Best seniors supportive housing design for Global Awards shortlisted
LOS ANGELES: The shortlist for the best seniors supportive housing design has been declared.
Over 250 designs have been considered by the awards secretariat. One of the finalists in this category is shown above.
When John Yazwinski got a phone call in June 2020 from a friend at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) about a free federal property, he was immediately intrigued by the opportunity.
Nearly three years later, Yazwinski—president and CEO of Father Bill’s and MainSpring, a Brockton, Massachusetts nonprofit that provides housing and services to prevent and end homelessness—was thrilled to oversee the groundbreaking of the new $19 million Housing Resource Center, a campus consisting of a day center, an emergency shelter, and efficiency apartments, in addition to space for wraparound services.
“I had never heard of ‘Title V’ before this, which is a program that offers federal surplus property for free to homeless services providers,” Yazwinski says. “We competed against other groups who were interested in the site, but we have experience in housing development, as well as services. We immediately began working with the mayor of Brockton, both of our senators, and the state delegation to Congress to get their support.”
Although the three-year process was arduous for Yazwinski and his organization, the outcome was positive. For others, the Title V program is both promising and aggravating.
“Title V has been in existence for more than 30 years, and it states that surplus federal buildings and property must be evaluated and made available to nonprofit organizations and state and local governments to serve unhoused people,” says Antonia Fasanelli, executive director of the National Homelessness Law Center in Washington, D.C. “In our experience, nonprofit agencies and state and local governments need developers to assist them when they want to provide housing for unhoused people.”
Yazwinski turned to the state government for funding.
The Global Award winner will be announced in November in London. (Globals)