When we designed Daybreak Cohousing, the residents wanted to incorporate some art on the buildings.  However, as the project progressed, there was neither time or budget to create the pieces prior to move in so it was decided to wait until the residents moved in.  The railing system was designed to allow for replacement of wire mesh with art panels.  A concrete wall at the terrace stood ready to receive a mural or artwork.  Blocking was placed at key points on the building facades to receive large hanging pieces – these were structurally reinforced and fully flashed to integrate with the exterior siding.

After almost 2 years, the first piece has been installed.  Resident artist Scot Cameron-Bell created the design and oversaw the installation by numerous residents.  Click here to see photos of the process, including the inspiration for the piece.

On March 23^rd, members of Schemata Workshop attended the Housing Development Consortium (HDC) 4^th Annual Luncheon; HDC is a professional association and advocate for providing affordable housing in King County. Schemata Workshop is a sponsor and member of HDC and we are advocates for their cause. At the luncheon we were fortunate enough to have Angela Glover Blackwell, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of PolicyLink, as the keynote speaker. Her speech was so inspiring that we were compelled to take notes summarizing the key components to create communities of opportunity.

First, Angela described the St. Louis, MO community where she grew up and how the neighborhood children played together in the front yards and streets without fear of danger. A community where her mother anxiously watched, perched out on the front porch, as she made her way to the corner store for the first time. It was an economically diverse community of doctors and lawyers living next to the single parent receiving food stamps. It was a community that fostered opportunity.

However, not all of our society experienced the same upbringing as Angela and members of our society have children that run the risk of not succeeding to their full potential. As Angela said, in these economic times, this is the first time that children are not expected to have the same opportunities as their parents. In addition, she emphasized that one’s housing determines so much more than we think. It determines the type of education and healthcare one can receive; also it determines what types of jobs are available. Those who work on housing and housing policies are indirectly working on health, education and job policies as well.

After painting the picture…

The Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) in Capitol Hill’s Volunteer Park is a splendid building housing a magnificent collection of ancient and contemporary art. Designed by the Seattle firm Bebb and Gould (designers of many noteworthy structures in Seattle, including many prominent homes on Capitol Hill) and built in 1933, it originally housed the entire collection of the Seattle Art Museum. Set within Volunteer Park, SAAM shares its museum-in-the-park setting with other museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, whose home is in New York City’s Central Park. As private collections predated by centuries those offered for public view, the museum-in-the-park typology finds precedent in that of the manor house in the landscape of either a noble’s estate in Europe or that of the landed elite of the East coast of the United States. Both the museum and the public garden are places of leisure, and their pairing is sensible, for sure, and allows for a full day’s outing both in and out-or-doors. In this tradition, SAAM and Volunteer Park present no less compelling a pairing than their historic or big city predecessors.

Art-deco (approximately the style in which SAAM was designed), to my mind, has always had a somewhat precarious and undervalued place within the history of modernist design. It never garnered the serious attention paid to many other 20th century movements, because it was seen, perhaps, as only a pleasant if not too serious ‘scenic’ detour along the thoroughfare of the more rigorous, international style modernism that eclipsed it. Architects, especially, like to see modernism as the built manifestation of industrialization and…

Last year, Senior Services embarked upon an amazing series of community conversations which culminated in a Summit on Aging Your Way.  Over 250 people assembled to discuss seven themes that were prevalent in those community conversations.  Those themes were:

Community Connections.

Transportation.

Housing.

Health, Wellness & Fitness.

Local Economics.

Built Environment.

Lifelong Learning.

Arts and Entertainment.

A personal highlight of the Summit was hearing Jim Diers remind us of the story of Stone Soup…how a little “magic stone” helped a village to create something truly delicious, in a time when people couldn’t imagine being generous.  He also reminded us that our society focuses too much on the deficiencies that people have.  And yet when we focus on the gifts and talents that each individual possesses, we can see them as full citizens of the community and the planet.

To me cohousing is the embodiment of celebrating each person’s gifts.  I was proud to present the concept of cohousing to this fantastic group of seniors who were actively engaged with their aging process.  Clearly cohousing was an idea that resonated with many to whom I spoke.

Not only did I host four 5-minute “mini-presentations” (more like a speed date than a presentation), I also facilitated two 20-minute workshops and reported on cohousing at the concluding plenary session.   It was a fast paced day, but one that was fruitful to all of us who participated.  Thanks to Senior Services (particularly Dori, Sabrina, and Joann) for planning such an action-packed agenda.

More information about the community gatherings, including an illustrated report from each one, can be…

Friday was the Congress for New Urbanism’s regional Summit sponsored by the Cascadia chapter.  I was involved with CNU almost a decade ago and it was very much a cult of personalities.  New Urbanism gained much of its notoriety through strong personalities involved with the movement.  So it was refreshing to be in a room full of architects, planners, urban designers who were intently focused on creating complete cities in Cascadia.¹

The theme for the day was Envisioning Resilient Communities and featured panel discussions such tools for measuring sustainability, the role of frequent bus service in shaping development patterns, and green infrastructure (namely rainwater management).

The keynote was delivered by Patrick Condon, a professor in Landscape Architecture from University of British Columbia.  He spoke about the Seven Rules for Sustainable Communities – the title of his latest book.  The seven rules are:

1. Restore the ² city.

2. Design an interconnected street system.

3. Locate commercial services, frequent transit, and schools within a five-minute walk.

4. Locate good jobs close to affordable homes.

5. Provide a diversity of housing types.

6. Create a linked system of natural areas and parks.

7. Invest in lighter, greener, cheaper, and smarter infrastructure.

There were two tours offered- one of Bothell, highlighting the transformation of this suburban community; and the other of the Seattle Waterfront, highlighting the conditions, challenges, and concepts for the new waterfront.

The day concluded with a PechaKucha-style presentation featuring two of Schemata’s own – Joseph Readdy and Grace Kim.  Joseph shared the CNU’s Sustainable Street Network Principles, which…