Recycled sea-shipping containers make for a unique, attention-grabbing design element in places like Quartyard, a popular retail and entertainment hub in downtown San Diego’s East Village.
But despite the rising use of the metal cargo containers in commercial and residential
projects nationwide, it could be a while before they’re commonly enlisted, for example, in the long struggle to provide affordable housing in the local region.
San Diego developer Greg Strangman, founder and managing partner of L.W.P. Group, has incorporated the repurposed containers in projects including hotel cabanas, garden and landscaping spaces, and — in the case of a recently completed office project in Barrio Logan — as a large supply closet.
According to various sources, the containers — usually 8 feet wide by 40 feet long, with longer versions available — can range in cost between $1,000 and $3,000 per unit. They are durable, can be combined in various configurations, and allow certain projects to be completed faster than those that don’t use pre-fabricated elements.
“They’re definitely plentiful,” Strangman said. “There are more of them coming into the U.S. than going out; it’s one of the signs that we have a big trade deficit.”
Inside Story
While developers nationwide have found the recycled cargo containers to be a relatively cheap way to reduce construction costs while being environmentally friendly, they do have drawbacks as building materials.
L.W.P. Group, for instance, has built several urban-oriented apartment communities in San Diego, but Strangman said he hasn’t found a way to effectively turn cargo containers into residential units, primarily because of climate control issues.
“They’re made of metal, so they get hot very quickly,” Strangman said. “Even when it’s not summer, you would need to run the air conditioning all the time.”
That makes them a tough sell in San Diego and elsewhere in Southern California, not to mention the Mexican markets where Strangman is looking to do his next residential projects.
Other observers have noted challenges including financing projects that use shipping containers, similar to those facing mobile-home and other pre-fab developments, which also encounter public perceptions — right or wrong — about their relative quality.
Also, government building and zoning codes can vary widely depending on the jurisdiction. For instance, the county of San Diego, which oversees projects in unincorporated areas, only allows sea cargo containers to be used for storage within larger commercial or residential projects.
Finding Approval
The city of San Diego, like other cities, does not specify how the containers are to be used beyond zoning restrictions, but does limit such projects in most cases to two double-stackings of the containers per property, and they usually must be placed on a non-sloping foundation.
