17th & Commercial
East Village // Housing planned to help those who need it most
Disclaimer: At request of the former architect, all images of their renders have been removed. They are no longer involved with this project. Many portions of this article are based on their design and now may be inaccurate. We will update this article once possible.
17th & Commercial is a housing project currently in permitting planned to house who are at risk or experiencing homelessness in East Village. Part of a larger grant announced this week by the San Diego Foundation, this project has gotten a $1 million low interest loan to help get construction started. This project, being planned by Father Joe's Villages is located adjacent to their larger complex, where currently Father Joe's provides many services including food, shelter, mental health services, and more. This would allow residents to get the care that they need and the stability to get on their feet.
However there has been concern of concentration of poverty in this area for a long time. While the San Diego DCPC was supportive of this project, members did remark that there is an need for more market rate and workforce housing in this area as well. There was also concern of the location of this project, being located next to Interstate 5.
The design addresses the inconvenient location in a few ways. Per the architect windows on the south and east side of the building are protected by design from harsh noise, to not directly face the source of the noise and to grant residents more privacy. The building also has planned additional air filters for this location. The building will have a ground floor lobby and, supportive services, a common area, and offices. The second floor has outdoor area in an elevated courtyard, and the eighth floor has a rooftop balcony area with a curved metal trellis. These outdoor areas were also designed to shield themselves from the freeway noise.
This project contains 109 units, 108 of those being for residents, 1 for an onsite staff member. These units are all studio or one bedroom units Due to the location and role of the building it has little parking. The it is nearby the 12th and Imperial Transit Center, the planned Imperial Ave Bikeway. Despite the inconvenient location they are making the most of it and designing around it. This project will help people out of homelessness and get them the services that they need.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UKR3M-LDNBvcWzFId-aS0YqzyOcYwIoG/view