An example design typology for transitional housing. The “Cultivating Resilience” plan proposes a city park that embraces the unhoused  population by providing  transitional shelter while enhancing park quality for neighbors and increasing urban resilience. The transitional housing community includes a modular, off-grid infrastructure that is rapidly deployable and removable. During emergencies, the space can be used for respite shelters. Produced by Tshewang Tamang, Victor Garcia, and William Wei-Ti Lien.

Principal Investigator: Yekang Ko (Landscape Architecture)

Project Summary: This research develops a transdisciplinary approach to resilience in urban environments by addressing the needs of vulnerable, unhoused populations who face increasing environmental challenges. Through a collaboration with the City of Eugene and local nonprofits, the project systematically links short-term (overnight shelters), mid-term satellite transitional villages), and longer-term (permanent supportive housing) options through a conceptual city-wide network that connects transitional and permanent housing communities. The interdisciplinary project team is developing  design typologies for each housing type andan advanced, multifunctional, landscape system model for transitional housing communities. The team is applying the model to Opportunity Village Eugene through a collaborative design process that includes surveys, focus groups, and economic analysis to evaluate the triple bottom line (social, environmental, and economic) performance of the model and its health benefits. In response to  the COVID-19 pandemic, the project team is conducting  a critical review of emerging literature on pandemic community engagement, adapting the engagement and implementation process for safety and effectiveness, and re-envisioning the overall approach to housing for vulnerable populations in the post-COVID world.

Team Members: Barbara Muraca (Philosophy and ENVS), Kory Russel (Landscape Architecture and ENVS), Junhak Lee (Landscape Architecture), Matt Polizzotto (Earth Science), Alexandra Rempel (ENVS), Wonhee Arndt (Product Design), Jacques Abelman (Landscape Architecture)

Partners: Ronald Severson (MAPLE Microdevelopment), Dan Bryant (SquareOne Village), Regan Watjus (City of Eugene)