Wood Helps a Domestic Violence Shelter Become a Beacon for Safety

Haven, a domestic violence shelter in Bozeman, Montana, was established in 1979, but recently completed its first purpose-built facility. The 11,194-square-foot facility, designed by Boston and Kigali, Rwanda-based MASS, comprises a 30-bedroom shelter and a series of public-facing spaces that foster education, dialogue, and support. In its first year alone, the new facility served an estimated 1,400 survivors, showing the critical need for supportive services for those escaping domestic abuse.

Previously, Haven delivered services in an undisclosed location chosen to provide safety and privacy for survivors. But when it came time to design a new space, “Haven conducted a community listening process that asked what else they could be doing to give visibility to domestic violence as a systemic problem in their community and nationwide,” MASS Director Alejandra Cervantes Enríquez says. “In these sessions, they heard that domestic violence is a community issue, so it shouldn’t be something that remains hidden or taboo.” MASS’s design charge was to give Haven more visibility to draw attention to its cause, even as the facility had to be secure, healing, and nurturing for survivors. “We’re all accountable as a community to support survivors,” Cervantes Enríquez explains, “and in making the change we want to see.”

Flexibility is key, with the residential spaces offering what the designers call an ecosystem of choice for where residents can spend their time throughout the day. “[The building] is low enough that you feel it’s not this big institution”, Cervantes Enríquez says—a distinction that is important in TID to ensure that residents feel safe and secure during their recovery. “It’s house scale, albeit a little bit larger.” 

The wood exterior, featuring a pattern of diagonal boards, is another important factor in creating Haven’s residential feel. “We were always of the view that we would be using wood because of its nice, warm, natural aesthetics, as well as being in Montana, which is a highly forested part of the world,” Kitchin says. The exteriors of both buildings are clad in locally sourced Douglas fir siding finished with two different stains. “It’s a relatively cheap cladding material, but done in a diagonal pattern,” Kitchin says. “It’s a typical material that’s implemented in an aesthetically pleasing way.” He notes that the design would have been more economical with cement board in lieu of wood cladding, and PVC windows rather than wood. But “[the clients were] invested in TID principles and recognized how wood contributes,” he says.