Design, to me, is an act of empathy—an opportunity to craft spaces and objects that honor the dignity of those who interact with them. My career has focused on creating environments that are equitable and authentic to the end-user experience. While working in affordable housing, I collaborated with consultants, the client, and residents to create spaces that exceed code requirements and respond to end-user desires, ensuring a sense of safety and belonging.
My background in industrial design and urban resilience has further deepened my understanding of the relationship between small-scale details and larger systems. This perspective informs my approach to projects of every scale, from refining intricate material connections to coordinating with design teams on complex building systems. I explore how elements like light, form, and texture can transform spaces into places that tell a story, evoke emotion, and enhance the lives of those who inhabit them.
Whether designing, teaching, or mentoring, collaboration remains central to my work. I’ve learned that the best outcomes arise when a diversity of voices are thoughtfully engaged throughout the process. My goal, in every project, is to create designs that are not only resilient and practical but also enrich the lives of individuals and communities.
COLONY HOMES; PHASE 1+2
SENIOR HOUSING RECONSTRUCTION;
Total Units; 220 Over 4 Phases
Phase 1: 45 Units
Phase 2: 48 Units
1BR Affordable Units + Amenity
Passive House
Phase 1 SD - CD BID SETS; FEB 2023 -Apr 2024
PHASE 2 SD-DD SET; Feb 2024-Apr 2024
PRIMARY ROLE;
Architectural Designer Unit Design Lead
TASKS;
Client Engagement
End-User Research + Outreach
Phasing + Site Strategy
Balcony + Facade Conceptualization
Amenity Conceptualization
Egress Plans
Air Control Diagramming
Trash Room Design
Laundry Room Design
Unit Design: Code Review
Enlarged Unit Plans + RCPs
Enlarged Unit Part Plans
Enlarged Unit Kitchen Plans
Enlarged Unit Bath Plans
PROGRAMS USED;
Revit
Sketch Up
Bluebeam
InDesign
COLONY RETIREMENT HOMES
08/02/2024COLONY PH. 1 BID SET
This particular Colony Retirement Home facility sits on a sprawling campus across 13 buildings, and is currently severly out of date and inaccessible. PCA proposed remodeling the facility in phases to keep it operational and minimize disruption to existing residents.
The client’s primary goal is equity between units and mutual access to all amenity spaces. They want their residents to be able to age with dignity and to retain their balconies and outdoor spaces.
Amenity spaces achieve mutual access through a central spine that connects all buildings to the dining hall, nurse offices, media room, art room, exercise room, salon, and community bakery. Thereimagined site provides space for the active garden club, walking paths, and shaded seating.
As unit lead, I was responsible for balancing client needs and design team goals while working within a limited footprint. A consistent emphasis on user experience and resident feedback led to crutial layout decisions in the first two phases that set a footprint standard for future phases.
All units are 1 bedroom, roughly equal in size, and have access to a private balcony. All units were held to EOHLC, ADA, and CMR standards.
COLONY HOMES
Through weekly client coordination meetings as well as end-user engagement, we assessed both facility and resident needs, striving to incorporate them in each area of design.
Bathrooms and Kitchens were held to EOHLC, ADA, and CMR standards. I worked closely with the interiors team to adjust layout and select finishes according to client preferences as well as accessibility needs for an aging population.
COLONY HOMES
ALLSTON GREEN A+B+C
ALLSTON GREEN -BUILDING
MIXED-USE MULTI-FAMILY;
292 Units Across 3 Buildings
Compact Living
Affordable Artist Lofts + Market Rate
Studio, 1 + 2 Bedroom Units
DD - GMP SETS; Feb 2022 -July 2022
PRIMARY ROLE;
Architectural Designer Unit Design
TASKS;
Code Review + Summary
Construction Type Diagram
Egress Plans
Air Control Diagramming
Overall Floor Plans
Stair Plans + Section Trash Room Plans
Unit Design:
Enlarged Unit Plans + RCPs
Enlarged Unit Part Plans
Enlarged Unit Kitchen Plans
Enlarged Unit Bath Plans
Enlarged Amenity Bath Plans
PROGRAMS USED; Revit InDesign
ALLSTON GREEN -BUILDINGS
07/28/2022GMP DOCUMENTS
Allston Green was conceptualized as a compact living,
artist community. The first floor held affordable live-work artist lofts proximate to a public green. Amenity spaces were further geared toward creative residency with artist coworking spaces and art gallaries. Choice facades hold public art and an outward facing saloon creates the feeling of a promanade for community members to join in the creation and exchange of art.
As a unit designer, I was responsible for stream lining unit, bath, and kitchen types across studio, 1BR, and 2BR units, assessing code compliance, and coordinating with HVAC and MEP consultants to ensure functionality in a limited footprint.
As with all projects, I approached my role end-user first and prioritized their living experience when configuring each unit.
JEDI
JEDI (JUSTICE EQUITY DIVERSITY + INCLUSION)
EDUCATION + DESIGN STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT
Co-developed an educational branch within PCA’s JEDI organization to increase awareness of inclusive design methods and facilitate their integration into the firm’s processes.
The JEDIxDesign Strategic Plan is a reflection of the initiatives started in 2022, also acting as a breakdown of the projects to be pursued in 2023. The overall goal is to integrate JEDI thinking into the design process through education and a roadmap/checklist for project implementation. All of the efforts outlined in the strategic plan reflect the moving pieces that will acchieve the JEDIxDesign goal.
Collaboratively designed between myself and a fellow colleague, the JEDIxDesign Strategic Implementation Plan encompasses existing and needed strategies to integrate JEDI thinking into the design process through internal education and project implementation. Creating this flowchart enabled us to identify gaps within implementation efforts and develop efforts to address them.
See Miro Board For Details https://miro.com/app/board/uXjVPSxzluk=/? moveToWidget=3458764535991221659&cot=10
Roles:
JEDI x Design Education Leaders - Develop the strategic plan, workshops, and design processes that integrate JEDI thinking into our design practice. (Yasmine and Becker)
JEDI Calendar Manager Maintain JEDI calendar cohesion on the Ruth between workshops, design shares, coffee talks, and roundtables. Identify coffee talk/design share/roundtable vacancies and seek out PCA people to
ll them. Be a point of contact for people looking to share.
JEDI Resource Library Manager - Maintain JEDI resource library on Ruth by adding resources, gathering resources from others, making necessary revisions, sharing resources in micro shares or roundtables, and assisting others who want to share their own resources. JEDI Leaders and PCA Consultants Members of PCA JEDI team that contribute to the JEDI x
Key Questions:
- How do these goals and outcomes align with PCA's goals (JEDI or other)?
- What outcomes do you think PCA needs? How can we adjust our
orts to meet these needs?
- How much space/time/resource is PCA able to allocate towards these JEDI initiatives? (i.e. towards beta testing the EP Survey on a project)
- How should we best prioritize these initiatives accordingly as we create a continuous space for education and its design outcomes? Who should be involved as a collaborator to do so?
In order to effectively expand JEDI design knowledge, we developed a multi-teared educational system of workshops, roundtables, and intranet library resources with units on Environmental Psychology, Trauma Informed Design, and Community Engagement.
We worked with experts in the field to develop workshops and collateral for each unit, fellow JEDI council members to bring 30 minute roundtable topic refreshers, and our IT Director to develop PCA’s JEDIxDESIGN Intranet Resource Library.
This three pronged approach influenced design teams to integrate JEDI research and strategies into their projects. Subsequently developed Environmental Psychology check-list further integrated JEDI efforts into the design process.
