Los Vecinos SRO, Chicago, IL

Los Vecinos is a gut rehabilitation and transformation of a deteriorated residential hotel building into a 62-unit SRO (Single Room Occupancy) providing housing and supportive services for formally homeless individuals. The program includes counseling offices, a security office, computer room, lobby, and multipurpose room, kitchen, and new elevator. Each residential unit is furnished with a kitchenette and bathroom, allowing the tenant to become fully self-sufficient and 20% of the residential units meet accessibility requirements. Custom Knothead furniture was designed to make the public and private spaces comfortable and inviting and to maximize space.

The developer and architect partnered with archi-treasures, a Chicago based community based arts organization, to create a series of mosaic tile artwork murals intended for the public lobby of the building. Neighborhood youth explored the idea of “home” and designed individual tiles for a mural and worked with local artists to realize the project.