Posts tagged community design
Green design elements prominent in the Methow Valley's RiversMeet

RiversMeet, a mixed-use project in the town of Winthrop in Washington’s Methow Valley, is positioned to become the upvalley entrance to “old downtown.” The site is a challenging set of narrow parcels overlooking the confluence of the Methow and Chewuch Rivers.

RiversMeet is envisioned as a template for how buildings can work within Winthrop's westernization code while striving for high levels of sustainability and providing more inclusive housing options.

The program will provide two 2-bedroom residential units overlooking the river, with approximately 1,870 SF of pedestrian-level retail space. The second floor incorporates 1,870 SF of office space. The second floor incorporates 1,870 SF of office space, continuing the client’s tradition of renting below market rate to community non-profit businesses.

GREEN DESIGN
1. Concrete mix uses fly ash, reducing use of higher-carbon cement
2. Low-Carbon Foamed Glass Aggregate replaces typical underslab foam board insulation
3. Gutex wood fiber exterior board insulation
4. Low-Carbon Wildfire Resistance Strategy:
- Wood siding treated with a non-toxic solution that provides fire resistance without the high carbon penalty of fiber cement
- Exterior sprinkler system
- Fiber cement siding reduced to areas where it's most effective
5. FSC-certified wood framing package
6. High-efficiency all-electric heat pump space heating
7. High-efficiency heat pump water heating
8. Solar array

TEAM
Client: Peter Goldman and Martha Kongsgaard
Architect: CAST architecture
Builder: North Star Construction Company  www.Northstarbuilds.Com
Civil & Structural: DCG, now Facet   www.dcgengr.com  
Electrical: TFWB   tf-wb.com
Environmental:  Grette  www.gretteassociates.com 
Geotech: Geoengineers  www.geoengineers.com/ 
Mechanical: Ecotope   www.ecotope.com 
Survey: Tackman   www.tackmansurveying.com

Washington HB 1337 and HB 1110 pass both houses

Statewide efforts to boost housing options make headway

This past legislative session, several bills made it through both houses and each will have long term benefits for the production of urban infill housing types such as cottages, ADUs, and small stacked apartment buildings.

HB 1337

The passing of HB 1337 expands housing options by easing barriers to the construction and use of ADUs.

·        legalizes two ADUs per lot in any configuration of attached/detached

·        legalizes an ADU on any lot size that’s legal for a house

·        legalizes ADU size up to at least 1,000 SF 

·        legalizes ADU height up to 24 feet

·        ends requirement for owner to live on site

·        caps impact fees at 50% of those charged on houses

·        lifts parking mandates within 1/2-mile or 15 minutes from transit stop

·        prohibits design standards or other restrictions more stringent than what applies to the main house 

·        legalizes ADUs to abutting property lines on alleys

·        legalizes ADUs in existing structures that violate current rules for setbacks or lot coverage

·        prohibits requirements for public right of way improvements

·        legalizes the sale of ADUs as condominiums

HB 1110

The Middle Housing Bill will mandate that medium and large cities create development standards for their lowest density zones to accommodate more housing.  For Seattle, it means:

·        Up to 4 units on any parcel not previously limited by an HOA or PUD.

·        Up to 6 units on parcels that are within ½ mile (a 10 minute walk) of frequent or fixed transit

·        Up to 6 units on any parcel if 2 are designated as affordable. 

The form that these new housing types will be open ended, but the Department of Commerce is busy developing a model code for cities to use as a starting point.  The deadline for cities to comply is 6 months after their next comprehensive plan cycle (for Seattle that is mid 2025). 

As one of the region's leading voices for abundant and affordable housing choices, we have been advocating for backyard cottages—accessory dwelling units (ADUs)—since Seattle first considered them citywide in 2009.

More efficient land use is critical to address our housing crisis, climate change, and persistent inequities in access to housing opportunities. Modest infill houses like ADUs are a key strategy to empower citizens to provide new housing, build generational wealth, and leverage taxpayers’ investment in infrastructure, transit, schools, and parks. 

Mazama Public House Featured in Methow Homes magazine

A “People Place” by Design
The Mazama Public House was conceived with community in mind.

“The long communal tables were always indicative of the way we were thinking about the place. You come in and you’re part of the community. You share a table and suddenly you’re in conversation with a person you’ve never met before. It’s a fun opportunity.”
-- Stefan Hampden, CAST architecture

See the full article here on Issue.

This pub is the new gathering spot for the community of Mazama, at the north end of Washington’s Methow Valley.  The 1,868 square foot public house is designed to seat 56 and another 50 outside with built-in benches on the four-season covered patio. In warm weather, a garage door system opens for a seamless connection to the outdoor decks. The height of the shed roof and the expansive windows on two sides are sited to take advantage of natural light and views toward Goat Peak. The interior features wood beams punctuated by blackened steel and concrete floors. Custom tables and bar slabs were crafted from locally sourced Douglas-fir. Outside, blackened steel will accent the wood structure. The siding is a dark-stained, rough-sawn vertical channel shiplap.

