I've had a problem that's been on my mind for a while; maybe you folks can help out.
The short: I want to know if a residential skyscraper can reasonably emulate the size and amenities of suburban single-family housing: basically, a 12+ story building of 2,000 square-foot, two-story units, each with a minimum 500 square foot lawn-ready deck. Construction costs shouldn't be more than $500,000 per unit.
Why: Family housing is tough to find in dense urban areas, especially with enough private outdoor space. The concept of the
"rowscraper" goes some of the way to fixing this issue, but it still lacks the outdoor space. Decks every other floor with enough area to simulate a back yard are, to my mind, a reasonable solution.
However, I don't know of any non-luxury buildings that approach this concept, and so it might not be possible. So I ask you: is this possible? Is this desirable? Or am I totally off my nut?