Palm Springs Homeless Navigation Center

2025 Design Award Recipient-Citation

Palm Springs Homeless Navigation Center

An underutilized site was transformed into the vibrant new Palm Springs Homeless Navigation Center. 80 transitional residences to served unhoused individuals and families are contained in modular pre-fabricated buildings. A 50-bed overnight shelter along with case management, job training, dining, laundry, and other services are housed in two renovated warehouses. Outdoor public spaces unify all elements, fostering community and a sense of belonging. The City of Palm Springs, facility operator Martha’s Kitchen and Village, and local residents provided programming and community input. Funding is by California’s HomeKey Program, City of Palm Springs, and Riverside County.

Situated on a sloping desert site with stunning mountain views, the Center eschews traditional notions of how facilities serving our unhoused should appear. It embraces an extroverted design that is inclusive and welcoming. The resultant campus-like setting provides generous exterior and interior public spaces in addition to the privacy and dignity of the residential sanctuaries.

The architects holistically organized the modular housing along a central promenade to create a strong sense of place, organization, and flow, and to promote visibility and security. The 80 new housing units include 51 efficiency studios, 24 dwellings with kitchenettes, and 5 2-BR family residences. Elevated walkways emphasize connectivity and provide shade to below. Each unit has a view of the mountains juxtaposed behind immediate shared outdoor spaces.

Environmental graphics enliven public spaces and enhance wayfinding. Swaths of vibrant color demonstrate the powerful impact of a coat of paint. East-facing facades project warm colors of sunrise; western ones cool, sunset colors. Large graphic letters and door numbers foster pride of ownership and easy navigation. Additional amenities (playground, landscaping, walking paths, dog run) contribute a neighborhood-like feel.

The Center’s design advances equity, dignity, and community and reflects the architects’ foundational belief that architecture is a social service with the power to change lives.

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This is a container building, used in a rather innovative and fun fashion. As a center for people in crisis, it feels welcoming and accessible–a place of shelter. The space allows people access to privacy, but also to communal spaces, which are really lovely. It works with the site so well to mediate between the adaptive reuse of those industrial buildings and yet also opens and weaves perfectly into the mountains beyond.

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Measure 1: Design for Integration

The Center’s architecture advances equity, dignity, and community through transparency, intelligent site planning, generous spatial proportions, and vibrant environmental graphics. These tools support the designers’ foundational belief that architecture is a social service with the power to change lives. Reuse of existing warehouse structures rather than building all new formed the core of a sustainable design strategy that included selection of economical yet high-performing HVAC systems and equipment; recycled and low-VOC materials, and drought-tolerant and native landscaping. With the belief that these choices link directly to social, emotional, and physical well-being, the design is also sustainable in how it connects people to nature and to each other. The Multipurpose Room inside the main warehouse directly links services with residences. The residential bars are laid out to prioritize community and nature, with a wide central promenade that promotes visibility as well as placemaking. Second floor walkways bridge over first floor units and shade pathways below, turning often repetitive modular construction into something dynamic and exciting. All units have views of the mountains or gardens. Bright graphics create a joyful and easy-to-navigate environment. In sum, design excellence creates a cohesive, full-service living environment that promotes well-being and dignity.

Measure 2: Design for Equitable Communities

Project managers representing State of CA organized three community meetings with active participation by the architects. Over 30 members of the local community attended each one and provided valuable insights into everything from local environmental forces to their attitude toward homelessness. What was very clear was that this community wishes to engage with this project, provide assistance by organizing events and programs on behalf of the unhoused, provide free services for families (such as free tutoring for youth), and more. Most significant was that the community’s attitude shifted, evolving from wariness and strong NIMBY-ism to optimistic, generous, and engaged.

