The Birdhouse Project

Telling the remarkable story of PCH’s Princeton Community Village and Elm Court communities; advocating for affordable homes; and raising funds to underwrite anniversary celebrations for our residents this summer. 

Read more about the project here.

Kristina's World

Princeton Design Guild contributes a Purple Martin House for the dual celebration of PCH’s milestone anniversaries. We built this type of birdhouse, dedicated by tradition to multifamily bird housing, because this approach reflects the important mission of PCH in our community. Our birdhouse contains sixteen units, stacked four vertically in four towers beneath a copper roof; the towers are each arranged on the compass coordinates.

We dedicate this artwork to the great 20th century Art and Crafts Collector, Kristina Barbara Johnson. She lived in Princeton and supported many important Princeton causes throughout her long and glorious life. She left us in 2013, and the following year her daughter Kookie, in an estate sale at their Cleveland Lane home, sold me the prototype from which we created this special birdhouse.

This birdhouse was built in PDG’s custom woodworking shop in Belle Mead, NJ, by our shop cabinet makers with Frank Valenza leading our team and providing all the custom detailing. Frank’s hobby is building model railroad villages, and his attention to detail is evident in this birdhouse.

2025 marks the 40th anniversary of Princeton Design Guild’s founding, and we join arms with PCH in saluting the 40th anniversary of Elm Court and the 50th anniversary of Princeton Community Village.

Meet the Team

  • Princeton Design Guild

    DESIGNER & BUILDER

    Kevin Wilkes AIA is an award-winning Princeton architect. He founded Princeton Design Guild in 1985 with a single mission in mind. Connect the architect and the general contractor in a combined design-build approach. Housed under one roof, the ease of communication between trades helps to ensure the smooth evolution of your building from concept sketches, through construction to a finished project. Learn more here.

  • YWCA Princeton

    HOST

    YWCA Princeton is a non-profit providing direct services, empowerment programming, and advocacy to support marginalized individuals and families, especially women and girls of color, while working to challenge structural barriers to equity. The YW is proudly one of PCH’s founding sponsoring organizations, and it is, in large part, thanks to each of these organizations that the first PCH residents moved into their new, affordable homes at the Princeton Community Village neighborhood 50 years ago. Learn more here.

Progress photos courtesy of our builders and designers!

Princeton Community Housing is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization that provides, manages, and advocates for affordable, safe and well-maintained homes, offering all people the opportunity to build more productive and fulfilling lives.

We envision Princeton as a vibrant, inclusive community that is home to people of all income levels.

In 2025, our largest and oldest community, Princeton Community Village, celebrated its 50th anniversary, and our first senior community, Elm Court, celebrated its 40th anniversary. All proceeds from The Birdhouse Project underwrote community-wide celebrations this past summer for our residents. By supporting us, you can help ensure milestone events to come— planned, organized, and celebrated with our neighbors.

Community is our Middle Name.

Thank you to our generous Sponsors of the Birdhouse Project!

…and thank you to our friends!

Justin Tree Services & Lawn Care

Justin Tree Services & Lawn Care has donated the installation labor involved and perched the birdhouses at our various host locations around town.

The Meeting House

The Meeting House Restaurant in Princeton, NJ hosted our Birdhouse Project Kickoff Reception in April 2025, inviting location hosts, artists, PCH ambassadors, and sponsors of the project.