For the first time ever, shipping containers will be used to build one-of-a-kind transitional housing and assistance for the homeless in Los Angeles. Design firm KTGY Architecture + Planning recently released a rendering of Hope on Alvarado, a new homeless housing project set to rise near DTLA in Westlake.

The four-story affordable housing structure will consist of 84 units, each ranging from 400-square-foot studios to 480-square-foot single bedrooms. The building will be built around a central courtyard and offer a partial subgrade parking garage for social service workers. All residents will have access to bicycle storage space. 

According to Builder, Hope on Alvarado will also provide support for those transitioning from homelessness. The Hope Homeless Housing projects will receive funding from investment group LSA Capital in conjunction with the Foundation for Affordable Housing. Independent investor Aedis Real Estate Group has been tapped to develop the project.

Earlier this year, USC architecture students explored the idea of using tiny housing pods to create shelters for the homeless population in Downtown LA’s impoverished Skid Row. The low-cost and easily transportable units proved to be a big hit with the city and developers.

Construction for the new housing development will happen pretty quickly over a six-month period thanks to the cost-effective convenience of the shipping container design. Hope on Alvarado is scheduled to complete by early 2018.