Marking Time at Bertschi School

Bertschi School is a private K – Fifth grade school on 10th Avenue, on the northern slopes of Capitol Hill. Founded in 1975, and steadily growing to its current enrollment of about 235 students, its measured and incremental growth on the Hill is a fascinating example of both architecture’s and landscape’s marking of time as well as the fulfillment of the vision of the school’s founder to support high quality and progressive design.

Located in a primarily single-family home stretch of 10th that has an occasional smattering of apartment and commercial structures, Bertschi’s campus is an engaging combination of converted bungalow homes, a church, Seattle’s first Living Building and a gymnasium by one of Seattle’s most celebrated architecture practices. While such a mosaic of buildings and periods could lead to an awkward ensemble, in Bertschi’s case the seeming tapestry of original uses, periods of construction, and changes in topography are held together quite well by both good stewardship, thoughtful planning, and intriguing juxtapositions of building and landscape.

Brigitte Bertschi, to whom I was briefly introduced to the day of my tour, is of Swiss heritage; a country of outstanding architecture practices and a stunning natural environment. I cannot help but to think her Swiss-ness shaped her sensitivity to place, environment, order, and aesthetics, as is in evidence at the school she runs.

The majority of the campus buildings are comprised of re-purposed single family homes and provide space for a variety of uses, including: administration, facilities, academic, and the school’s former gymnasium. Despite these myriad of new uses, the homes still maintain much of their original charm and appearance. Also changed is the manner in which the formerly discrete and private homes and their yards now interrelate in an all-encompassing landscape; their former isolation now blended into a most delightful recreation and learning environment for the students. The stepping of the landscape -- a heritage of both the prior private uses and need to follow the dropping topography -- creates a series of smaller play areas and interesting vantage points from both high and low ground alike; a variety of terrain that must prompt exploration and play by the students.

These landscapes, following the landscape’s stepping and no longer in need of fences for privacy, are now joined by a series of cozy, in-between spaces nestled between buildings. The spaces form a nice counterpoint as well as a reminder of what has been. The school has had to make the best of what the confined campus they have had to use, leading to spaces appropriately scaled to the student population’s diminutive size. The layering of a crisply defined and varied topography, intimate, alley-like spaces, and variety of building styles lends the campus a pleasing urban character.

In both its landscape and its buildings, the school’s emphasis on environmental stewardship reveals itself. Solar panels are arrayed on the older buildings, while newer structures, the gym and science buildings, have obtained significant sustainable building distinctions. The gym, designed by Miller|Hull, has an abundance of daylight uncommon to this typology and is a LEED Gold structure.

The parking garage it is over is covered in part by the gym, as well as a playfield – a nice use over such a structure, and a clever way to create usable space. Further anchoring the gym to the landscape is a breezeway that contains solar panels as well as a rain water harvesting system and a green roof. The system terminates in an artful ensemble of galvanized cisterns.

The Science Wing is the state’s first Living Building, currently the highest recognition for sustainable building in the US. Designed by KMD Architects, the building has many energy saving and generating strategies, and even provides spaces for urban agriculture. There is also a living green wall that helps with air quality and humidity within the building.

Bertschi School is one of those special Capitol Hill landscapes that is greater than the sum of its parts. Its variety of spaces and character of buildings merits exploration and is highly recommended should you have an opportunity to do so.

Schemata Adds Staff

Things continue to be busy here at SWorks, and we have added staff; two permanent and three contract (whom we hope to keep!). As the point of contact for staffing, I feel very fortunate to have been able to recruit so many strong candidates in a competitive job market.  Regardless of status, all are a great fit for the environment we try to craft in our studio; if you have a chance to meet any of them you will surely agree.

Scott Nye comes to us by way of Scottsdale, where he recently finished his MArch at ASU, and has about 5 years of experience. He is a recent Seattle arrival, and lives in Ballard.

Roma Shah is a recent UW MArch/MLArch graduate, and graduated from the University of Florida (my Alma Mater) with an undergraduate in architecture.  She has several years of experience, and has lived in Seattle for six years. Roma lives in Ravenna.

Jeff Hammerquist hails form UC San Luis Obispo, and was a classmate of Emily Woods (go Mustangs!). Jeff grew up in the Puget Sound region.

Troy LaCombe just complete his BSArch from the UW. He is from Louisiana (hence the French surname?), and lives on Capitol Hill.

Last but not least is Elias Gardner, who is shoring up our east-coast contingent (though we are not sure he is as surly as Jeff Busby or me). He attended Williams undergrad, where he received a BFA, and has a MArch from RISD. He too has several years of experience and recently moved to Seattle and lives in Columbia City.

The Schemata staff, less Christopher Palms who is on vacation. 

Park(ing) Day 2013 Success!

Friend Teresa Evans thinks the Schemata Workshop Pollinator Park is a great place to get some work done. 

