Overland Partners Architects changing the standard for which homeless centers are designed; Project is also the winner of four national design awards for architectural excellence
DALLAS, March 8, 2010 – The Bridge Homeless Assistance Center, located in downtown Dallas, has officially received LEED Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, making it the largest homeless shelter in the United States to be LEED certified. The Bridge is one of only five U.S. homeless shelters to be considered “green” and is the second homeless shelter to be certified LEED Silver (the other being in Austin, Texas). The project, designed by San Antonio-based Overland Partners Architects in association with Dallas-based CamargoCopeland Architects, has also received four prestigious national awards in recent months for its design: the American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) 2009 National Housing Award, the AIA/Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Award, a 2009 National Excellence in Design Award from Environmental Design + Construction magazine and the 2009 Chicago Athenaeum’s American Architecture Award.
Completed in May 2008, the multi-purpose facility provides a broad spectrum of care including housing, emergency and transitional care for more than 6,000 people in Dallas experiencing long-term homelessness. Situated on a previously developed 3.41-acre site in Dallas’ central business district, The Bridge’s campus setting provides a continuum of care for the city’s homeless population, inclusive of medical, mental, job training, and personal care services. Consisting of five buildings to create a boundary at the edge of the property, the center consists of a three-story services building, a one-story welcome building, a storage building, an open air pavilion, and a dining facility which serves as a focal point to the interior landscaped courtyard of the campus and also as a magnet providing social workers with an opportunity to connect with the homeless.
The Bridge also has multiple sustainable amenities, all of which contributed to its LEED Silver Certification. These include:
- The Bridge is located within the Emerald Bracelet, a network of existing and future paths and parks that surround the downtown area. It is served by excellent public transportation and is within walking distance of many city services and amenities;
- All buildings were developed to maximize daylight, reduce the use of artificial light and provide strong visual connections to the world outside. For example, there is excellent natural lighting with views to the outdoors from 90% percent of the regularly occupied spaces, and task lighting is used for the residents’ personal use during the evening hours;
- A greywater recycling system that saves more than 1.5 million gallons of water per year. With more than 188 plumbing fixtures, a commercial laundry facility, an extensive landscape irrigation and full-service kitchen that serves 500+ meals a day, water consumption was a major concern. Thus, a greywater system was implemented to mitigate high water use by capturing large volumes of water from showers and laundering facilities, treating it and reusing it for flushing urinals and toilets;
- A temporary shelter/pavilion that’s housed in a reclaimed warehouse equipped with massive ceiling fans and radiant heaters to moderate temperatures;
- A waste management program that was implemented during the construction process to ensure that 70% of building construction waste was diverted from landfills.
- Materials were selected for their environmental impact: 100% low VOC, 20% of all materials were local, 40% of all building materials contained recycled components;
- A green-roofed dining room, which not only reduces the heating and cooling load of the HVAC system for the dining hall building, but also helps to reduce the heat island effect and provides a visual burst of color to residents on the upper levels of the facility;
- A landscape design that incorporates native or adapted plants that require little to no irrigation, further contributing to the water reduction strategies of the project. Also, upon reaching maturity, the trees on the interior courtyard will further enhance energy savings by providing additional shading and cooling for the surrounding buildings and courtyard;
“Unlike traditional homeless assistance facilities that resemble dark warehouses and gymnasiums, The Bridge features translucent walls that allow natural light to flood into residential areas, glass art panels inscribed with poetry written by the homeless, and classrooms and job training areas that are visible from the street,” said James Andrews, AIA, principal at Overland Partners Architects. “The Bridge has not only made a positive impact for Dallas’ homeless population, but also on its surrounding environment due to its numerous green design features.”
In addition to The Bridge, Overland Partners Architects is leading the design of Haven for Hope, a 37-acre one-stop homeless assistance campus located just west of downtown San Antonio. When completed in early 2010, the $90-million project will include approximately 440,000 square feet of space and 998 beds under roof, as well as a courtyard area with the capacity to sleep more than 500 additional individuals. Haven for Hope will also include housing for homeless families, job training, dog kennels, medical care, detoxification and other medical and social services provided by dozens of agencies and organizations housed within the center. Haven for Hope is expected to be one of the most comprehensive homeless facilities in the country and a standard bearer for homeless assistance centers. It has already been visited by representatives from more than three dozen cities.
ABOUT THE BRIDGE HOMELESS ASSISTANCE SHELTER
“The Bridge,” meets the growing concerns of homelessness in Dallas, Texas. A safe haven and focus for services for more than 6,000 needy, it empowers chronic and newly homeless to come off the streets and sustain permanent housing in order to live productively. The Center supports guests, provides a safe and attractive work environment, and improves the surrounding community. As a beacon of hope it provides a strong visual presence within the city and elevates the quality of public spaces. It engages the community in transforming the lives of its most disenfranchised members, proving that shelters should not be isolated, but an integrated part of our community; they are valuable civic buildings representing the compassion of our society. To learn more about The Bridge and The Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance please visit http://www.mdhadallas.org/
ABOUT OVERLAND PARTNERS
Overland Partners Architects, founded in 1985 in San Antonio, Texas, is a realization of a vision to bring together a wide range of talents in architecture and planning, in order to provide comprehensive and multi-disciplinary design service. Sensitive to the environmental and aesthetic context in which we are asked to design, the firm strives for a thoughtful integration of technology, art, and craft through highly sustainable solutions. Overland Partners Architects offers its clients the ultimate goal of creating a beautiful, functional and enduring design through a process that inspires long-term relationships and is rewarding to the entire project team. For more information, visit www.overlandpartners.com.
ABOUT CAMARGOCOPELAND
Founded in 1985, CamargoCopeland Architects, LLP offers architectural, interior architecture/design, and planning services. The company’s principals, Myriam E. Camargo, AIA and E.J. Copeland, AIA and its staff form an accomplished and highly skilled team with experience in corporate development, educational/public institutions, hospitality/club developments, and retail facilities. CamargoCopeland Architects is registered with the State of Texas as an Historically Underutilized Business and operates as a Minority/Woman Owned Business Enterprise. In 1999, the Dallas Business Journal recognized CamargoCopeland Architects in its annual Book of Lists as the “Largest Woman-Owned Full Service Architecture Firm in the Dallas Metroplex.” For more information, visit http://www.camargocopeland.com.
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Media Contact: Claire Bloxom
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