Great & Small

By Connie Bye

Photos by David Cohen

Three tiny new houses at the Morales Farm view ecofriendliness through a different lens. The reHOME project relied on reclaimed and repurposed materials to create housing for Friends of the Farms interns.

In December, it won an American Institute of Architects Award of Merit.

Architect Matthew Coates said he became concerned a decade ago that still usable items—cabinets, fixtures, doors, lumber—go to landfills when a structure is demolished. He found an opportunity with reHOME, a collaborative effort by Coates Design, Friends of the Farms, Clark Construction and Housing Resource Bainbridge, to give these materials new life. Coates’ staff donated 500 to 600 hours to the project.

Friends of the Farms began housing interns in the Morales farmhouse in 2012, Executive Director Heather Burger said via

Performers were part of the planning as well. Dressing rooms and other behind-the-scenes areas in the old theater building are part of the upgrade. For musicals, the orchestra can be seated on a balcony perched above the performance platform, opening the entire space below for a show to unfold.

Supply-chain delays and other COVID-related problems meant switching materials in some instances and coping with schedule changes and price increases. Still, the project is on track to be finished in time for the start of BPA’s performance season in the fall, Spillinger said.

“The audience’s experience, the actors’ experience will be phenomenal,” he predicted. “When we have the first performance and everything works, I’ll feel like my job is done.” email. “With three small bedrooms and only one bathroom, it was not ideal as group housing.”

Now, interns can share the farmhouse’s updated kitchen, laundry and gathering spaces. Each tiny house provides sleeping quarters for two, a bathroom and shared space.

“Affordable housing and access to farmland are the two biggest threats to local agriculture,” Burger said. Rescued materials and volunteer labor made the tiny houses affordable.

“Our local farmers are stewards of the land, using sustainable practices and protecting our natural resources,” she said, “so creating environmentally responsible housing builds on that ethos.”