What can you get for less than 400 square feet? How about a gym, a roof terrace, stainless steel appliances and the chance to finally ditch the roommates and lay claim to your own slice of paradise. That’s the option currently being offered by Carmel Place, New York City’s first ever micro-unit development. Originally called, “My Micro NY,” this Lower East Side building includes 14 affordable housing units and is set to open in February of 2016. Sitting smack dab in the middle of Kips Bay, the newly christened Carmel Place will be New York’s tallest modular building. Winner of the 2012 adapt NYC competition, which strove to uncover a solution to the City’s housing problem, Carmel Place came about through a collaborative effort between Monadnock Development and the Lower East Side People’s Mutual Housing Association. The project’s designers, naArchitects, chose modular materials to reduce construction time, and a series of architectural flourishes make use of vertical spaces to create a sense of openness and light. Built in the Brooklyn Navy Yard and delivered by truck via the Manhattan Bridge, the nine-story Carmel Place apartments rise up on 333 East 27th street like a set of building blocks – gray in color, but multifaceted in the opportunities they promise to weary urban renters looking for a small space they can call their own. Each unit comes outfitted with kitchenettes, mini-fridges, and a two-burner/microwave combination in place of a stove. While the bathrooms are restricted to showers only – no claw foot tubs in this joint – all the apartments are wheelchair accessible. The designers made sure to incorporate large windows, Juliette balconies and 9.5ft windows to create a sense of openness and light. With hardwood floors and mostly white cabinetry, sample photos project a...