My intervention is located inside two vacant units of the Harlem River Houses and serves as a childcare center for children living at the complex. The design is centered around the children’s needs and amplifies the limiting impacts that childcare centers can provide for children in their early stages of development. The focal point of the design are these colorful child-size ‘pods’ present throughout the project which are meant to serve as a safe space for the children to occupy. The pods vary in shape which allows for a multitude of different seating positions, and also vary in size to allow for the larger pods to accommodate multiple children while the smaller pods are more focused on solitary use. In designing it was crucial that I created an environment that was focused on the health, behavior, learning, and growth of the children while also allowing them to have access to spaces where they can be alone.
