Young Architects Partner for Three Years with Local Organizations in Underserved Communities to Expand Capacity for Sustainable Design
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 2 /PRNewswire/ — Enterprise Community Partners, Inc. (Enterprise) today announced that the Enterprise Rose Fellowship in Community Architecture has placed two new Fellows – one in Los Angeles and one in Chicago – to work for three years with local nonprofit organizations, forging community ties, developing leadership skills, and expanding their hosts’ capacity to create sustainable projects in the future.
“The Enterprise Rose Fellowship in Community Architecture develops the next generation of leaders committed to sustainable design excellence and meaningful community engagement in the planning and execution of affordable housing and community development projects nationwide,” said Katie Swenson, senior director of Fellowships for Enterprise and co-author of the recently published Growing Urban Habitats. “At the core of community architecture is the innate desire to make sure the built structure is well integrated into the fabric of life of the surrounding neighborhood. These fellows are excited and committed to making that integration happen.”
A former Rose Fellow, who was recently named an Emerging Leader by the Design Futures Council and a Green Giant by Steelcase, Inc., Swenson has consistently shown her commitment to community architecture and shepherding young designers into the world of sustainable community development.
“I am humbled that these leaders in their fields took notice of my work with the Enterprise Rose Fellowship in Community Architecture, blending sustainability, design and community,” added Swenson. “Honors like these really show our Fellows the support they can expect to receive from the architectural and design community at large.”
The new Fellows are Theresa Hwang, MA in Architecture, Harvard Graduate School of Design, and Daniel Splaingard, MA in Community Planning, Auburn University School of Architecture, Design and Construction (the Rural Studio). Theresa is working with the nonprofit, Los Angeles-based Skid Row Housing Trust, to provide quality green affordable housing and local solutions for community residents.
“The Trust has a long history of combining affordable and supportive housing with inspiration, sustainable design,” said Mike Alvidrez, executive director, Skid Row Housing Trust. “Having the Enterprise Rose Fellow as part of our community — both in and outside of the office — will afford us the skills of a designer who is in sync with our mission and our goals, especially as we move forward with green initiatives in our existing portfolio as well as new projects.
Daniel is working with Chicago’s nonprofit Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation on the development and design of affordable rental housing and condominium conversions in areas hit hard by foreclosures of multifamily properties on the city’s northwest side. During the next three years, they will use the Enterprise Rose Fellowship in Community Architecture’s three core principles to guide their work: participatory planning with community residents, holistic design and green building.
“Daniel is an integral member of Bickerdike’s team as we work to provide urgently needed affordable housing and create a model for environmentally and socially sustainable housing,” said Joy Arguete, Executive Director, Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation. “By bridging the areas of community outreach, project financing and management, and sustainable design, Daniel will help us to meet the varied challenges we face as an organization. At the same time, we will deepen his experience with a holistic approach to affordable housing development, which will serve him — and the communities he serves — well in the future”
The program was launched in 2000 with the support of Jonathan Rose, an Enterprise Trustee, in honor of his late father, Frederick P. Rose, the urban builder and philanthropist. Thirty-one Fellows to date have collectively produced or rehabilitated 4,500 affordable, energy-efficient homes in urban and rural communities across the country, as well as designed more than 43 community buildings, including day care facilities, health clinics and mixed-use properties.
Since 2004, the Fellows’ work has supported Enterprise Green Communities, a nationwide initiative to make green affordable housing the industry standard, which has so far invested $700 million to create and preserve more than 15,000 green affordable homes and has transformed housing policies across the country. Funding for the 2009-2012 Enterprise Rose Fellowship in Community Architecture was supplied in part by the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.
Enterprise is a leading provider of the development capital and expertise it takes to create decent, affordable homes and rebuild communities. For more than 25 years, Enterprise has introduced neighborhood solutions through public-private partnerships with financial institutions, governments, community organizations and others that share our vision. Enterprise has raised and invested more than $10 billion in equity, grants and loans to help build or preserve more than a quarter million affordable rental and for-sale homes to create vital communities. Enterprise is currently investing in communities at a rate of $1 billion a year. Visit www.enterprisecommunity.org and www.enterprisecommunity.com to learn more about Enterprise’s efforts to build communities and opportunity.
CONTACT: John Keaten, Group Gordon, +1-212 784 5701, John@GroupGordon.com; or TeAnne Chennault, Enterprise, +1-213-787-8234, Tchennault@enterprisecommunity.org