A new project from CannonDesign aimed at helping migrants who were relocated to Brooklyn’s Red Hook Cruise Terminal in the past year is providing hope to advocates for inclusive design as the city grapples with a vexing crisis that’s only expected to grow with the end of Title 42.

The project was initiated by Blue Cottage of CannonDesign team member Kimberly Silver, a resident of Red Hook, who, in reaction to Councilwoman Gale Brewer’s charge to do more, worked with fellow CannonDesign staffers Steffany Brady, Dylan Coonrad, and Abbey Furlow to strategize a set of wayfinding design solutions that can help better orient them to the neighborhood and city. Together, they say three core “functions” can be achieved as a result of the project. 

Using Silver’s observations of the area, TRANSIT activates street surfaces and other barriers surrounding the terminal with clear trail marker-like visual wayfinding directions to the subway and nearby bus stations.

NEIGHBORHOOD builds on the wayfinding element with a simplified phone map application that can be used without WiFi and comes with a pocket-sized physical backup. 

Finally, HOPE utilizes the network of construction fences that were commonplace around the terminal as a canvas upon which culturally-sensitive public art can be applied in homage to the journey and origins. The colors utilized in the murals are born out of individual countries’ flag designs, offering “a wonderful blending of cultures immigration empowers.” The colors are then dragged out and directionally striated to create an effect that references the disruption that comes with starting again in a new country.

The designers say: “All of this creative work stems back to the idea of better orienting migrants to the communities they now call home. Immigration is a complex process and those who come to America need support across a diverse spectrum that includes finding work, accessing healthcare, connecting with family, and much more. However, we believe the system outlined above could help with orientation in a low-cost and beautiful manner.”

Though the terminal is now closed, the firm is hopeful their solutions can be applied at different critical locations (bus shelters, the homes of supportive community members, etc.) throughout the city, serving as a highly-visible marker that communicates protection and a sense of welcome.

“One of our subliminal goals was the hope that we achieve familiarity, and that the system isn’t needed by the users over time,” Silver recently told FastCompany's Nate Berg. “Once they become acclimated they can navigate through their instincts and just being familiar.” Before that, though, this kind of easily legible system could be the helping hand many would benefit from, as they’re starting a new life in an unfamiliar land.

More information about the project can be viewed here.