers and renters. Everybody wins.
Opticos Signature Housing Products
Unique, Market-Ready Housing Solutions
Through our work designing Missing Middle Housing for clients across the country, we’ve developed a collection of signature housing products ready to meet your needs. Features like 100% efficiencies, high quality private and shared outdoor spaces, and their ability to reinforce a strong sense of community make these attractive to both builders and buyers.
Missing Middle Neighborhoods
Redefining Multifamily Living
We can help you develop a new kind of neighborhood that will attract the growing number of people who prefer to rent, but who don’t want to live in a conventional apartment complex. Some of these folks are just choosing to rent longer, while others are re-entering the rental market in an effort to downsize. Either way, we can help you build a neighborhood composed entirely of Missing Middle Housing rentals, or a combination of rental and for sale units. Not your ordinary multifamily project or new neighborhood!
“Opticos worked closely with us to design a beautiful, diverse neighborhood... It’s been a true pleasure working with them to fulfill my vision.”
— Jerry Reimer, Co-founder, Urban Village Development
Featured Projects
Strategic Advising
Helping Private Developers Make Their Mark
We are the undisputed experts when it comes to Missing Middle Housing. We can help you expand your business model to include Missing Middle Housing types, including finding the right sites, securing funding and connecting with other builders and professionals doing similar work. Looking to target a specific city or neighborhood for strategic investing in MMH? We can help with that, too.
Helping Cities Implement Missing Middle Housing
We can help you bring Missing Middle Housing to your city or town. Perhaps you need an area plan or a specific plan that will remove barriers and spark development of MMH. Maybe you are hoping to integrate MMH into your strategic housing plan, a comprehensive plan or a zoning fix or rewrite. We can kick things off with a Missing Middle Housing Scan™ to better understand the barriers and opportunities, and then get started. We’re here to help!
Interested? Call us today:
(510) 558-6957
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“Opticos' design of the Mews Homes was innovative and differentiated us from the market. It also enabled us to hit a price point near $200,000 that we had been unable to reach with our existing product types. Dan and the Opticos team have been a great partner, and we’re excited to work with them on new, creative projects in the future!"
— Spencer Holmes, Partner and Vice President, Holmes Homes
Rebuilding for Those in Need: Opticos Designs for Wildfire Cottage Initiative
In October of 2017, wildfires in Northern California burned at least 245,000 acres and over 5,000 acres in Sonoma County alone. Since then, Habitat for Humanity of Sonoma County has explored ways to expand its programs across the board to serve households displaced by October’s devastating wildfires, including its latest initiative: the Sonoma Wildfire Cottages. Opticos is proud to be part of the team, led by Marianne Cusato, renowned designer of the Katrina Cottage, and the Cypress Community Development Corporation selected by Sonoma Habitat, to design and build a series of model cottages on the Fountaingrove campus of Medtronic in Santa Rosa, California.
Why Form and Scale Matter in the Missing Middle Housing Conversation
Lately, we’ve noticed people using the term “Missing Middle Housing” solely in an economic sense, to refer to the lack of attainable housing for middle income households. And while Missing Middle Housing is an excellent solution for middle income households, form, scale and context are also critical attributes. So, why do these matter?
Designing a Missing Middle Plan for Small Infill Sites: The Art of Creating Value and a Sense of Place on a Two-to-Five Acre Site, Part 2
In our previous post showing how we design Missing Middle Housing for small sites, we reviewed some initial steps, including conceptual studies for a small site master plan in Novato, California. Now, we’re going to look at the steps we took to refine the preferred alternative into something ready for entitlement.
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