Afro Village Reimagine MAX LRT

Alternative Shelter on Wheels

Project Summary

Project Level: Non-Profit Project

Project type: Public Interest Design/ Design Built

Year: 2020 - present

Location: Portland, Oregon

Main Tools: Sketchup, Photoshop, Illustrator

Links: http://www.centerforpublicinterestdesign.org/maxreuse-design-challenge https://www.afrovillagepdx.org/work/project-twom4fgg-62e8l

I got a chance to start this project while working with the City of Portland and later collaborated with Portland State University to research and design the potential solution to repurpose the decommissioned MAX light rail train from Trimet. As a team, we created a design challenge in 2020 to explore visions and alternatives for the decommissioned MAX LRT with designers. Our goal is to use this opportunity to help people in underserved communities, especially unhoused community and prevent the cars from ending up as waste or scraps. I am later working with the people choice’s winner of the challenge in Summer, 2020, the Afro Village team.Their goal is to use these trains to provide services for food, hygene, and therapy for unhoused communities.

Site Diagram

Food Resource Laundry

Shower

Street Arts and MAX LRT Mock-up

This Project is on-going. In Summerof 2021, we celebrated the one year anniversary and rose the awareness of inequallity issues, housing crisis, and our upcoming repurposing MAX LRT. I designed the street art to reflect what houseless people need inorder toget back into the society. The MaxMockup was built to let people experience what the repurposed MAX LRT could look and feel like.