Edwin M. Lee Apartments

Project Details

Project Description

FROM THE ARCHITECTS:

Project Overview

At the Edwin M. Lee Apartments, two local non-profit organizations integrated their respective user groups - low-income families and formerly homeless veterans - into a single community that benefits the residents and the neighborhood. Low-income, multi-bedroom affordable family housing is scarce in San Francisco. Per a Planning Department report on affordable housing, only 29% of San Francisco housing units have 3 or more bedrooms, compared to a Bay Area average of 54%. Low-income families who work in San Francisco are increasingly forced to commute long distances for affordable housing. Former Mayor Ed Lee, San Francisco’s first Asian American mayor, was a long-time advocate for affordable housing and for the Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC), a non-profit which evolved from addressing the needs of Chinatown residents to providing services to other neighborhoods in the city. At the Edwin M. Lee Apartments, CCDC added 52 two- to three-bedroom housing units to the city to house low-income (50%-60% AMI) families, allowing families room to thrive and maintain residence within the city. In addition, supportive services for veteran homelessness is a significant need in the Bay Area. Homeless veterans account for 10% of all homeless adults, and most are over the age of 55. Homeless senior veterans have higher rates of hospitalization and age-adjusted mortality, requiring support and resources. The Bay Area has one of the highest concentrations of veterans in the country, and 58% of homeless veterans in California are unsheltered. Mr. Lee was an advocate for eliminating veteran homelessness, and accepted the Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness in 2014. Non-profit organization Swords to Plowshares has supported homeless veterans in the Bay Area for decades. This is the non-profit’s first new construction veterans housing project. 62 units have been leased to formerly homeless veterans, who will also receive on-site support in the form of counseling and career services. The veteran residents are a diverse group: all of the veteran residents are disabled, and 30% have two disabling conditions and 42% have three or more disabling conditions. 50% of the veteran residents are BIPOC and 3% are transgender. These residents face multiple challenges including mental illness, chronic substance abuse, HIV, service-related conditions including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), and other mental and physical disabilities. While the current residents were not assigned during the project’s design process, their needs were anticipated by working closely with these established non-profit developers and their decades of experiences with these communities. The design team researched post-trauma design methods, including Ideo’s Wounded Warrior concept home and Perkins and Will’s Posttraumatic Understanding, designing to enhance a sense of community among different user groups, and specific methods to design a space for calm and healing in an urban context. “This is a great place, a really great place to be at. It's safe, it gives you peace of mind and security. It also makes you feel comfortable because you're around people that's willing to help you if you need help.” - Richard, resident, US Army 1977 - 1981

Project History

Mission Bay is a landform in San Francisco created on historic tidal marsh estuary. Around the Gold Rush period, the area was rapidly industrialized, filled in with bay mud and debris. The area was used as wharves and rail yards until the 1990s. In 1998, a master site developer received approval from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors for the development of Mission Bay. As part of the master developer team, Catellus coordinated the development of public infrastructure, including: 1,000 linear feet of new roads, 350,000 square feet of new parks, 400,000 square feet of new parks featuring recreational sports and boating facilities. The site of the Edwin M Lee Apartments, then generically named “Block 3 East”, was part of the master plan. The President’s Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness was launched on June 4, 2014, by a compelling call to action by President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama to end veteran homelessness in their communities by the end of 2015. In 2015, Mayor Edwin M. Lee, joined by the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald, announced a major funding milestone to end chronic veteran homelessness in San Francisco by the end of 2015, putting the City on track to meet the President’s Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness. Led by Mayor Lee, tech leaders including Ron Conway and Marc Benioff donated $5 million to jump start the supportive housing project. In 2015, the RFP for the developer-architect team for the “Block 3 East” project was released. The project was awarded later that year. Construction was complete in early 2020, and move-in occurred that spring. By summer of 2020, 57 low income families had new housing, and 62 veterans were living off the street. Despite COVID, the community kitchen served meals and provided groceries to the residents and neighbors with few interruptions. The Grand Opening of the building was delayed due to COVID, but on May 4, 2021 (Mayor Edwin M. Lee’s birthday), the ribbon cutting ceremony was performed by the first AAPI Mayor of San Francisco, Mayor London Breed. (See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WBoHYpczKw) “Affordable housing is at the core of equity issues that we face in our city; for our veterans, [housing] is the heart of a big thank you for all their years of sacrifice.” -Mayor Edwin M. Lee, 2016 “I feel a great sense of gratitude. I feel safe, and I feel tranquil in my apartment and I absolutely love this garden.” -Stephanie, US Air Force 1985-1989

PROJECT CREDITS
Project: Edwin M. Lee Apartments
Client: Chinatown Community Development Center and Swords to Plowshares
Architects: LEDDY MAYTUM STACY Architects, Saida+Sullivan Design Partners
Developer: Chinatown Community Development Center
Co-Developer: Swords to Plowshares
General Contractor: Nibbi Brothers
Associate Architect: Saida + Sullivan Design Partners
Civil Engineer: Luk & Associates
Landscape Architect: GLS
Landscape Architecture
Structural Engineer: KPFF Consulting Engineers
Mechanical & Plumbing Engineer: Tommy Siu &
Associates Electrical Engineer: E Design C
Acoustic Consultant: Papadimos Group
Lighting Consultant: ALD
Building Maintenance: Access Systems & Solutions
Waterproofing Consultant: Steelhead Engineers
Corrosion: JDH Corrosion
Green Rater / LEED: Association for Energy Affordability
Fire Protection: Pacific-Allied Fire Protection