Hartford, Conn.-based JCJ Architecture traces its roots to 1936, when the U.S. was just coming out of an economic depression and its unemployment rate was still 14%. In 2021, with the country trying to recover economically from the impact of the coronavirus, and with questions about social inequity entering the public debate as rarely before, JCJ has focused its design work on projects and clients that are committed to social responsibility and advocacy, particularly for underserved or marginalized communities.
The firm that is 100% owned by its 120-plus employees, JCJ has a “long history” of designing buildings for people in need, says Peter Bachmann, a Principal. Over the years, that work has included senior living, public schools, and working with Native American tribes. More recently, a “natural progression” for the firm, says Bachmann, has been to seek design work that benefits immigrants and people with disabilities.
PROJECTS THAT WILL LEND HELP TO MARGINALIZED
Bachmann points to three projects in various stages of development that he says illustrate his firm’s commitment:
A rendering of the Freedom Village that would provide housing for the physically disabled adults.
• JCJ has been working with Barrier Free Living, which provides emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence, to design a “Freedom Village” on the Lower East Side of Manhattan that will provide temporary and supportive housing for adults with significant physical disabilities. The construction documents have been completed for this project, whose construction could get started this summer, Bachmann says.
Ohio intends to roll out 10 Adult Advocacy Centers for which JCJ designed the prototype.
• The construction documents are also ready for a prototype facility JCJ designed for Adult Advocacy Centers, a disability victim services agency. The resulting building would be the first of its kind to serve adult crime victims with disabilities. The prototype—part of a 10-center rollout in Ohio that’s been on hold because of the COVID 19 outbreak—is composed of five pods, each strategically designed to support different categories of disability: hearing and visual impairments, mental illness, physical mobility, and clients in crisis or with intensive medical needs.
Bachmann spoke of “trauma-informed design” that, in the prototype, accounts for residents’ psychological sensitivity to light, sound, and movement. For example, the single-story building’s windows are above eye level so that residents aren’t startled by people they might see on the street. The design also avoids skylights so that birds flying overhead don’t alarm fragile residents.
The Center for Community & Entrepreneurship will include a first-floor incubation space.
• The Asian Americans for Equality has enlisted JCJ to design its Center for Community & Entrepreneurship, a 65,000-sf, four-story building in Flushing, Queens, the New York borough with the city’s largest Asian population. The Center’s first floor will include incubator space for startup businesses and a mini food hall. The upper three floors will provide casual and formal meeting and training rooms. The goal of this building—whose construction docs are completed—is to provide spaces that support individual interaction, community events, retail and office opportunities, and a social services hub.
LOCAL SUPPORT, IN DIFFERENT WAYS
Bachmann says that community involvement has been central to the success of these projects. “We can never presume to know the skin that someone is living in,” he explains. “We don’t just come in and tell clients what to do. We support social change by giving different populations a voice in the design of facilities. We listen and try to ask the right questions.”
JCJ is involved in its communities in other ways, too. It is a supporter of the ACE Mentor program, which educates high school students about AEC careers. Each of the firm’s offices also makes cash donations local charities.
On a personal level, Bachmann says he’s gained “a better understanding” about how design can impact people in need from his 31-year-old daughter Maya, who is intellectually disabled.
Related Stories
Cultural Facilities | Sep 24, 2015
Bakpak Architects' 'pottery courtyard' concept in Poland incorporates local heritage
The multifunctional building proposed for Rzeszow, Poland, looks like it was handcrafted on a potter’s wheel.
Museums | Sep 22, 2015
David Adjaye releases plans for Ruby City art gallery in San Antonio
San Antonio's Ruby City will hold 800 works of art in 10,000 sf of exhibition space.
Casinos | Sep 22, 2015
Sovereign territory ruling allows for Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe's $500 million casino
The Massachusetts-based tribe has plans for a 150,000-sf casino and 600-room hotel, along with a waterpark and event center.
Libraries | Aug 27, 2015
Barack Obama Foundation begins search for presidential library architect
Both national and foreign firms will compete for chance to design the Chicago-based Presidential Center.
Cultural Facilities | Aug 19, 2015
Proposed “High Line” in Mexico City pays homage to Aztec aqueduct
Plans for Mexico City’s elevated park include an amphitheatre and al fresco cafés.
Cultural Facilities | Aug 5, 2015
Ultramoderne wins Chicago Architecture Biennial kiosk design competition
Dubbed Chicago Horizon, the 3,200-sf structure will feature a chin-height rooftop viewing platform that will offer visitors unimpeded views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.
Cultural Facilities | Aug 4, 2015
London set to have world’s tallest and longest slide
The city of London recently approved a proposal to add a slide to the Anish Kapoor- and Cecil Balmond-designed ArcelorMittal Orbit.
Cultural Facilities | Aug 3, 2015
Funding needed for Washington's Desert Storm memorial
The National Desert Storm Memorial Foundation has a $25 million goal for the project.
Transit Facilities | Jul 30, 2015
Snøhetta designs ring-shaped cable car station in Italian Alps
In Snøhetta’s design, two cylindrical rings embedded into the existing topography, each at different elevations, will be connected by a cable car. During the minute-long cable car journey, passengers can enjoy views of the city and of the Italian Alps.
Museums | Jul 28, 2015
MUST SEE: Zaha Hadid's latest museum project is built into a mountain
The museum, dedicated to legendary mountaineer Reinhold Messner, is embedded within Mount Kronplatz in northern Italy.