Abstract
In 2025, a decade after the 2015 Ghorka earthquake in Nepal, the reconstruction efforts of Kathmandu and the adjacent city of Lalitpur remain incomplete. This paper investigates why sites are still vacant despite increasing demand for homes. It asks why concrete-frame construction has become the preferred choice for housebuilders despite heritage efforts to maintain the aesthetic value of the historic core of the city. The study focuses on a 500-m radius of Patan Darbar square in the historical core of Lalitpur. An initial phase of spatial analysis and household surveys determined the scope and specification of housing needs, and meetings with key stakeholders clarified the policy context of Lalitpur Municipality. Based on this research, the investigation developed an alternative strategy for house reconstruction based on an infill housing prototype. Subsequent feedback sessions with houseowners, associations of engineers and architects, and municipal leaders revealed the barriers facing the introduction of the proposed typology. A pathway for implementation is provided that recommends policy is changed to accept alternative models of house construction and then incentivise its use through financial subsidies.
PRACTICE RELEVANCE
The proposed prototype proposes a resilient seismic structure with improved spatial efficiency, ventilation and daylighting, and with reduced embodied carbon in its construction materials. Its assembly does not involve highly skilled labour and its cost of construction is comparable with existing house types. The aim is that this model can shift the policy direction for reconstruction in Lalitpur and other core urban settlements in the Kathmandu Valley and demonstrate how impactful transformation can be initiated through typological change. Although specific to Nepal, the paper argues for the relevance of this methodology to other developing regions grappling with growth, affordability and disaster risk.