Feature Illustration: Artist rendering of the Austin Angels facility.
Posted: 3-5-2024
Austin (Travis County) — Texas-based architecture and interior design firm Michael Hsu Office of Architecture (MHOA) has announced its third annual Design for All Partnership. The nationally recognized practice seeks a new nonprofit partner that demonstrates a need for design services in the Austin or Houston area, where the firm’s offices are located. MHOA has just released its Request for Proposals (RFP) for interested nonprofit organizations and is now accepting submissions through May 3.
In June 2023, Houston nonprofit The Women’s Home was chosen to receive pro-bono design services. MHOA analyzed a site in Houston’s Spring Branch neighborhood for a building that will serve as both a childcare facility and workforce-development space for low-income families. The project is currently wrapping up the design phase. In addition, MHOA granted pro-bono services to another Houston nonprofit, Children’s Assessment Center, furthering the impact of accessible design services throughout Texas.
For the inaugural Design for All initiative in June 2022, MHOA selected nonprofit Austin Angels as its partner. The firm will design a community center to support children and families in foster care. The center is on the site of a 2.5-acre former church facility in Buda located near Main Street. Austin Angels’ project is now moving into the design and building phase, and construction is slated to start later this year. With the 2024 Design for All partnership, MHOA hopes to continue affecting the greater community by providing design services to a new partner organization.
“We’re honored to offer our Design for All Partnership for a third year,” said Maija Kreishman, AIA, principal. “These organizations and their services are invaluable to our communities, and we welcome the chance to help them build their mission through design. Our staff has thoroughly enjoyed working on these meaningful projects, and we look forward to adding another exceptional nonprofit partner in 2024.”
The goal of the Design for All initiative is to provide design solutions that are realistic and affordable and that directly support an organization’s mission. MHOA designers will establish beneficial relationships between the design industry and their selected nonprofit partner through research, charrettes and design exercises.
Once a proposal is selected for this partnership, MHOA will develop a custom design package to suit an organization’s needs. The partnership award will provide $20,000 in pro-bono design and consultation services. Services may include visioning, site analysis, feasibility studies, master planning, site planning, conceptual design and architectural and interior design consultation.
To be eligible for Design for All, organizations must be registered as 501(c)(3) and should be located within a 50-mile radius of the Austin or Houston metropolitan areas. Master planning projects should be 50 acres or smaller, and architecture and interior design projects should be smaller than 20,000 square feet. Deliverables from MHOA will include an analysis of the potential of the building or site, preliminary site and floor plan(s), one architectural rendering, a pricing narrative, a charette with partnering civil and structural consultants, and a proposal for continuing design services and schedule.
Interested nonprofits can submit the application form and optional supplemental information via this link: https://hsuoffice.com/design-for-all/. The deadline to submit is 5 p.m. CST on May 3. Any submissions entered after that time will not be considered. The timeline is as follows:
Call for entries – March 4
Questions due – April 5
Q&A posted on website – April 26
Submission deadline – 5 p.m. CST on May 3
Shortlist interviews – June 3-7
Partnership announced – June 14
MHOA recently formed an internal research and development leadership team to look at all aspects of inspiration and innovation in order to continue pushing design forward.
Any questions regarding the submission process or the Design for All Partnership can be directed at the email [email protected].
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