Built in the early 1900’s, our host structure is a decommissioned convent building located in a single family residential neighborhood. Sharing boundaries with a church and a school, the site is non-conforming with the R-1 zoning. As a non-conforming site, the new use of the convent for emergency family shelter may elicit opposition from abutters. As such, the original entrance to the convent, located on a residential street, will be reversed to the rear and away from its neighbors. Additions are not possible as the floor area ratio is maximized.
Within a site characterized by long, single-loaded circulation, our intervention takes the form of a new
programmable wall system to be implemented within the corridors. The 2-sided wall system caters to children on one side and at one height and to adults on the other. These walls take various forms depending on their location, ranging from study pods, to storage in administrative rooms to kitchenettes in the residential areas and, at a child’s height, to a variety of activities, textures and opportunities for interaction. The walls provide ordinary comfort for the adult residents by easing their day to day activities while creating children’s programs to aid them in the healing process through play. This system continues into the exterior where a small wall of playful sculptures serve as a prelude to the entrance.