SAN ANTONIO — Science and engineering students at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) are taking what they learn in the classroom and putting it towards real world solutions. Trinity Schaefer and Elizabeth De Leon brought the Big Heroes Tiny Homes project to the university as a service project.
Soon after, architecture students Lauren Cepeda, Lorena González, Marianne Friedel, and Simran Maredia joined the team to help with the completely disability accessible design for houseless veterans in San Antonio.
"The counters themselves are a few inches below the standard, the doors are sliding doors so it’s easier for someone in a wheelchair to open them," said Maredia.
The group expects to start construction next spring semester, then plans to donate the home to the Town Twin Village on the city's east side. Nonprofits are working together to turn the area into a permanent housing community for houseless people over 50 years old. Schaefer believes construction should only take one semester.
"I thought that would be a great way for us to apply what we’re learning in class in a service environment and a way to bring together students from all different majors within this new college joining engineering and construction science," said Schaefer.
The students also partnered with Operation Finally Home, a Texas based nonprofit that provides homes and home modifications to wounded veterans, first responders, and their families.
"These tiny homes and the location they're going to really does provide them with a foundation they wouldn't have otherwise," said Rusty Carroll, Executive Director of the nonprofit. Their organization is donating construction materials to the students at UTSA.
Housing First Community Coallition (HFCC) is leading the Town Twin Village project, which celebrated their groundbreaking in March 2021.
According to their website, they hope to provide about 200 permanent homes for 200 people and rent will be capped at no more than 40% of a resident's home. Phase two of the development is expected to begin in the summer of 2022.
The students at UTSA plan to keep supporting the tiny home project beyond graduation.
