green = practical

[caption id="attachment_1649" align="aligncenter" width="700" caption="Fern Hill Terrace Apartments"][/caption] Mike and I met with a non-profit housing developer recently who indicated that one of their funders said that we should really stop talking about green building and sustainability. Their opinion was that what we are really talking about is taking a practical approach to design - focusing on reducing energy consumption, lower operations and maintenance costs.

Wow! What a refreshing change to have enlightened funders (who have historically been concerned about bottom line returns and building more with less) who truly get the triple bottom line with respect to affordable housing. By expecting affordable housing projects to be environmentally sustainable, WA state funders are acknowledging the social equity of providing healthy homes for low income families and seniors, but also the economic benefit to housing operators, and reduced energy consumption for low income tenants.

[caption id="attachment_1654" align="alignleft" width="700" caption="Typical Unit Kitchen"][/caption]

Fern Hill Terrace is a project that recently completed construction for the Multi-Service Center and Shelter Resources, Inc. It is a rehabilitation of an existing low income housing property. There are 24 family units in this project located in Tacoma, WA. Due to funding from the state, the project was required to satisfy the Evergreen Sustainable Development Standards - not only for the renovation but also for the 600sf of new construction. The great thing about the project was not only that we were able re-use the existing buildings (the best move we could have made from a sustainability standpoint), but that the residents of this apartment community were not displaced during construction. The construction occurred in a phases such that 4-6 units were renovated at a time. Sure, the residents had to move out of their units as they were being renovated, but they simply moved into another unit within the complex...which allowed them to maintain the same bus routes, driving routes, and daily schedule. For some seniors and families, this was a big deal - they shared that with me during the open house. And they were able to move back into units that were like new - new cabinets, flooring, doors, windows. The energy efficiency is dramatically improved, the indoor air quality significantly improved, and radiant heating elevated above the window to eliminate the fire hazard of the previous electric baseboards. Not to mention the improved laundry facilities, community room, low impact landscaping, and new kids playground.

Schemata Workshop is proud to serve low and moderate income families and seniors in Washington state by designing safe and decent homes - you can call them green, we call them practical.

The Italy of the Italians Part 1

Italian culture is arguably the single most important contributor to western civilization. Whether in the arts, sciences, commerce, or even governance (current intrigues, of course, excluded) both the legacies of individual such as Michelangelo, Galileo, Lorenzo De Medici, and Justinian, or the collective influences of the Renaissance and Roman Empire of which they were are part, the Italians' contribution to our way of life is immeasurable and profound. A living testament to this legacy is found in the many fine cites throughout Italy, a few of which form the basis of this series of posts. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="300"]

Mantua Skyline[/caption]

Having seen many the cities one typically thinks of when thinking of Italy, my recently completed trip focused on what one may call second (and third) tier cites, in this case mostly in Emilia Romagna. I use the term second and third tier advisedly, for the cities visited are amongst the finest urban environments anywhere, and their lesser notoriety in not a slight to their beauty or charm, merely the lack of recognition of their qualities amongst non-Italophiles.

Visiting Mantua, Ferarra, and Bologna (along with brief stopovers in Modena, Parma, Turin, and Varese) was an opportunity to see a side of Italy unavailable to those whose focus is only on the country's most popular destinations. Unavailable, because those cities are filled not only by their residents, but also throngs of visitors, whose impact on the cityscape is significant. Without the crowds and tour buses, one can arrive at a better sense of how these spaces function on a day-to-day basis -- to see how they function as working cities – and not merely places of leisure. The public spaces visited were filled with the population of the city served, allowing a more tangible measure of their utility and their successes.

[caption id="attachment_1606" align="alignnone" width="300"] Ferrara Streetscape[/caption]

Italy, of course, was not a nation until 1861, so I use the term Italians not to describe a nation in the contemporary sense, but really the group of people who shared a common language and a common history. Unlike say France, Great Britain, or Spain, there was no country of Italy ruled by a powerful gentry (much of Italy was in fact ruled by foreign powers). What it lacked in national unity it made up for in strong regional identity forged by leading cities, with each being the head of government, commerce, and culture for the region. Each primary city was therefore, a distillation of all of the qualities we identify with modern nation states. We too have cities such as these today: London, Tokyo, Paris, and so on, each the cultural, financial, and governing capital of their nation. What is remarkable about the Italian cities described here, is they achieved comparable levels of greatness in their own time, with populations of maybe 30 to 60 thousands and not millions. This compact size relative to greatness allows an intimate relationship to be forged,, even during a brief sojourn.

