Combining my professional passion for saving old structures with my personal commitment to social justice, I designed attractive and inspirational places to live, for people in poverty and distress, suffering from homelessness, mental illness, substance abuse and domestic violence.
Addressing both their practical needs and psychological concerns, I have helped individuals and families transition from crisis to stability to independence. Restoring buildings while reclaiming lives, I demonstrated that seemingly intractable social problems can be addressed in creative and innovative ways, by design. |
Located in rural upstate New York, Phoenix House Belle Terre is a residential substance abuse treatment center. The building is a large four-storey former early 20th century manor house of architectural distinction. It was renovated and adapted to its new use with respect for its exterior and interior historic character.
The upper floors house dormitory suites with toilets and showers. The lower floors have a living room, library, dining room and institutional kitchen and spaces for individual counseling and group therapy. The renovation work at Belle Terre included substantial resident participation in the reconstruction process, providing opportunities for clients to acquire construction skills and a sense of pride and ownership for the place in which they live during their treatment and recovery process. |
Cluster House is a residence for chronically homeless mentally ill women. It is located in two contiguous former tenement buildings, in Upper Manhattan, which were completely rebuilt and adapted for their new use.
Common spaces and support services are located on the two lower floors including a communal laundry, kitchen and dining room with access to a landscaped courtyard. The four upper floors contain forty-eight private resident rooms organized into suites of six rooms each, which share bath and toilet facilities. Residents are encouraged to arrange the furniture and furnishings, in their own rooms, in a way, which reflects their needs and makes them comfortable. The image of their own space, which residents are able to personalize, contributes to their feelings of self-worth and improves their ability to increase control over other aspects of their lives. At Cluster House, residents are provided not only with the practical necessities of life, but more importantly, the psychological essentials of "home" and the support services to help them function in the community. |
The Lee Goodwin Residence consists of two adjacent tenement buildings in the South Bronx, New York that were in seriously deteriorated condition and completely rebuilt for their new use. It provides housing and support services to formerly homeless mothers and children.
The families live in studio, one and two bedroom apartments depending upon family size. There are seven apartments on each residential floor that share a common hallway and laundry room. The two lower floors provide space for support services including family counseling, childcare and domestic skills training and space for resident "community" meetings. This unique place successfully integrates families into an existing neighborhood and supports them in their transition from homelessness to independence and self-sufficiency. |