Everyday Convergences

Leftover spaces such as the “Urban Den” are potential sites for people to engage in creative and imaginative use, and to connect through chance encounters and spontaneous events. These informal spaces may be disorderly and unkempt yet it is this reason that prompts people to be willing interpreters and patrons of these places. At the “Urban Den” this is further complicated, or rather, intersects the natural processes that already occur. Leftover concrete structures are reclaimed by naturally occurring invasive plant species, and age from the weathering elements, while catering to various user groups, who bring with them different expectations, behaviors and modifications to the landscape. This exhibits a convergence between the narratives of people and narratives of the landscape, such that the former becomes part of the latter. This is seen everywhere at the "Urban Den", from the appropriation of concrete walls as art canvasses for graffiti, or the overgrown awning above as an ideal ‘disposal’ system for the countless soda cans and empty liquor bottles. These are just a few examples of what may be found at the “Urban Den”, including marks of people’s presence, occupancy and use of the site through found objects, signs of settlement, and mere scratches on the asphalt.

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From the Pike Place Martket to the Harbor Steps

Pike Place Market has always been the epic center of downtown Seattle. This public market overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront in the city and is one of the oldest continually operated public farmers’ market in the United States. The Pike Place Market, the underground restaurants, and the Harbor Steps locate between Freeway 99 and the 1^st Avenue from Virginia Street to University Street, and they together dominate the activities along the waterfront. Before the Pike Place Market was found in 1907, farmers and producers sold their food and products to some middle persons, who would then sell to the stores and finally to the customers. The formation of Pike Place Market changed the format and routine of how products are sold. Farmers and merchants can now directly sell their food and products to the customers. To allow the customers to meet the producers is the market’s mission and founding goal.

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Urban Hotdog Stands

Minjae Kim

This project looks at the hotdog stands that appears at 10th and Pike everynight by bars and music venues such ans Neumos, Comet Tavern, and Bimbos. Everynight during and after bar hours these hotdog stands are crowded with people then next morning they are nowhere to be found.

This interesting phenomenon is a good example of ad-hoc urbanism which takes place in unproper sites, mainly focused to take the most advantage out of the right moment.

In weekends they sell hundreds of hotdogs. The lines are so long, the cart will be blocked from view by the crowd. Then again, next morning, the cart is nowhere to be found. If you want to get a hotdog from here, you will have to wait for the right moment.

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The Urban Gallery

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This project is aimed at describing the intricate human processes involved in the creation of unauthorized urban art. It moves to focus on aspects of adaptation and transformation as well as the democratizing nature of this social phenomenon. It is these factors that culminate to form a constantly changing urban gallery. This urban gallery reflects hugely on the environment itself, the artists involved in its creation and the deeper pulse of the urban city.

This renegade art gallery is a fundamental part of the urban fabric within the city. These artistic expressions represent a huge cross section of culture and a strong sense of personality. Through this expression of ideas posted on the landscape the streets of Seattle are transformed into an omnipresent public gallery. This gallery is in turn used as a forum for the expression of diverse ideas, creativity, dissent, conflict and hope. The urban gallery provides a way for members of the community to literally leave their mark on the city.

Interchange as Interstitial

roen hohlfeld

Throughout this project I explore the typology of the urban freeway interchange as an interstitial site; a stage upon which ad-hoc urbanisms unfold. Interstitial spaces lie on the margins, at transitional points that are not clearly legible. As a result, these spaces are often marginalized and undervalued. Under closer scrutiny interstitial spaces are a critical and essential component of our cityscapes. My explorations are an attempt to better understand these sites, the values that they have, and the role they play in the larger urban landscape.

I focus specifically on the site beneath the interchange of Interstate 5 and the West Seattle Bridge. This is a space of the everyday. The landscape of the Interstate serves as a threshold for the humble routine of the daily commute; it is a repetitive and overlooked backdrop for this parody. This space acts as a retreat for urban wildlife and offers marginalized people a place as they attempt to simply live in ad-hoc shelters scattered around the site. The freeway itself, as well as the interstitial space created by the complex interchanges allow for a different experience of the city. This space is a critical and valuable part of our urban fabric.

Simulated Urbanism

Talya ten Brink
Themed open malls, or ‘festival marketplaces,’ are a growing type of privately owned open space that threatens the vitality of pedestrian urban environment. To highlight the contrast between the festival marketplace and the public urban environment, this paper will compare photographs of the festival marketplace of University Village, a privately owned commercial development in Seattle, with photographs of the adjacent neighborhood. The Google map below shows University Village (site of photos 1-4) and the adjacent Union Bay – Blakeley Neighborhood (site of photos 5-9). UVillage exhibits a simulated city of culture and community, but in reality it replaces real community with marketing for consumption of standardized products. Because UVillage is managed in a top-down approach to profit the owners of UVillage, it does not encourage all types of storefronts, activities, or user groups. The strict controls in UVillage hinder ad-hoc urbanism. The adjacent Union Bay – Blakeley Neighborhood is suffering economically and socially, yet it serves the public because it allows the layering of incremental adjustments in public open space.

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Safety In An Urban Environment

Safety Methods Used in the Urban Environment
Lindsay Duin

Safety has been and will remain an underlying issue in the context of the urban environment. Safety is something people desire and need included in their everyday lives. It is appropriate to even say that safety is in someway involved in almost every aspect of people’s lives. It is essential. Because of this essential need of safety in life, people are willing to try all kinds of security related methods in order to obtain the feeling of safety. As I explored Seattle’s Belltown district, I came across different safety attempts that used a variety of methods, ranging from boarded or barred up windows, to six inch spikes atop doors and fences. Whatever the method was, it was obvious an attempt was made to keep unwanted people away. The problem with this tactic is, not only do these unpleasant elements have the potential to keep unwanted people away, but they also deter every other type of person from entering the space. These safety methods can lead to a lot of empty undesired spaces throughout the city because of the unpleasant atmosphere these elements create for people.