Telephone Hill
Project
Year
2023-2024
Location
Juneau, Alaska
Client
City and Borough of Juneau
The Challenge
Housing the People of Juneau
They City of Juneau's housing shortage has had serious impacts on residents cost of living, accommodation for its tourism economy and government officials visiting throughout the year. The goal for the project was to help fill the housing gap by designing new housing on a site adjacent to the downtown; accommodating new public gathering spaces, respecting the existing natural vegetation, and recounting the history and traditions of site.
First Forty Feet led a series of community input events to lead the visioning process and collaborated.
Image credit: Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire
What we heard...
How desirable is walking and biking to downtown and waterfront destination?
What two or three words best describe Telephone Hill?
How important is it to have Telephone Hill physically connected to other districts?
Would you like to see Telephone Hill as an extension of:
Testing some ideas
During the second open house with Juneau residents, four alternative designs were presented to help steer the project in the right direction.
Overwhelmingly, residents understood that Option C would deliver the most housing on the site, so, ultimately, this was the preferred option.
Drivers of design based on public input process.
The Impact
Building community capital through design
The City of Juneau will be able to add 210 new homes to downtown, which will have a positive impact on downtown businesses, help meet the housing shortage, and provide sustainable transportation alternatives that will save residents money, have no impact on the parking demand downtown, and keep the carbon footprint low.
The design is about more than just providing housing downtown; it's about building a community. Gathering spacing tied to prominent viewing platforms and green spaces provide residents the opportunity to recreate, relax and share with one another.
Get in touch
Want to know more about this project?
a better city exists
CERTIFICATIONS
Emerging Small Business (ESB)
Certification No.: 13469