Community Engaged Studio | 2023

Program: Food Pantry, Community Center
Completed: 2023
Location: Enfield, NY

Design a food pantry suited to the needs and desires of the rural community of Enfield, New York.

Rural needs, desires, and tastes are diverse. A pantry situated in the rural area must respond to various kinds of rural dwellers. There are some who want only the food they sorely need and leave, while barely engaging with other people; others want to engage with their neighbors and their community.

As a response to this, The Enfield Neighbor is organized into four specific tiers of time-shopping, each with its own aesthetic reinterpretation of the barn typology. The first tier is for those who cannot, or do not want to, spend more than 5 minutes getting their food. Some pantry goers may be weak or disabled, while others have families and work commitment. A drive-thru food pantry best addresses their needs.

The second tier responds to people who value efficiency, but also want the freedom to look at available food, pick what they’d like to take, and ask people for more information about the food. For those, a traditional food pantry is presented.

The third tier responds to the various communal needs of the community. The people who come here may have also been here to get food, but others who are not food insecure also come here to participate in educational, farming, and culinary activities with the rest of the community.

The fourth tier is situated on the portions of the site that are not occupied by the pantry. It functions as a park, rendering the beauty of the rural landscape completely open to the public. It is designed to inspire wonder and wandering, strolling and meandering.

The site plan and section depict the various site strategies utilized in the pantry.

Plan drawings illustrate the programmatic arrangement of different time-based tiers within the pantry.

Sections depict the programmatic and formal differences between the pantry’s tiers.

(Clockwise from top-left)

The children’s play area contains a large window so parents can watch their children while shopping for food.

The Community Classroom for children and adults features a large ribbon window with a view to the west of the site.

The central walkway holds the in-person pantry program (Tier 2) and connects all other programs and spaces to it. A pitched-sawtooth hybrid roof floods the space with natural daylight while preserving a traditional barn exterior appearance.

1/32″=1′ site model illustrates the various site strategies and formal qualities of the Enfield Neighbor.