Case Study: City of Chicago creates a humane, permanent-housing pathway with Gensler's trauma-informed Haven on Lincoln design

City of Chicago creates 37 private shelter rooms with Gensler

The City of Chicago faced a critical shortage of dignified shelter options, particularly for its unhoused male population who had access to less than a quarter of the city's shelter beds. Traditional congregate shelters were often limiting and could reinforce trauma, creating an urgent need for a scalable, non-congregate environment that could provide a real pathway to permanent housing.

Gensler transformed a 1960s motel into a stabilization housing facility using adaptive reuse. The solution provided 37 private sleeping rooms, medical examination rooms, and wraparound support services, all designed with trauma-informed principles. The project, which includes a healing garden and is the Midwest's first all-electric shelter, offers residents conditions that support recovery and stability during their transition to long-term housing. Gensler's reuse of an existing building demonstrates how underutilized structures can be repositioned to address pressing civic needs.

City of Chicago