Spring Garden Hostel

The site for this project is a lot in Spring Garden on the North Side of Pittsburgh, empty save for the four remaining outer walls of a long-demolished brick building. This unique artifact bestows an industrial individuality to the site, and informed the nature of additions to it. Guest rooms circle an inner courtyard and are nested within the natural privacy of the walls, while a public lobby extends outwards on the ground floor.

As a result, a new facade and gathering space are provided to the street, connecting guests to local urban life, while the old facade’s character is preserved as a secondary entrance to the courtyard. The southern wall of the brick shell becomes a celebrated material experience, hugging the stair on one side and bouncing light into the lobby on the other. These changes aim to revitalize the neighborhood’s urban life while respecting its material heritage.