--- title: "Community & Social Infrastructure Design for Inclusive Cities" description: "We specialize in social infrastructure, from heritage restoration to inclusive housing. See how we transformed a tight urban plot into Mumbai's first working women's residence." canonical: https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/community-social-infrastructure last_updated: 2025-09-04 --- # Community & Social Infrastructure Design Tribe Verified · Architects of India's first gender-inclusive housing By [SJK Architects](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects) · Based in Colaba, Mumbai; Projects across India · ₹140 per sq. ft. (estimate) Part of [Institutional & Campus Design](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design). [View full gallery](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/gallery) We believe social infrastructure should be more than just functional space. It must be a vibrant, safe, and welcoming environment that supports the communities it serves. ## Photos and videos - ![The facade of the Multipurpose Working Women’s Housing, a project developed through our Gender Advisory Committee with the MCGM. The vertical fins and staggered balconies are designed to ensure privacy while maximizing natural light and ventilation for the residents.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/0dcbb763-0fa3-4e6d-a47a-f700c3fc8641) - ![The facade of the Multipurpose Working Women’s Housing, a project developed through our Gender Advisory Committee with the MCGM. The vertical fins and staggered balconies are designed to ensure privacy while maximizing natural light and ventilation for the residents.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/e8dbfbf9-6c44-4c80-ae90-5fb20106f3cf) - ![The facade of the Multipurpose Working Women’s Housing, a project developed through our Gender Advisory Committee with the MCGM. The vertical fins and staggered balconies are designed to ensure privacy while maximizing natural light and ventilation for the residents.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/f1901b24-2123-497f-9aa6-a1614c68482f) - ![The facade of the Multipurpose Working Women’s Housing, a project developed through our Gender Advisory Committee with the MCGM. The vertical fins and staggered balconies are designed to ensure privacy while maximizing natural light and ventilation for the residents.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/1a942074-fb79-4f98-89d8-263a89e582b0) - ![Our partners at the inauguration of the Working Women's Housing. This project was the culmination of years of policy work and advocacy to create dedicated, safe, and well-designed amenities for women in the city.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/6f5cbc33-3da4-49ea-9835-165a395eea5c) - ![Our partners at the inauguration of the Working Women's Housing. This project was the culmination of years of policy work and advocacy to create dedicated, safe, and well-designed amenities for women in the city.](https://assets.mytribe.in/insecure/raw:1/plain/s3://mytribe-assets-production/b9817b0b-8f75-47b3-a0c1-74d426390d3d) ## About Community & Social Infrastructure Designing on a tight, triangular plot in Mumbai required us to push the limits of standard residential layout. For the Multipurpose Working Women’s Housing, we employed a system of vertical fins and staggered balconies to draw in cross-ventilation and natural light, transforming a dense footprint into a safe, airy, and welcoming home for 180 women. Social infrastructure is about more than just square footage. It is about policy, advocacy, and the built environment working in tandem to support citizens. Our work on this project began long before ground was broken. Through our involvement with the Gender Advisory Committee, we helped shape the policy guidelines that led to this development. We approached this building as an urban intervention. Because the site was limited in size, we avoided internal corridors that feel dark or isolating. Instead, we focused on three core principles: * **Light & Ventilation:** The facade design uses vertical fins to provide sun-shading while allowing the sea breeze to circulate freely through the living quarters. * **Privacy & Safety:** Staggered balconies ensure visual privacy for residents without creating a fortress-like exterior, maintaining a sense of openness. * **Community Flow:** We incorporated common interaction zones to ensure that the women living here have spaces to meet, share meals, and build a community, rather than just occupying isolated units. This project demonstrates our belief that institutional design should be human-centric. By combining technical site analysis with an understanding of the end-users' daily lives, we created a building that stands as an example of how public amenities can be bright, dignified, and joyous places. ## About SJK Architects We believe that community buildings should be the most welcoming spaces in a city. Our practice, led by a deep respect for human stories, focuses on creating institutional and social infrastructure that feels less like a facility and more like a community, whether that's a housing complex or a healthcare center. [See all of SJK Architects's services](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects) ## More from Institutional & Campus Design by SJK Architects - [Featured](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/featured) - [Learning Environments: Schools & Universities](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/learning-environments-schools-universities) - [Healing Spaces: Healthcare Architecture](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/healing-spaces-healthcare-architecture) - [Cultural Narratives: Museums & Heritage](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/cultural-narratives-museums-heritage) - [Our Philosophy in Practice](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/our-philosophy-in-practice) - [In the Press: Awards & Features](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/institutional-campus-design/in-the-press-awards-features) ## More services by SJK Architects - [Architectural Design - Residential](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/architectural-design-residential) - [Commercial & Workspace Design](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/commercial-workspace-design) - [Hospitality Design](https://mytribe.in/sjk_architects/hospitality-design) ## Similar work from other experts - [Community & Urban Space Design: Transforming Shared Environments](https://mytribe.in/compartment_s4/adaptive-reuse-heritage-restoration/community-urban-spaces) by Compartment S4 · Adaptive Reuse & Heritage Restoration · Studios in Ahmedabad & Bengaluru; Restoration projects across India - [Public & Community Architecture for Social Impact](https://mytribe.in/architecturedialogue/architectural-design/public-community-architecture) by Architecture Dialogue · Architectural Design · Studios in Bengaluru & Hyderabad; Architecture projects across India - [Architectural Design for Community and Shared Spaces](https://mytribe.in/studio.chintala/landscape-urban-design/building-spaces-for-community) by Studio Chintala · Landscape & Urban Design · Studios in Bengaluru & Vijayawada; Projects Pan-India - [High-Rise Residential Communities](https://mytribe.in/edifice_consultants/residential-architecture-master-planning/high-rise-residential-communities) by Edifice Consultants · Residential Architecture & Master Planning · Takes projects across India; Offices in Mumbai, Bengaluru & Delhi - [Public, Institutional & Heritage Urban Design](https://mytribe.in/greenspacealliance/urban-design-and-master-planning/public-institutional-heritage-spaces) by Green Space Alliance · Urban Design & Master Planning · Takes projects across India & Edmonton; Offices in Pune & Canada - [Community & Housing Master Planning](https://mytribe.in/studio_thirdspace/urban-design-master-planning/community-housing-master-planning) by Thirdspace · Urban Design & Master Planning · Based in Pune & Belagavi; Master planning across India ## Book To book SJK Architects, message mytribe on WhatsApp: [Chat on WhatsApp](https://wa.me/916360004054?text=Hi%2C%20I'm%20looking%20for%20Institutional%20%26%20Campus%20Design%20by%20SJK%20Architects.) 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