Measure 3: Design for Ecosystems

The existing warehouses were reused, and the remaining site was transformed into a community of modular buildings sensitively embedded in a cohesively designed landscape that offers shade, community paths, and gathering areas for residents, in addition to gardens and planters that encourage new habitats of local floral and fauna to evolve. 49 trees and a variety of bushes, shrubs, and ground cover were planted and have transformed the original hardscape into a haven where native species, including Encelia Farinose Brittlebush and Simmondsia Chinensis Jojoba, can thrive. As this landscape matures, all of these new habitats will likewise flourish.

Measure 4: Design for Water

Designed utilizing hydrologic and hydraulic calculations, the on-site stormwater system treats stormwater within a primary settling chamber before it is discharged to the underground detention storage tank and drywell. The Whitewater River Region WQMP Guidance for Pam Springs provided project-specific best management practices that are appropriate for building in the desert. All planted material is low or very-low water use, drought tolerant, and climate appropriate. All irrigation systems utilize smart controllers with satellite weather data access to conserve water and meet MWELO requirements. Inside, Energy-Star appliances and fixtures are utilized.

Measure 5: Design for Economy

80 modular housing units were prefabricated off-site and sized based on transport requirements. Modular construction was chosen because of the fast time-line of the project. Additionally, a select number of types of units were designed, enabling the economic benefits of repetition. Significant cost savings were also made possible by the reuse of the existing warehouse buildings. The early access center warehouse was made functional with minimal investment so that more of the budget could be used on the navigation center and modular housing.

Measure 6: Design for Energy

Passive and active strategies reduce energy consumption. Warehouses were renovated with added insulation and new insulated glass window assemblies to reduce heat transfer. Electrical systems are low energy, and lighting is tied to occupancy and daylight sensors. A high-albedo white cool roof reduces solar gain and heat island effect. For the modular buildings, second floor walkways provide shade to reduce solar heat gain and energy use. Intelligent site planning enables all units to have ample natural light, cross-ventilation, and expansive views.

Measure 7: Design for Well-Being

The modular housing is organized along a central promenade that promotes a strong sense of place and heightened visibility. Residential units are linked via paths and elevated walkways that promote interaction and community; site circulation focuses on waypoints that connect residents to nature. Residences have views of mountains and shared outdoor gardens. Instead of double-loaded corridors, units are arranged in single bars that ensure that each has access to natural light and cross ventilation. Pets are welcome; a dog run as well as playground augment abundant outdoor activity areas and gardens and are meant to be enjoyed by all.

Measure 8: Design for Resources

Renovating the existing warehouses preserved their embodied energy and prioritizes maintenance and repair. Cost effective and low-VOC materials were transformative and the design benefitted from the fact the warehouses’ high ceilings, which would not have been financially viable for a new building. The use of modular construction for the new housing enabled a faster schedule and limited construction waste. They are clad in fiber cement board which is durable, recyclable, and with recycled content and low embodied carbon. All other materials, including carpet, formica, and Caesarstone, are likewise low-VOC, durable, and sustainable.

Measure 9: Design for Change

The desert climate of Palm Springs is dangerous. This project actively assists vulnerable individuals and families and protects them from harm, with an expandable project that accommodates transitional use and reconfigurability. Two of the warehouses on site have been fully renovated to have an additional 50-year life, and an additional warehouse on the site has 22,430 SF of space that can be transformed in the future. A large Multipurpose Room, frequently used for dining and gathering, is a flexible sanctuary from the desert heat. Finally, because the residences are modular, they can be reconfigured to accommodate unforeseen circumstances.

Measure 10: Design for Discovery

The project’s limited budget demanded creativity. Environmental graphics enliven public spaces and enhance navigation. Swaths of vibrant color demonstrate the powerful impact of paint. East-facing facades project warm sunrise colors; western ones cool, sunset hues. Large graphic letters and numbers foster pride of ownership. Additional amenities (playground, landscaping, dog run) contribute to a neighborhood-like feel, and pathways through secondary gardens promote chance meetings and moments of discovery and delight. This Center does not conform to a traditional attitude towards homeless facilities: It does not mean to blend in or hide; it is, rather, extroverted, inclusive, and welcoming.