Miller Hull partnered with Matt’s Place Foundation to create the ultimate home for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patients. The prefabricated, modular, mass timber prototype meets the unique needs of patients and families navigating the challenges of an ALS diagnosis. Founded by former marine Matthew Wild, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2015, Matt’s Place Foundation is a non-profit organization devoted to maintaining dignity for ALS sufferers by providing opportunities for accessibility, independence, autonomy, and family living through technology and housing. In support of this mission, Miller Hull teamed up with leaders in prefabrication, mass timber production, engineering, and construction, donating their services to design and deliver Matt’s Place 2.0 (MP 2.0).
Matt’s Place Foundation built Matt's Place 1.0 (MP 1.0) in Coeur d'Alene, ID using conventional methods and materials but recognized the need for a more economical, scalable, and rapidly deployable solution for future homes. These two realities are often at odds with one another—having an innovative prefabricated home that is also sensitive and immediately responsive to its inhabitants—but Miller Hull led the design team through a series of planning sessions that resulted in several breakthroughs. Prefabricated units of cross-laminated timber (CLT) allow for different configurations on a variety of sites. Module-to-module joints simultaneously accommodate pressure-fit weather barrier joints on the exterior face and structural splines along the centerline. Wiring and plumbing chases are located on the interior face of the joint and are accessible for future access from the interior. This integrated joint allows for an exposed CLT interior finish with fully recessed junction boxes and outlets, providing greater wheelchair clearances on the interior.
MP 2.0 features a main-floor suite for patients, including a bedroom, living room, bathroom, and kitchen, and two upstairs bedrooms and a bathroom for family members or caretakers. This separation of zones allows the patient to stay with their family as the disease progresses while ensuring their dignity by providing their own space. All lower-level areas have ample floor room that can comfortably fit the multiple wheelchairs sizes a patient uses as the disease progresses.
The house is configured in an L-shape, creating a weather-protected carport and entry for patients to transition from vehicle to wheelchair comfortably. A flat, outdoor deck runs adjacent to the main living level, and there is a garden for residents to spend time outside and reap the health benefits of being in nature. Large windows look out to the deck, flooding the home with natural light. In addition to the supportive layout, the property is equipped with smart technology tailored for those living with ALS, including home control systems that can be operated solely by the occupant's eye movements.
The MP 2.0 prototype pushes the boundaries of accessible design and tests new construction methods for future dwellings. Miller Hull is designing Matt's Place 3.0 (MP 3.0) next door to MP 2.0, which incorporates many of the design elements and lessons learned from MP 2.0 and scales up the modules and systems to create a three-story, nine-unit apartment building. By continuing to innovate and expand upon the success of MP 2.0—designed to accommodate varying sizes, shapes, and configurations—the partnership between Miller Hull and Matt’s Place Foundation is poised to address the diverse needs of ALS patients throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond.
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