Creating Places: Room In The Inn Building

Glen Oxford is president of 12South-based Oxford Architecture. Following is a Q&A regarding the Campus for Human Development Building (a.k.a., the Room In The Inn Building), the attractive SoBro building that OA designed and that recently opened.

Your thoughts on the Room In The Inn Building’s color scheme, materials and size? The new building is 46,000 square feet with the existing building that is just started being renovated at 20,000 square feet. The goal of selecting the materials on the project was the desire to use materials that were manufactured within close proximity of the Nashville. Materials must be durable, warm and reusable.

What was OA’s approach to designing the building? The original site for the building was actually located on Drexel Street where the current parking lot and rain gardens are located. When we started designing this facility in 2006, this was the site that had been purchased by the Campus. During the programming and design stages, it was determined that relocating the building to the current site would provide a much better design based on control, security and function due to the fact that the Campus was going to continue to occupy the existing building.

Any interesting features? Dealing with the homeless and intoxicated population provides its own design challenges. We wanted to be able to design a warm and comfortable atmosphere such as a home environment but at the same time provide a durable and lasting structure. Being located in the Arts District, and in a prime site facing the [under-construction] Music City Center and downtown, we want the building to address not only the users of the facility but also the city itself.

We have included 38 apartments that serve as a stepping-stone to future homes the residents seek. These residents along with the staff have access to the rooftop garden that overlooks the courtyard and downtown. The view from the common areas and the Board Room on the north side of the building will rival any housing units in the downtown area at a comparable height. The residents will be able to watch the Music City Center come to life and watch Nashville grow.

The Campus has expanded the square footage of the educational areas with an art room any school would envy, a computer lab, home economics rooms and classrooms that are flexible for a wide arrange of class sizes.

Any “green” elements? This building follows the green principals from the rain garden, green roof, materials, day lighting and the mechanical and electrical systems. It was decided during the budgeting process of the project not to seek USGBC (United States Green Building Council) certification due to the cost involved in commissioning the building. This $150,000 plus cost was better served in buying furniture and supplies.

Of note, the building does not address a street in the conventional sense. It’s almost wedged into a mass of built fabric, creating an interesting building density within the specific district in which the building sits. Thoughts? Although the building does not address Eighth Avenue North, it does in fact address Drexel, which is the building’s address and more importantly, the building addresses the City of Nashville in which it is serving.

Any other thoughts? Much thanks needs to be given to Father Charles Strobel and Rachel Hester, whose vision for the homeless community was our inspiration in the design of this facility.