Gimme Shelter

When Susie Jue won a meeting last March with San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom at a silent auction, she had more in mind than just photo ops. As head of philanthropy for Northern California’s chapter of the International Interior Design Association, Jue wanted Mayor Newsom to help her organization find a worthy cause for local designers who wanted to give back to their city. While professional design services are typically aimed at the luxury market, a group of IIDA members wanted to use their talents and resources to create positive change for the less fortunate. “[Newsom] thought he was just going to pose for some pictures and show us around, so when we came out with our plan he was pretty surprised,” remembers Jue, who brought along seven IIDA members already committed to the plan.

“I have to hand it to the mayor, once he understood our idea he got on board pretty quickly,” says architect Bryant Rice, Jue’s co-chair on the project. Newsom offered up the St. Vincent de Paul Society Multi-Service Center South, the largest homeless shelter in Northern California. Located in San Francisco’s SoMa district, it provides support services to nearly 400 people daily, operating 24 hours a day, year-round. Besides providing hot meals and beds for 350 homeless people, the center has a lounge area, toilets, showers and resources to connect clients with other city services. But with its harsh lighting and makeshift furnishings, the factory-like facility is also a dreary example of institutional design and a bleak reminder of the reality of providing for the city’s underserved on a tight governmental budget. “The city can pay for this place to exist, to make sure the circuits don’t blow out and there’s food in the kitchen,” says Rice. “But we want to do better than that. We want to give everyone—the clients and those who work here—a step up.”

With more than 40 IIDA chapter members signed on to the cause, the renovation will be the largest project the organization has ever attempted. For the task of soliciting hundreds of thousands of dollars in donated products, talent and labor, the IIDA turned to Philanthropy By Design, a San Francisco organization of design professionals that has been operating for two decades. Through donations and pro bono work, PBD has been able to create inspiring interiors for community service organizations such as the Center for Young Women’s Development and Gastinelli’s Tender Loving Care. “When IIDA asked us to be a part of this, I felt it was a perfect fit,” says Jude Wellington, president of PBD and an IIDA board member.


“It’s a busy time for our industry, yet we have all of these people who want to volunteer,” says IIDA member Bryant Rice (at right). “It’s very heartwarming.” TOP LEFT: The main reception area is a major focus of the redesign.


MSC program director Lessy Benedith led designers from the two organizations through the shelter’s three floors, explaining the multiple uses of each area. The lounge area, with tables, chairs and televisions, transforms into a giant bunkhouse in the afternoon, when pallets are pulled out to create the men’s sleeping area. The designers were immediately aware of their first challenge: “Absolutely everything has to be durable, mobile and washable,” says Rice.

The team developed a design wish list, with everything from a big plasma television for movie nights to repairs for the freight elevator so staff wouldn’t have to carry food and kitchen supplies down the stairs to the basement dining room. “At times, I can’t believe the shelter is even functioning with some of the things they are lacking,” says Mindi Weichman, an interior designer with RMW Architecture and Interiors and an IIDA board member. “We can greatly improve their working conditions with a few very simple things.” In addition to cosmetic upgrades like fresh paint, improved lighting and new furnishings, the plan calls for functional improvements such as shading the large street-facing windows in the sleeping area and creating a system for moving and storing beds that will eliminate the current chaos of check-in.

In the 10 months since they first offered their services, the volunteers have mapped out a final set of plans. But raising enough money to execute them will remain a concern until the last of the painting tape has come down. The team hopes to have the renovation completed by the spring of 2008. “We’re still recruiting for labor, products, services and funds,” says Rice. “We all believe so strongly in this project— it’s about celebrating place, feeling comfortable and being able to envision a better tomorrow.”

“Design It Forward,” a fundraiser to benefit Philanthropy By Design, will be held on January 24 in the Galleria Atrium of the San Francisco Design Center.

Taken from the January 2008 issue of our sister publication, California Home + Design. For more than a decade, CH+D has informed, celebrated and inspired the nation's most influential home and design market. Subscribe now.