Urban Bee Company honey bees visiting the park. 

Even Goose, the office dog, gets in the pollinator spirit with butterfly wings. 

Hello Robin brought us habanero chocolate chip cookies. Look for the new bakery opening on 19th this winter. 

Schemata Employee Christopher Palms enjoying a Hello Robin cookie.  

Employee Domonique Juleon takes a break from park(ing) day organizing to enjoy bagel and lox from partners Eltana. 

Capitol Hill residents stop to take a break in the Pollinator Park. Thanks to Regan and Associates for all the great plants that made the park such a great space to hang out in.  

Capitol Hill PARK(ing) Day - FRIDAY SEPT 20

Come check out these four great sustainability themed PARK(ing) Day sites in the Pike Pine and 12th Avenue Corridors. 

Schemata Workshop, Urban Bee Co, and Eltana are highlighting the awesomeness of pollinators and bee hives. Come make cider with the Capitol Hill EcoDistrict and check out a new map of neighborhood fruit trees. Sustainable Capitol Hill will be promoting the Capitol Hill Tool Library and sharing information about Melrose Promenade. The 12th Avenue Stewards and Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences will be discussing community intersections and choices and the park coming to 12th and James Ct.

Visit all four sites and get a free treat from Eltana, discounts from Vino Verite, enter to win a gift certificate to Cherry Street Coffee, and other fun gifts/promotions! 

PARK(ing) Day is an annual worldwide event where artists, designers and citizens transform metered parking spots into temporary public parks.

Saint Mark's Greenbelt

After several unsuccessful years of hoping to come across the St Mark’s Greenbelt during one of my neighborhood walks, I resolved this past spring to make a dedicated effort to find it. Although I had yet to visit it, I imagined the Greenbelt would present a unique environment to enjoy Capitol Hill, and another pathway to connect the highlands of 10th Avenue with the lowlands of Lakeview Drive. Google maps revealed that the Greenbelt is between the Blaine Street hill-climb and St Mark’s Cathedral. I decided to make a bit on a loop of my search, and took the long drop down the Blaine Street hill-climb from 10th Avenue to Lakeview Boulevard, after which I planned to ascend back up to Tenth through the Greenbelt itself.

Scaling our numerous hill-climbs is always enjoyable, and it was nice to actually descend the Blaine Street steps. The hill-climbs are a unique feature of Seattle, and a nice way of being in a public right of way reserved solely for pedestrians, instead of one shared with cars or even bicycles. Carving their way through the landscape, they offer a great perspective on the very edges of what is buildable, and present a distinct character from the side that is on more level ground.

During my loop I happened to pass the Egan House, Historic Seattle’s youngest building. After going down the hill-climb, I had a new appreciation for the Egan House’s bold geometry, reflecting perfectly the slope of the hillside I just descended.

The Lakeview trailhead to the Greenbelt is just south of the Egan House, and starts out rather steeply. The first dozen yards or so were nothing noteworthy, mostly a collection of various camping spots. It was quite another story, however, when I rounded a corner and was presented with the back of the home of one of Capitol Hill’s most illustrious former residents, Sam Hill. Mr. Hill was a railroad executive and promoter of transportation of all kinds in the late 19th and early 20th century (Wikipedia has a nice entry). In the early 20th century, Mr. Hill decided to locate his Seattle residence at the northern edge of the Harvard-Belmont neighborhood. Edge indeed, as the difference between the street side of the house and that of its hillside side must be one of the most dramatic one could encounter in the neighborhood. The drama is best captured by the arc of the driveway, with its foundation forming a formidable wall, making the driveway above appear much larger and more important than it otherwise would. This view came as quite a surprise, as for years I have admired Mr. Hill’s house, but on its Highland Drive side.

Continuing my way up the Greenbelt to 10th Avenue, I was presented with an equally dramatic view of the backside of a building many of us are familiar with, St Mark’s Cathedral. Less ‘refined’ than its 10th Avenue entry, I find its backside much more satisfying. Lacking the brick veneer of the 10th Avenue entry, the back and sides of St Mark’s are unadorned concrete, the subtle textures of its board-forms adding a most pleasing texture. The surprise was not, however, as great as the differences between the front and back of the Hill house, as the sides of Saint Mark’s are easily visible from 10th.

Surprise often results when the difference between expectations and what one actually experiences. As a means to punctuate such a difference, I returned to the Hill house, but to that side which one typically encounters along Highland. The classic proportions of the building and its fine detail are little indication of what lurks just out of view. A clever recessed bay window and sundial are but a few of the building’s refinements and are in contrast to the expansive and monolithic wall now out of view. And I suppose it was just this kind of contrast – the contrast between what is known and what it discovered – that I was looking for when I embarked on this particular walk. Fortunately for us this kind of surprise is easily found within the diversity of our neighborhood, and one that will keep me searching and surprised for years to come.