HOME FOR GOOD

Briana Egan, Brandon Gil, Mahogany Jones Jorrison, Jack McGowan, Joey Tripi (Double Shift); James Herlihy, Lauren Herran, Mike Martinovic, Riley Siltler, Juan Romero Vasquez (Passive House); Ryan Edwards, Nate Marron, Michael Napier, Samantha Vetter (Tilt)

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Bradley Wales

Spring 2022

ARC404

BS Arch

How can architects cultivate domesticity and homeliness in a small residential space? The tiny home movement seeks to provide affordable and efficient accommodations for the unhoused. This design practicum course allowed senior architecture students to reflect on and design tiny energyefficient homes in local communities. The task was to produce permit-ready drawings for new prototypes for A Tiny Home for Good, a nonprofit organization based in Syracuse, NY. Working in close collaboration, the nonprofit organization and UB students explored innovative ideas for dwellings to be rented to individuals who face homelessness risks.

“I knew that we wouldn’t be able to help everyone, but it was an honor to know that I would be helping at least one individual.”

- Lauren Herran

Students' work was a part of the Small Built Works program, a comprehensive design-build practice tackling issues of affordable housing design. Through their work with local organizations, the course gave students a look into the documents and procedures necessary for professional projects. Daily tasks included design review boards with committees, discussions with neighborhood groups, design professionals, and licensed contractors, all while retaining a modest budget and construction schedule.

Students were organized in teams and worked to design 360-square-foot tiny home prototypes, bringing their ideas to professional standards over three months. Three prototypes will be built in Syracuse, across the street from A Tiny Home for Good’s headquarters. As a senior-level design seminar, the skills these students learned are highly applicable to a post-graduation career.

All three final proposals, Tilt, Double Shift, and Passive House organize housing strategies adequate for one or two individuals at a time. Fit with a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and exterior porch space, the tiny home prototypes provide homeless populations in Syracuse with a space to call their own. The designs focused on giving people a feeling of security and privacy while encouraging daily, healthy interactions with neighbors. Students described this process as a humbling experience, as they learned to account for the unique needs of people who previously experienced homelessness.

As of early 2023, A Tiny Home for Good broke ground on constructing their first tiny home designed by UB students, with plans to build the remaining two student proposals.