HOMELESSNESS IN OUR BACKYARD – How Architects can help the cause
New Hampshire faces a daunting homelessness crisis, ranking the state with the most dramatic escalation in the nation from 2022 to 2023. Exorbitant rental costs and a staggering shortfall of 23,670 housing units reflect the severity of the issue. Hillsborough County, including major cities Manchester and Nashua, is at the forefront of the crisis. In 2023, the city of Manchester collected data showing that 538 adults are experiencing homelessness, 416 sheltered and 120 unsheltered. Shockingly, during the 2022- 2023 school year, 788 Manchester school children reported experiencing homelessness, emphasizing the widespread impact and urgency of necessary solutions. City officials, nonprofits, and community organizations have made strides to address this immediate crisis by providing shelters, transitional housing, meals, mental health management, and substance use support services. However, the demand has surpassed available resources, exacerbating the problem. What can architects do to help? It is our basic function to provide shelter for human activities. But what happens when fellow humans don’t even have a home? As a team, Dennis Mires, The Architects has worked with various construction partners over the years to provide a humble contribution, varying with our client needs. The following project examples are the results of our call for action to help solve the crisis in New Hampshire.
Families in Transition (FIT) is a nonprofit organization located in Manchester dedicated to evidence-based approaches to address the root causes of homelessness.
After a first collaboration in 2010 for a ground-up 12-unit apartment building on Manchester’s Belmont Street, we partnered with the FIT Family Shelter and Resource Center on Lake Avenue in 2015.
Our task involved adding a second floor to an existing single-story brick building. The new upper level houses a family shelter (11 units with private baths), while the remodeled lower level accommodates a wide range of support services including a full kitchen and dining area, health clinic, daycare, and job training services. Thanks to Hutter Construction’s creative construction logistics, the vital existing childcare services ran uninterrupted as the second-floor prefabricated walls and roof were installed before the existing roof was removed. Strong fundraising efforts from the community and third-party nonprofit supporters helped make this project a reality. It has become a transforming building for those experiencing homelessness in Manchester.
At the height of the Covid crisis in 2020, Families in Transition received a New Hampshire Housing grant to add beds to their emergency homeless shelter on Manchester Street, which meant they had to relocate their pantry to make room. Along with North Branch Construction, we renovated a decrepit auto parts building on Lake Avenue for the new pantry (across the street from the family shelter discussed above).
The project doubled the food pantry’s square footage, providing a grocery shopping-like experience to residents dealing with food insecurity. As a result, the emergency shelter can accommodate about 40 more beds while following Covid distancing protocols.
Family Promise is a national nonprofit organization with a mission to help low-income families achieve sustainable independence through local affiliates. They operate in 43 states, and the Southern New Hampshire outpost is based in Nashua. They provide legal and transportation assistance, financial literacy, and temporary housing to families experiencing homelessness.
In 2020 they acquired the former Infant Jesus School in Nashua to convert it into a new transitional housing facility for local families. Hutter Construction managed the largely interior renovation of the old school to fit the diverse program of multi-family transitional housing and support services.
1269 Café Ministries is a Christian-based outreach nonprofit, offering multiple levels of support for the homeless in Manchester. In 2020, the Cafe purchased the former St. Casimir School at 456 Union Street. Our team at Dennis Mires, The Architects has assisted them in developing their vision of a transformational living program, with a first-floor shelter and dining area and upper-floor single resident occupancy rooms, in addition to their staff support services touching sobriety, mental health, and life skills. A grant from the Community Development Finance Authority kick-started the process with the hiring of a new executive director in August 2023.
The previous projects were developed in direct response to homelessness, but our office has also contributed to help prevent homelessness.
Farmsteads New England is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower adults with autism and other developmental disabilities to live meaningful and satisfying lives by providing exceptional residential and day services in inclusive farm communities. In 2005, Deborah DeSenza, Farmsteads founder, reached out to our firm to design six buildings in Hillsborough. We have continued this long-term relationship and are currently working with Martini Northern, LLC on the construction of four of eight new buildings at their Redberry Farm in Epping, NH.
Since 1971, Second Start has been dedicated to educating adults and providing them with employable skills. It also focuses on assisting adolescents who have been unsuccessful in finding and maintaining employment while also offering a substance abuse program to those in need. Our office and Milestone Engineering & Construction LLC joined Second Start in the program development and interior renovations of the Garrison Building, where adult education, office training, and childcare programs are provided.
Our team is always honored to help our local communities, and we look forward to doing even more. How can you contribute to ending homelessness? We call on you to join us in action:
- Provide pro-bono or reduced-fee services to nonprofit organizations focused on homelessness, encouraging contractors and suppliers to reduce their fees,
- Seek out and design affordable housing projects that efficiently utilize space and resources, and advocate for developers to integrate low-income housing in their projects.
- Advocate professionally and personally:
- Advocate for policy changes at the local and state levels to prioritize affordable housing initiatives
- Volunteer with the Legislative Affairs Committee (reach out to Michael McKeown, Partner at Dennis Mires, The Architects and Committee Chair)
- Establish a Reinforcing Community Committee similar to the Committee on Homelessness in Seattle (aiaseattle.org/ committees/committee-on-homelessness) to address local needs and collaborate with other organizations.
- Offer your time/money to nonprofit boards, soup kitchens, or shelters.
Source: https://www.flipsnack.com/aianhforum/spring-2024-forum/full-view.html