The Northwest Aids Foundation (NWAF) dreamed of building independent dwelling units for people living with AIDS. This goal was realized in a new, 24-unit apartment building, located in the First Hill neighborhood near downtown Seattle. The project was funded by multiple public agencies: state, city, and HUD. (The majority of the funding came from a special HUD financing program earmarked as housing for people with disabilities, the HUD 811 program.)

As the Project Manager, Maria Barrientos faced several challenges. She was charged with identifying a site and procuring land that had to meet very restrictive programmatic requirements, based upon location and accessibility to public transportation. Because of the type of residents and the location of the building an intense community outreach campaign was embarked upon, in order to gain public support. This was a difficult challenge as the neighborhood was already saturated with low-income housing projects. Once she successfully completed these tasks, Maria then assembled the design team, coordinated the public procurement process, and managed the construction of the project. The project was under budget and on schedule.