Path Home

Location: Portland, Oregon

Year Constructed: 1961

Work Completed: 2020

Nominator: Jessica Helgerson Interior Design

Project Budget: $1.9M

DeMuro Award Recognizes: Reuse, Craftsmanship, Affordable Housing, Equity

 

History:  Constructed in 1961 as the Lents Evangelical United Brethren Church, this striking Mid-Century Modern building underwent multiple renovations prior to becoming a permanent Path Home shelter for unhoused families in the greater Portland area. Renovation of this building created shared spaces for cooking, dining, laundry, bathing, reading, learning, playing, lounging, and gathering, as well as private bedrooms. Path Home is the first and only shelter in Oregon featuring trauma-informed design and architecture. The trauma-informed design provides opportunities for healing and rebuilding after experiencing homelessness. As of 2022, the shelter has served 524 families, including 1055 children and 817 adults. 

 

Overview:  This project, the Family Village Campus, is a permanent shelter space that provides families with direct access to services, classes, and supplies while they partner with staff to secure long-term housing. The project team through significant pro-bono work, approached design decisions through lenses such as safety, accessibility, flexibility, connectivity, inclusion, health, and healing. For example, they added new floor-to-ceiling windows in the shared living space to maximize natural light. Round paper lights were chosen to cast a warm glow. A system of new low walls helps create areas of refuge while maintaining connectivity. To tie these walls back to the original structure, swooping returns were added in response to existing trusses, creating visual harmony in the dialogue between old and new. A limited palette of soft blues, greens, and cream was used to create a sensation of calm. Woven lights, natural wood, and plants infuse warmth, tactility, and vitality. The design team’s overarching goal was to create an environment that fosters restoration, safety, and comfort. 

 

Congratulations to the entire project team:

Carleton Hart Architecture

Path Home

Jessica Helgerson Interior Design

Prato Landscape Architecture

Corlett Landscape Architecture

 

Photos by Aaron Leitz.