City of Sacramento, Homeless Supportive Housing

This housing conceptual design is one of three that can be deployed at multiple identified sites in the City of Sacramento to help transition people from living on the streets to permanent housing.

The design is a kit of parts that can be deployed wherever necessary and then moved to the next area of the city that needs it. Our solution fits the operating model of local non-profits that will be operating the community sites and providing supportive services to the individuals.

Each housing unit begins with a solid floor base, built from common framing materials. A modular system, it is based on a 4’ x 8’ sheet of plywood. Connection points are built in to join floor bases together creating three different sizes: single occupancy, double occupancy, or family units (for up to 4 people). These same connection points provide solid attachment for the tent frames. We minimized the length of the poles in the frame, and used standard connectors to simplify construction and repair of each housing unit or “tent cabin”.

Each tent cabin has an enclosed space for sleeping and storage, and an open porch for seating or storing large items such as bikes and carts. The tent cabins are organized into small villages, and have a large central gathering space with picnic tables and a large shade structure. The villages can have between 8-15 people and can also combine with adjacent villages to create a community of 30-40 people. Each identified site can accommodate a maximum of 110 people, utilizing a single administration tent and service personnel.

Our team includes Atlas Lab, Inc., and Buehler Engineering, Inc., and is part of a joint program of ULI Sacramento, AIA Central Valley, and Downtown Partnership, working directly with the City of Sacramento and the mayor to provide housing solutions that are easily deployable across the city while promoting dignity, security, and safety for the unhoused population and the surrounding communities. Our work was presented to Mayor Darrell Steinberg and included in his presentation for the 2021 Master Siting Plan to Address Homelessness, adopted by the City Council on August 10th, 2021.