Page 57 - Fall 2019

Family unit at the Triumph. Photo © Kevin Reeves Photography

projecting and retreating bays of glass frames views from inside
to outside that are unparalleled in scope and distance.”
The five residential floors each include, in addition to their
residential units, a group of common spaces located off the elevator
lobby, within view of the reception desk. Each floor is treated as its
own neighborhood, with floor-specific finish palettes helping to
reinforce their separate identities.
The ground floor, which acts as the community floor for all the
residents, includes a multipurpose room, a dining room, a computer
lab, and a health clinic, as well as operational and case-management
offices. The spaces, the firm said, provide “the wrap-around
services needed to stabilize the residents and help them find
more permanent housing.”
Maximizing natural light “was an important design goal as
Residential lounge. Photo © Kevin Reeves Photography
this can help relieve stress for those going through homelessness
while also decreasing energy usage,” the architects said, adding that
“the finish palette includes warm, natural elements and colors”
that help to deinstitutionalize the building.
The Triumph “provides families with a beautiful, inspiring,
and dignified environment along with in-house support services
to help families re-join their communities within a shorter time
frame,” the architects said. With reduced levels of stress, “the resi-
dents are better able to address other needs and progress to a more
permanent housing solution. By creating a safe, secure and digni-
fied facility, the design seeks to transform a difficult site into a pos-
itive for the entire community and play an important part in
integrating a marginalized group of the District’s citizens back
into the city.”

Communal spaces. Photo © Kevin Reeves Photography
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