[caption id="attachment_1597" align="alignnone" width="700"] Bologna the City of Colonnades[/caption]

Mantua, Ferarra, and Bologna’s origins can be traced back prior to the Roman Empire, though they did not flourish until the late Middle Ages or the Renaissance. In addition to this shared imperial heritage they rose to prominence while ruled by a leading family, whose power came from commerce, banking, or land holding. They were also the seats of bishops. Perhaps it was the concentration of governance (both secular and ecclesiastical) and commerce, and its resulting artistic patronage, which fostered these city-states to greatness. A physical manifestation is to be found within the constructs of the city itself. And even though some grounding in history would help one arrive at a conclusion with greater haste, the observant traveler is bound to come to similar conclusions. The palazzo and duomo fronting the piazza (the traditional market place) is an urban typology typical to almost all cities visited; or, in other-words, both the secular and sectarian seats of power defining the place of public assembly and commerce. Always in the center of the historic city, and always easy to identify by the splendor, size, and regalia of their construction, this logical assembly of edifices imparts to one a knowledge of arrival and of place. With the exception of the duomo, the uses of the buildings may have evolved to our present day, but their function has remained the same: clearly designating a hierarchy of relationships and methods of interaction among the citizenry of the city. And though predictable, there is certainly an abundance of variation within the typology to lend interest to each town visited.

Universal Design is for Children as well as Seniors

Universal Design is becoming a buzz words amongst aging boomers and those working in the senior housing development arena. Some proponents say that it goes beyond ADA and accessibility standards. But Universal Design isn't about just accommodating the disabled homebuyer or satisfying accessibility codes. Its really about good design - design that allows people of all ages and abilities to experience a space or room in a similar fashion.

This means that a senior with arthritis, or a teen in a wheelchair, or a young mother with a stroller, or a middle aged man on crutches, or a child can all equally control lighting levels in a room, access appliances and plumbing fixtures, enter a home, or open an interior door. The American Disabilities Act (ADA) was instrumental in mandating that provisions be made for those with physical disabilities in public places. However, the ADA is a code minimum. There are many wheelchair users that will attest to the inadequacy of those code minimums in terms of daily usability.

AARP recently published an article about Universal Design in their recent Bulletin. AARP article. The article featured a Seattle-area contractor, interior designer and architect (Schemata Workshop).

Many friends, family, and collaborators called to say that they had seen the article. What I hope is that others who saw the article will also become acquainted with the term Universal Design and grow to expect that designers, architects, and contractors as well as the housing developers who hire them will provide the features that will create homes (and commercial spaces) that are well-designed for everybody to enjoy.

When Cars Were Smaller, But Garages Bigger

I have yet to write about single family homes, for they are not a focus of our practice and typically are not as urban as are apartments and mixed used buildings. Nor have I written of garages or ever thought I would (except in disparaging ways), especially ones that so unabashedly front a street and dominate a building's facade.  But here I go. And to be farther off message, the garages in this post are for really large homes, on really large lots, about as far removed from dense, affordable, and urban (three values we hold) as one could imagine. [caption id="attachment_1468" align="alignnone" width="360" caption="Harvard Belmont Landmark District"][/caption]

Yet despite all of these ideological hurdles, I find the below ensemble (that is primarily in the Harvard-Belmont Historic District) quite urban, and full of useful lessons. So bear with me, and let's have some naughty fun and indulge ourselves in things we know we know we really shouldn't, but can't help not to, and take a stroll through a fancy section of Northwest Capitol Hill and admire some cool mixed function garages.

[caption id="attachment_1453" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 1, West Elevation"][/caption]

The building pictured above is a combination dwelling, garage, and retaining wall, and other functions characteristic of most of the buildings pictured below. I presume it is the sole remains of a larger, no longer extant estate of the same Tudor style. The current home adjacent to this building (and I believe that of its current owners) is of a distinctly post-modern flavor, and was built in 1987, whereas the garage was built at least 70 or 80 years ago. Fronting the property line this edifice lends this single-family residential street a robust, urban character. And though the facade is dominated by garage doors (something I never thought I would even remotely praise), they are well cared for and of a very high quality (carriage doors, I believe they are called), and do nothing to diminish the building's presentation or neighborliness.

[caption id="attachment_1441" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 1, Southwest View"][/caption]

The photo above provides a better view of the work that this structure performs. Note the stairs in the foreground, as well as the rip-rap wall, both in evidence of the volume of earth contained beyond. The original patrons of this parcel had the means to elevate what is typically banal fare - soil retainage and parking - to the realm of architecture and landscape.

[caption id="attachment_1445" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 2"][/caption]

An equally robust wall is the Tudor's next-door neighbor, yet is of a very different character. The garage functionality remains, but the building-as-retaining wall task is here supplemented by this lovely, planted rip-rap wall. Meticulously cared for plants make this an attractive wall indeed.

[caption id="attachment_1444" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 3 West Elevations"][/caption]

A couple of doors down is a third, yet equally apropos approach. While it is true that one sees the derrieres of the autos sheltered within, the design of this wall-carport combo so well echoes that of the tasty little modernist duplexes above that I could not help but include it, hindquarters notwithstanding.

