Running header: SENIOR PROJECT PROPOSAL 1

Seattle Homeless Crisis: How can a Building be Designed to serve as Transitional Housing while

helping to solve Seattle’s Homeless Crisis?

Allison McIntyre

TAF at Saghalie

Proposal
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In lieu of the homeless crisis, various solutions have been proposed. In terms of housing,

a majority of these solutions come in the form of creating shelters. However, there are

considerable issues that can be found within them, and few solutions. As a result, a new kind of

shelter is being proposed. This design will incorporate the aspects of the shelters and services

that are working, while proposing solutions and services that are needed. These would include

increasing the privacy and allowing for more free movement of the residents. Aspects of the

building would also address issues such as access to fresh food and the stigma around

homelessness. In order to show this, there will be 3D models of the building and layouts, as well

as floor plans and a physical small scale model. To identify whether or not the design is

successful and providing solutions, it will be presented to experts along with a survey and

discussion for feedback. This feedback will then be incorporated back into the model resulting in

the final design.

Criteria and Restraints

In order for this design to be successful, the building must include certain elements. The

first is that the building must be able to have successful results, which would mean that large

amounts of people are finding and keeping housing. This is so important to the success of the

building because the research showed that some people, even when they found housing in

shelters, oftentimes preferred the streets, so a major goal is to ensure that people are able to be

housed and stay housed. In addition to this, there needs to be an adequate amount of rooms

available in relation to the size of the building. This is a marker of success because it shows an

efficient use of space within the design. Having a space to call one’s own is important, especially

for those experiencing homelessness. A final criteria in order for this design to be successful is
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the effectiveness of the programs that are available within. These programs are an essential piece

of the building, as part of the purpose is giving people the tools they need to get back on their

feet. When the design meets these criteria it will be successful.

However, there are restraints within the design. The first is building codes within the city

of Seattle. While the building is not going to be built within this time frame, it will be designed

so that when an opportunity arises, it is ready and in accordance with regulations. Because of the

codes, parts of the design may have to changed or taken out. Another restraint within the design

itself is the wide range of demographics that make up those experiencing homelessness. There

are different people all with different needs that trying to meet them is a major design challenge.

Identifying what the most important needs are is a vital step to the design process, and will set

more guidelines for the final design. Finally, part of the building is dedicated to sustainability, so

relying on sustainable building materials and practices is needed, and a restraint as a large

number of materials and practices aren’t sustainable. All of these will factor into the the design

process and what the end building looks like.

Materials

In order to complete this project, the main material that is needed is a computer. This is

necessary for the project because this is where all of the 3D modeling needs to happen. In order

for the 3D modeling, two softwares are needed. The first is SketchUp, which is where the current

modeling will be done, and is where all the editing and stages can be seen. SketchUp will

continue to be used so that the building design and all the potential layouts can be easily created

and easy to understand. The other software that will be needed is Rhino, which is a more

advanced 3D modeling software. Through Rhino, the models and designs made in SketchUp will
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be able to become more evolved and sophisticated. As for the physical models of the building,

there are 3D printers available, foam, or cardboard to use. Any of these three (or a combination

of them) will serve to create a physical model. Overall, the materials needed for this are a

computer, 3D modeling softwares, and physical modeling materials.

Participants

Human input is vital for the success of this project. To collect data, a focus group of

experts will be need to be created. This group will be comprised of up to 10 experts, with

knowledge of architecture, the homeless crisis, and the needs of those experiencing

homelessness. The experts will be local to the Seattle area, in order to ensure a strong

understanding of the needs of the city. The role of these experts will be to provide feedback and

to complete a survey related to the building and its design.

Timeline and Testing Materials

The bulk of the design process will occur in March and go into early April. Spring break

is the first week of April, so the first design will be as close to done as possible in the following

week. While this is happening, a panel will be organized. This panel will be made up of experts

who will be shown the design for the building, and then provide feedback and initial design

scores. The panel discussion will take place in the third or fourth week of April. The remaining

time left in May will be used to take the feedback given into account and make changes to the

design, and the design will be finalized in early May.

The majority of the testing of the building will be done through a survey and a focus

group. This focus group will be made up of experts and those who have knowledge of the issue,
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such as architects, homeless rights activists, and members of the community. The building will

be presented to the focus group, and then there will be a discussion for immediate feedback.

Following the discussion, a survey will be given to the focus group. In this survey will be

questions that allow participants to rank aspects of the building. Based on the survey results, it

will be clear whether the initial design meets the criteria that has been set to signify the success

of the building. From here the final redesign session can take place, to make any changes

necessary to ensure the building meets the criteria.

Results and Data Collection

Two types of data will be able to be collected over the course of the project. The first is

qualitative data, which will come in the form of maps. Resources and services available to those

experiencing homelessness are spread across the city. This is what the first map will show, how

spread out all of these services are. The second will be the exactly the same as the first map,

except it will show how all of the services are consolidated within the building that is being

designed. In addition to this data, quantitative data will be collected. This data will come from

the survey given to the focus group which will be focused around aspects of the design. The

responses will determine if the building has met the criteria, i.e if experts think that there are

enough rooms, whether or not the services being provided make sense, etc. The answers to the

questions will be ranked on a numerical scale, and the average will be taken to identify the

overall answer to the question.

Sample Survey Questions:

● There is an adequate amount of rooms within the space provided

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○ Answers will be from 1-5, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly

agree

● The space within the building is distributed properly

○ Answers will be from 1-5, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly

agree

● The programs included within the building are useful and needed

○ Answers will be from 1-5, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly

agree

● The sustainable systems implemented in the building make sense and do not take away

from the overall purpose of the building

○ Answers will be from 1-5, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly

agree

● There is a good ratio of family rooms to single/couple rooms

○ Answers will be from 1-5, with 1 being strongly disagree and 5 being strongly

agree

Average Answer to Questions

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Question Average Answer

1 5 (strongly agree)

2 4 (agree)

3 4 (agree)

4 3 (neutral)

5 5 (strongly agree)

Figure 1.1. The first data table that will be used to show the average answer to each question, to

clearly show which areas need more improvement and which don’t.

Discussion

Seattle, along with cities across the nation, are in the midst of a homeless crisis. There is

a significant need for more housing to be developed, and for that housing to avoid the issues that

can be found within current shelters. Some of the most major of needs are the needs for a strong

community, security, and privacy. The design of this new building and shelter format will work

to address those issues, so that it is a more conducive and effective space. If this happens, then it

will allow more people to have a safe and reliable space to get back on their feet, allowing them

to focus more than just finding food and a place to sleep that night. With this redesign, there is a

potential for much improvement. It will allow policy makers a little more time to find a

permanent solution, as well as address the other issues that cause and come with homelessness.

Overall, there are great potential benefits that can come from this design.