Vine Street Early Head Start Center

This Early Head Start Center serves low-income families in a Promise Zone neighborhood, providing classrooms for infants and toddlers, administrative and support spaces, and exterior playgrounds, all in an openhearted setting. An adaptive reuse of an 80-year-old brick and bowstring truss soundstage, the design is colorful, playful and spatially open, with visual and physical access throughout, allowing staff to work in teams, provide superior care for the children, and create a heightened sense of community. We took care that the existing building’s spatial and material character re-emerge in the new design. Retaining the original openness enabled by the long-span roof structure, helped to imbue the new preschool with a strong sense of the history of the area. The original wood roof structure is visible throughout the center, as is the brick of the bearing walls and piers. At the same time, the openness of the interior has pedagogical advantages for the new program: daylight permeates the entire space and the strong visual, verbal, and physical communication available between classes supports teamwork among caregivers. The design preserves the building’s character while transforming its scale and feeling, making it into a space of curiosity and possibility for children to learn in and learn from. The strong architectural presence underscores its importance while spatial flexibility allows it to engage the needs of the community.