[caption id="attachment_1443" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 3 Carport Detail"][/caption]

Ah, a cantilever roof, that beloved modernist trope, and here dignifying a carport -- now that is attention to detail! Note how the concrete walls (with gorgeous, board formed textures), decisively cut back as they approach the roof, thus to create the cantilever. The bold horizontal lines echoes those of the pair of duplexes and the warmly stained wood ceiling add a touch of class to this most utilitarian of spaces. This is as well designed a carport as you are likely to see on the Hill, or in Seattle, and a testament that (almost) anything can be well designed, regardless of heritage.

[caption id="attachment_1447" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 4 West Elevation"][/caption]

If I were in possession of them, my champagne tastes would be divulged if I were to write that this is my favorite garage of the bunch. Sure, it is the fanciest, but it is also the multitude of functions and happenings that pique my interests. Note the massive wall to the left, and how it translates into the garage structure with its strong buttresses. Again, we have extra fancy carriage doors, and some nice masonry walls. On the right, is an intimate and mysterious entry, leading to a terrace. Beyond is the manor house that lends this building its raison d'être. Again, a very urban solution (albeit ironically) to the automobile storage.

[caption id="attachment_1446" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 4 Entry Gate"][/caption]

My favorite moment of all of these garages is the dark and windy stair that leads to the terrace and (presumed) guest quarters. Entered through an iron gate, what could be more mysterious or provocative?

[caption id="attachment_1452" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 5 West Elevation"][/caption]

Most of us could no more afford these garages than we could the even more opulent homes they serve. Through-block parcels, of at least 10,000 sf, are beyond the reach of most of us. It is nice, though, that we get at least a hint of the dolce vita by passing so closely to these splendid service buildings. The home can be seen to the right (way, way, beyond).

[caption id="attachment_1451" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 5 Stair"][/caption]

The competition to have the most splendid retaining wall/garage/garden/guest house combination must have been keen when these estates were first built, for they are all of the same style. Here, another elegant stair leads up to the garden that the garage helps support.

[caption id="attachment_1450" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 6"][/caption]

Although perhaps absent of some of the refinement of the previous examples this wall/building/garage/guest quarters (anything I missed?) most likely has many more things going on than its relatively demure neighbors. I suspect that tall white walls on either side of the central pavilion define a very French or Italian inspired formal garden. Although not right on the street as the others, the espalier, box hedges, and finely trimmed bit of turf lend the edifice a formality and dignity exhibited in the best urban building.

[caption id="attachment_1442" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 7"][/caption]

More modest in scale, and within the realm of what is achievable by many, this building nicely exhibits the transition from wall, to garage, to simple bungalow. Note how the bungalow is not only cantilevered, but floats above the adjacent wall. Nice!

[caption id="attachment_1448" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 8"][/caption]

A familiar view to most who live on Capitol Hill, this very utilitarian structure may not have the opulence of its neighbors to the west, but its power to shape the landscape is no less. Here, the unadorned concrete (which is the structure - minus brick veneer - of the other examples) performs the same role of vehicle storage and landscape demarcation. To the right, is a finely carved out stair, similar to the others, and leading to the large home which all of this supports.

[caption id="attachment_1449" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Example 9"][/caption]

There is probably an interesting story behind this final example. Or maybe not. But, just to the right, you can make out part the rather substantial home that I imagine, at one time, was related to the traditional base of this otherwise modernist house. Clearly, the two are not contemporaneous. Was the estate parceled out? I don't know, but I like to think there is a good story here. The garages adaptability and worthy of preservation shows both the utility and propriety of the structure, regardless of  heritage.

Pocket Neighborhoods

[caption id="attachment_1410" align="aligncenter" width="700" caption="Third Street Cottages by Ross Chapin Architects • Developed by The Cottage Company"][/caption] Cohousing, clustered developments, and cottage housing are all examples of Pocket Neighborhoods – a concept that is the subject of Ross Chapin’s newly published book of the same title (Tauntum Press, 2011).

Starting off with a forward by Sarah Susanka (the architect of the Not-so-Big House books), Ross presents the concepts of pocket neighborhoods in 4 parts - historical precedents for pocket neighborhoods, contemporary examples of pocket neighborhoods, cohousing communities, and infill/adaptive developments in existing communities. This is a wonderful resource for learning about community oriented design that focuses on human scaled architecture and a smaller ecological footprint. For those that are concerned about quality (of community, relationships, and lifestyle) over quantity (of materialistic and isolated American pop-culture) Ross’ book is a must-read.

I have known Ross for many years – primarily through our good friend Karen DeLucas, who has worked with Ross for the past eight years. A year ago, I was contacted by Ross Ross while he was doing some research for his book and had the pleasure of sharing with him my knowledge of cohousing. I also shared with him our library of photographs from the 20+ Danish cohousing communities Mike and I visited in 2004 – several of which are featured throughout his book.

Ross Chapin is an architect based in Langley, WA – a quaint town at the north end of Whidbey Island, home to 3rd Street Cottages, his first “pocket neighborhood”.

To learn more about pocket neighborhoods visit the website

To buy Ross’ book, click on here