Architecture for Humanity - New York

The Park Slope Women's Shelter located in the Park Slope Armory is operated by CAMBA, one of the largest community-based social services agencies in Brooklyn.

AFHny is offering pro-bono design services with the goal of working with CAMBA, their staff and their residents to envision what their space can become. AFHny volunteers will work with CAMBA to create one or more “model apartments” and other necessary support spaces within the existing space of the shelter. These new programmatic elements will provide numerous benefits to the clients of the shelter as well as the city-wide support systems for homelessness:

• Through providing these new “learning spaces”, Park Slope Women's Shelter will be able to educate clients on what it is like to live on their own after completing their stay at the shelter. In learning how to effectively interact with a new, unfamiliar environment, clients will gain a realistic expectation of the day to day elements associated with caring for their own space (such as cooking, cleaning, etc.). This will help the clients visualize their life after the shelter, and will encourage them to responsibly problem solve when they experience setbacks or challenges in their future housing arrangement. This will close the gap that many clients experience between their life within the shelter and their new life outside the shelter, serving as an important step in the process of re-adjustment or “de-institutionalization” / “de-shelterization”.

• The new spaces will also be used to grant the clients access to a more private space than the shelter environment can currently provide. This increased privacy can be used as an incentive for accelerated success at Park Slope Women's Shelter. Short term “stay” in the model apartment with another individual could also provide the clients with a positive experience for considering shared living as a viable housing option, which would enable them to realize and take advantage of the economic benefits and additional support networks in the future. A new outlook on shared housing could also decrease the length of the client’s stay at the shelter, as it would expand the options for their housing package.

• Providing new programmatic spaces will not only benefit Park Slope Women's Shelter and its clients, but will also provide additional relief to the Department of Homeless Services. DHS is experiencing high levels of strain due to multiple factors, including the current economic climate. Through providing additional support to their existing clients, Park Slope Women's Shelter will expand the understanding of the challenges its clients will face following their stay at the shelter, leaving them better equipped for life on their own. This, in turn, will decrease recivity rates. The addition of a model apartment will also increase the number of clients the shelter can currently accept, which will provide additional relief to New York City as a whole.

It is the intention of AFHny to help make this vision a reality through responsible and affordable design efforts. As the project moves forward, we are also willing to assist in fundraising, grant applications, and in-kind donation requests as necessary. For more information about this project and how you can become involved, please contact Emily Sprague.