Mainstream Modular by Guerdon Modular: Developing Housing for the City of Aspen

Building safe and secure housing is often a foundational base for every architect’s designs. Modular consultant of Cairn Consulting, Weston Bierma, certainly holds this close at hand in the Burlingame Ranch Phase 3 build in Aspen, Colorado. He spoke with host of Mainstream Modular, Tyler Kern, about the perks of modular building and the planning and construction of the project.

For the City of Aspen, Burlingame Ranch Phase 3 will provide 79 affordable housing units consisting of 120 modules on a typically difficult build site. Bierma highlighted one of the main perks to modular building is the impact, or lack thereof, of building on the neighbors.

According to Bierma, “planning is everything” when it comes to modular construction, and field-time is quicker and more efficient than other typical construction sites.

The efficiency of cost-planning with the city and being able to provide the city with known costs, up to about 50%, well before construction was an advantage. Not only did this provide assurances, but it also allowed the city to earmark those funds for that purpose, mitigating risk.

While different cities and municipalities have different routes for funding, cash flow surrounding the project is much heavier on the front end than would be a typical stick-build. Because of this, builds can be put up extremely efficiently, with some buildings taking only one day.

The Burlingame Ranch Phase 3 site recently completed its final building with expectations that tenants will move in before next ski season. Clearly, modular construction is best for areas with short building seasons, difficult sites, and difficult areas for materials to get to.

Regarding the future of modular construction, expect to see modular replace traditional stick-builds, which have high building and labor costs. As for what’s next for Bierma and his modular construction, check out fourpointsfunding.com.