San Francisco debuted its first 70-unit prefab tiny home village to help solve the city's homelessness crisis— see inside the structures

Rows of houses at the 33 Gough Street neighborhood. — DignityMoves

San Francisco has opened a 70-room tiny home village to house the city's unhoused residents.
The rooms are about $30,000 each, including the cost of additional services and buildings.
In 2021, Los Angeles opened six multimillion-dollar tiny home villages.

In the past year, major cities have been building communities of prefabricated tiny homes to house their unhoused residents.

San Francisco has opened its first approximately $2.1 million tiny home village for unhoused residents amid the city's ongoing homelessness crisis.

Rows of tiny homes at 33 Gough Street. — DignityMoves

Source: Dignity Moves, San Francisco Chronicle

Interest in tiny homes has skyrocketed since the start of COVID-19.

Inside a tiny home at 33 Gough Street. There's a bed, desk, rug, and some decor. — DignityMoves

In an attempt to alleviate the ongoing homelessness crisis, major cities have increasingly turned to prefabricated tiny home communities to house people facing homelessness.

And so far, these prefab homes have created safe living spaces for thousands of people in places like Los Angeles and Oahu, Hawaii.

Tiny homes at the Chandler Street Tiny Home Village.
Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Insider, Star Advertiser

The string of tiny home villages popping up throughout Los Angeles is a particularly notable example.

The Chandler Boulevard Bridge Home Village.
Lehrer Architects

The first community, operated by Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission, popped up in early 2021.

The "test case" village was so successful, it began accumulating a waitlist after its opening, and the nonprofit has since opened five additional communities around Los Angeles.

Colorful tiny homes at the Arroyo Seco Tiny Homes Village in Highland Park, California. — Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission

Source: Insider, Hope of the Valley

Now, San Francisco is following in its California counterpart's footsteps by opening its own tiny home village on 33 Gough Street, about a mile from both Mission Dolores Park and the tourist-beloved Painted Ladies.

Nonprofit and creator of the community Dignitymoves first opened the doors of its San Francisco little living village in early March …

Elizabeth Funk, the founder and executive chairman of DignityMoves, with London Breed, the mayor of SF. — DignityMoves

… supplying lockable tiny homes with beds, desks, and decor to people who've been experiencing homelessness.

The first residents of the 70-room community began arriving in March.

A handwritten welcome sign on brown paper. — DignityMoves

Like the new community, Dignitymoves is still relatively nascent.

Elizabeth Funk, the founder and executive chairman of DignityMoves, speaking at the ribbon cutting event. — DignityMoves

The nonprofit was founded at the start of COVID-19 with the goal of building temporary homes on unused land for people facing homelessness.

Source: DignityMoves

And now, it's working on two additional downsized living communities across California: one in Rohnert Park, about 50 miles north of San Francisco, and the other in sunny Santa Barbara.

Source: DignityMoves

Like the Los Angeles communities, the village at 33 Gough Street is filled with prefab tiny homes and all the necessary buildings and services to help a resident live comfortably.

The tiny homes at 33 Gough Street. One door is open, showing a desk and chair. — DignityMoves

Design and architecture company Gensler and tiny home maker Boss Cubez worked together to create the prefabricated homes, which can last over 20 years, according to Dignitymoves.

The tiny homes at 33 Gough Street. Both doors are opening, showing the beds. — DignityMoves

The panelized homes are also portable, allowing the community to be moved or scaled according to need.

Besides tiny homes, the community also has bathroom and shower spaces, offices for case managers, dining rooms, computer labs, communal spaces, and clinics.

The 33 Gough Street tiny home village. Someone is painting a mural on the wall. — DignityMoves

Each tiny home costs around $15,000 to build, Sam Whiting reported for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

But the additional buildings, site work, and services brings the total cost of each room up to around $30,000.

Inside a tiny home at 33 Gough Street. The desk has decor and stationary. — DignityMoves

This brings the cost of the village up to around $2.1 million, a spokesperson confirmed with Insider.

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

To compare, the most recent 117-home, 224-bed community tiny home village in Los Angeles cost about $5.1 million.

The Arroyo Seco Tiny Homes Village in Highland Park, California. — Hope of the Valley Rescue Mission

Source: Insider

"While more permanent housing is critical for alleviating the housing crisis, building sufficient permanent housing is expensive and will take years, while our unhoused neighbors need help now," Elizabeth Funk, founder and executive chairman of DignityMoves, said in a press release.