Green design features the use of highly durable siding materials including a mix of locally harvested wood from the Methow Valley and Boise Cascade products. The generous overhangs were designed to protect the siding from wear and tear. Full LED lighting was installed.

📸@benjdrummond
📸@mitchellimage

@mazamapub
Architect: CAST architecture
Owner: Grumpy Goats, LLC
Operator: Old Schoolhouse Brewery @oldschoolhousebrewery
Contractor: Bjornsen Construction, Tom Bjornsen                                    
Structural: Harriott Valentine Engineers @harriottvalentine
Lighting: LightWire @ltwire
Windows & doors: @sierrapacificwindows  

cast's community design in the methow valley
mazama public house, methow valley, community design

Mazama Public House at the north end of Washington’s Methow Valley

mazama public house in the Methow valley community

The Mazama Public House is set to become the gathering spot for the community of Mazama, at the north end of Washington’s Methow Valley. Oriented toward Goat Peak mountain views, the 1,868 square foot public house is designed to seat 56 and another 50 outside with built-in benches on the four-season covered patio.

An expansive three-door door system opens in the summer months for a seamless connection to the outdoor decks. The indoor area incorporates performance space, and the large garage doors allow for flexibility and increased seating capacity. The height of the shed roof and the expansive windows on two sides are sited to take advantage of natural light and views. The interior features wood beams punctuated by blackened steel and concrete floors. Custom tables and bar slabs were crafted from locally sourced Douglas-fir. Outside, blackened steel will accent the wood structure. The siding is a dark-stained, rough-sawn vertical channel shiplap.

See more on our website.

Photos by: Benjamin Drummond Photography www.benjandsara.com

early learning education
early learning center, entry

El Centro Roosevelt’s bright and welcoming entry

Feasibility and design in early learning education

Our region is suffering from a significant childcare shortage. The Washington Child Care Collaborative Task Force estimates the total childcare capacity in King County has declined by over 25% since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. This created wide-ranging consequences throughout the economy, delaying the ability of parents to return to full-time employment. As the direct impacts of the pandemic fade, many childcare providers now seek to increase their capacity either through construction of new facilities or expansion of existing ones.

 Early Childhood Education (ECE) is governed by sets of overlapping regulatory requirements. This article aims to provide a brief overview of some of the most important considerations in feasibility and early design phases.

Building-scale Considerations

There are important features inherent to the space itself that cannot be easily added. These requirements must be factored into the cost model for construction, and into a decision for leased space. The following is based on the requirements of the Washington State Building Code (WBC) and the State of Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) Childcare Licensing Guidelines.

·  Childcare centers are typically a Group-E occupancy; sprinklers are required. Lack of sprinklers is a common red flag in early feasibility analysis.

·  Classrooms for children younger than 30 months must be on the ground floor and must each have an exit door directly to the exterior. Classrooms for children between 30-60 months in age may be no higher than one story above grade and may share common exit pathways. 

·  It is important to verify the proposed space will comply with the requirements of Chapter 5 of the WBC. Group-E occupancies have a smaller allowable area and higher occupancy-separation requirements than other uses in the same type of construction.

ECE Center Considerations

DCYF will license a center for maximum number of children, based on an operating plan that maintains certain ratios of adults to children all times. It is important the design does not unintentionally reduce the allowable number of children or increase the required staff count by misinterpreting DCYF regulations

·  One important example is the minimum area per child. The WBC sets out an Occupancy Load Factor of 35 s.f.; the parallel requirement under DCYF is also 35 s.f. per child. However, DCYF only considers space that is accessible to children at all times. Areas of the room that are considered occupiable under the WBC - such as a teacher’s work desk or a locked cabinet containing art supplies - are excluded from DCYF’s area calculations. 

·  A classroom for 20 children must be designed for at least 22 or 23 persons, since the adult caregivers must also be included in the calculation. For feasibility planning, we have found that if we assume 50 s.f. per child, the final design will comfortably accommodate the planned student count.

·  A minimum of 75 s.f. of outdoor play areas must also be provided, and this area must also include the caregivers. While a single play area can be shared between multiple classrooms, large centers will need to carefully schedule such shared use. Creative alternatives such as walking to a local park may substitute for dedicated outdoor play areas, but these require increased staff levels and are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by DCYF.

