Tallest Building Made From Shipping Containers in North America To Open in Downtown Phoenix

What was once just a small parking lot on the corner of McKinley and Third streets barely large enough to accommodate 20 cars has been transformed into a six-story, mixed-use new site that is helping to solve the housing shortage.

IDA on McKinley is the tallest development built from shipping containers in the country. The six-story building features 18 one- and two-bedroom unit apartments, with ground-floor space for commercial tenants.

According to design-build firm Local Studio, the project utlitizes 615,000 pounds of re-purposed Corten steel, known for its high strength and corrosion resistance.

One of the most sustainable apartment buildings in downtown Phoenix will open next week. The new project broke ground in January 2021 and is the fifth shipping container venture for Local Studio in metro Phoenix. The site used 66 recycled shipping containers totaling 615,000 pounds of repurposed steel. Each container, salvaged from shipping yards in Long Beach, California, is 40 feet long.

One- and two-bedroom units are each between 650 and 900 square feet. A one-bedroom unit will rent for $1,685 a month and a two-bedroom space for $1,950.

To promote a lower carbon footprint, there is no parking available on property. In addition, porous walkways between each unit are designed to harvest rainwater, which collects in a 3,000 gallon tank. The complex also provides residents filtered water stations on each floor to encourage bottle re-usage. The development also features a solar panels around the building, including solar-shaded sidewalk canopies.

Click here for more information on the complex.