The 28th Street YMCA was listed as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 2006 and was acquired by nonprofit developer Clifford Beers Housing (CBH) in 2009. Commissioned to revive the structure and transform it into a modern housing development, Koning Eizenberg Architecture introduced new housing units by reconfiguring 52 single room dwellings into 24 studio apartments, provided a new wing with another 25 studios and wrapped the extension in a metal skin that mimics the decorative qualities of the building’s original style. The housing capacity of the development features low-income units and living spaces for the mentally ill and the homeless.
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The new residential wing features improved building systems and is shaded by a vertical photovoltaic panel array facing its south side. Wrapped with a perforated metal screen, the north façade provides framed views of the city and creates an appearance of lace-like patterns characteristic of the traditional building style of Los Angeles.
In addition to the use of cross-ventilation, the extension features a solar hot-water system and is aiming for LEED Gold certification. The building has been chosen as one of 10 recipients of the 2014 AIA Housing Award.
+ Koning Eizenberg Architecture
+ 2014 AIA Housing Award
Via Archinect, Arch Record
