For the past several years I have been working with non-profit emergency housing and service providers designing shelters and facilities for the homeless. Through my clients I have come to appreciate how much a modest amount of design can do. Often it is merely figuring out the logistics of getting the requisite number of beds in a space. Increasingly, however, design is seen as a means of establishing trust between the provider and the homeless, and a way to create a sense of belonging for those with little or no social connection.

It is within this difficult and often tragic arena that architecture serves its highest purpose. A visit to a museum can be a powerful and moving experience. Public buildings are a reflection of our culture. But if we believe that architecture serves a society as well as reflects its values, then we must provide for those with the most need and the fewest options.

Sam Davis

from
Designing for the Homeless:
Architecture that Works

University of California Press
November 2004

 

  
Drop-In Facility, Clinic, Offices
Larkin Street Youth Services
San Francisco, California
The dorm at Lark-Inn For Youth
Larkin Street Youth Services
San Francisco, California
Commons Room at Aftercare and Assisted Care
Housing and services for youth with HIV/AIDs
Larkin Street Youth Services
San Francisco, California Renovated dorm at the Next Door
Transitional Adult Shelter
Episcopal Services
San Francisco, California

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