·  Current DCYF practices require a large number of plumbing fixtures.
- Separate single-occupant restroom(s) for adult use
- Child toilet rooms with child-height sinks and toilets; with both assisted and semi-private toileting
- Adult-height handwashing sink at building entrance
- Child-height handwashing sinks at each classroom entrance
- Bottle-fillers at each classroom and at outdoor play area
- Adult-height handwashing sink at food distribution area, even if food is prepared elsewhere
- Adult-height handwashing sink at diaper-changing areas within arm’s reach of changing table

·  Kitchen facilities must be carefully considered in the center’s plan for operation. While ECE kitchens are generally not required to be licensed as commercial kitchens, DCYF personnel review them using Department of Health guidelines. 
- Use commercial-type refrigeration with continuous temperature display on the exterior.
- Any on-site food preparation beyond distributing pre-prepared items on disposable plates will require a dedicated kitchen space with separate hand-washing, food preparation, and three-compartment dishwashing sinks.
- Some types of hot food preparation can be accommodated with residential-grade cooking and ventilation equipment, this will significantly limit potential menus. Any operations utilizing grilling or frying will require installation of a full Type-II commercial range hood. This can be impossible in a space not designed for it from the ground-up.

early learning, classroom

El Centro de la Raza’s new Early Learning Center at Cedar Crossing classroom

Classroom-level Considerations

Good design can help reinforce the mission of the center. This covers a lot of potential ground, but here are a few areas where we often focus attention:

Clarity of wayfinding is critical for young children and is often a challenge within an irregular tenant space. If the layout must be complex, color, lighting, and material changes can give each group of classrooms its own identity. Larger gathering nodes outside classrooms can accommodate busy student dropoff and pickup.

Many designers associate ECE with bright primary colors; keep in mind, that classrooms will be filled with a huge variety of educational materials and children’s projects in a rainbow of shades. Letting the architecture create a clean, muted backdrop helps organize the inevitable chaos.

Understand the routines of a child's day and let those guide your design. Snacks and meals will be served and eaten in a certain way. If the classroom doesn't have a designated place for folding or stacking mattresses, they will take up a corner of the room that is not available for playtime. If a cozy space for reading or quiet play isn't inherent in the geometry of the room, create one with casework, furniture, or a change in lighting or ceiling height.

Many different elements must be balanced to achieve a successful ELC design. Details aside, the most important element is to really get to know your client and their operation. It is hard to go wrong by listening carefully to the teachers who spend all day in the classroom.


Forrest Murphy, LEED AP BD+C, Principal at CAST architecture
Forrest has spent much of his career helping non-profit and institutional clients balance programmatic and strategic goals with technical and budgetary realities.

First published in the Daily Journal of Commerce’s Special Section on Education, September 2022.

Photos by: Cheryl McIntosh at Quanta Collectiv

University cooperative school Charrette
UCS community charrette meeting, workshop

Seattle’s university cooperative school charrette

A fact of life: community-centered work takes a long time—often five or more years—to turn projects from dream into reality. A shared vision created and owned by the stakeholders is the solid foundation that sustains the project through the inevitable challenges and transitions of this long gestation. One of the main tools we use to help develop this vision is the Community Design Workshop, often called a “charrette.”

CAST architecture is working with University Cooperative School to expand its space in the historic Maxwell Building. Developing such a vision was the focus of our recent workshop with teachers and staff. The group’s excitement coalesced around the concept for a central space we are calling "The Hive," a versatile, warm, and inviting student commons where kids of all ages can cross paths for both structured and unstructured activities.

During the charrette, we used a series of guided design exercises to draw out feedback: a brainstorming discussion; a walkthrough of the unfinished space with the main room dimensions laid out on the floor with tape; a game where participants voted on the appeal of various inspiration images with colored stickers; and a facilitated sketching exercise to document the emerging consensus.

This may have been one of the easiest workshops we have facilitated. With some stakeholder groups, we need to work extra hard to ensure all voices are heard (not just the loudest ones). These elementary school teachers—long accustomed to consensus decision-making—were amazing to work with, ready to jump into each stage of the meeting with insightful comments and actionable suggestions. 

See more at the community section of our website.


Update: El Centro de la Raza Roosevelt Early Learning Center (ELC)
early learning center, education, community

El centro de la raza roosevelt early learning center

Construction progress! This side-by-side construction shot and rendering look down the central circulation spine at the José Martí Child Development Center, which connects the entry, classrooms, and outdoor play area. This new center will provide high-quality Early Childhood Education for 74 children.

A unique aspect of our involvement is that we've been part of the larger team since the early feasibility stage of the project, long before there was a specific childcare provider.

We have played a crucial role in shaping the evolving design of the overall building to ensure the space would be viable as an ELC. From big-picture design elements like the location of the play yard and the relationship of the main entrance to the sidewalk and courtyard; to detailed technical aspects, such as maintaining at-grade egress from toddler classrooms, we’ve provided clear direction to the evolving pieces of the larger building. We ensured the five floors of apartments above wouldn't impinge on the necessary duct and exhaust shafts that allow us to include a much-needed full commercial kitchen in the center.

CAST is proud to be part of the team for the Cedar Crossing affordable housing project, in partnership with El Centro de la Raza, Bellwether Housing, and Mercy Housing NW. On-site child care is an important component of the project, which co-locates resident services in the same building with family-sized housing units.

See more at El Centro de la Raza Roosevelt Early Learning Center.