Count Us In

During the very early morning hours of Friday, January 27th, staff from Schemata Workshop will be joining volunteers from all over King County to conduct a point in time count of people experiencing homelessness and living without shelter. This street count effort is taking place in every census tract in the County and is combined with a shelter and youth count to form Count Us In (formerly One Night Count). The data from Count Us In not only increases community support and awareness of the scope and scale of homelessness but provides much needed data for organizations and government agencies working toward housing for all. 

This is why we're counting:

It makes me sad to think that homelessness has become part of the landscape of our community. People walk/drive by without a thought as if it’s okay that there are community members who are living unsheltered. THIS IS NOT OKAY! I am counting because we need to SEE and acknowledge people experiencing homelessness and work/advocate harder for various ways to ensure that everyone has a safe home. It’s a human right. - Joann

Homelessness is such a big problem for our city that for a single individual wanting to help, it’s overwhelming to try and find a way to be a part of the solution. I have volunteered here and there at a few different encampments in the past, but Count Us In is a chance to contribute to a bigger effort. This data will help provide resources to tackle homelessness issues at a bigger scale, and that is why I am counting. - Margaret K.

I want to better understand homelessness and help in some way. - Erik

It is vital that we understand the scale of the homelessness crisis in our cities, counties, states, and country. This Count represents one step in the journey to ensure every person has a safe, affordable, and healthy place to live. - Sarah

I’m counting because it’s more important now than ever for me to use my relative privilege in the service of helping others who don’t have that luxury. - Margaret T.

I want to help, even if only in a small way. Being able to see one aspect of homelessness firsthand makes all the statistics that much more personal and gives even more meaning to the work we’re a part of at Schemata. - Brian

It's the responsibility of those of us with means and opportunity to give visibility to members of our community whose voices go unheard and whose needs have been ignored. - Abby

Learn more about getting involved here.

Chi Psi Annex - COMPLETE

There’s nothing more satisfying as an architect than closing out a project and watching excited residents take occupancy of their building. We had the pleasure of doing just that last month when we completed an annex for the Chi Psi Fraternity at the University of Washington. Chi Psi’s membership had outgrown their 1924 home, affectionately known as The Lodge. Despite extensive renovations in 2010, the near-century-old building was in need of additional space to house fraternity members who were living off-site.

The goal of the annex was to house these members and provide additional amenity spaces. One of the challenges of the project was a tight site that resulted in a tall building with a small footprint. The project consists of 15 student rooms spread over 4 floors. Each floor contains a full bathroom with and laundry facilities on the ground floor. Each student living in the annex has a private room with a built-in bed and storage unit. The annex’s location adjacent to the northeast corner of the existing Chi Psi building places residents of the annex at an easy distance from the kitchen, dining area, and library contained in the existing lodge. It’s location also encloses a courtyard and sports court for basketball, summer barbecues, and other activities. The contractor for the project, Carlisle Classic Homes, was able to complete the project in time for the students to move in for the ‘16-‘17 school year.

Open House and Park(ing) Day

Incredibly, two weeks have passed since our open house and Park(ing) Day. And what is there to say except a heartfelt "thank you" to everyone who made the day possible and came out to celebrate with us.

A very special thanks to:

Danny Ngan for documenting the evening with these and other beautiful images

Ragen & Associates for contributing landscaping for our parklet

Elliott Bay Book Company for donating to our park's take-away library

Scratch Deli for providing snack for our park guests

(Park)ing Day 2016

Sneak peek at what we have in store for Parking Day this year, coming up Friday, September 16 (yes, it's the same date as our open house!):

Special thanks to Scratch Deli, Elliott Bay Books and Ragen & Associates!

More information about the 50+ Parklets that will be popping all over Seattle can be found here.

Cheers!

-The Froggers

We're Back!

copyright schemata workshop

We made it. After months of delays and rescheduling, two full days of packing and unpacking, and many subsequent hours of organizing, we’re finally in our new home on Capitol Hill. Slowly, things are coming together—our admins have their new casework, acoustic felt and carpeting are going in, and the next few weeks will get us pretty darn close to complete.

We asked the staff, “What have you most enjoyed about being back on Capitol Hill? What are you most looking forward to now that we’re back? What has surprised you most about being in the new office?” Here are some of their answers:

Will: Being in a vibrant neighborhood with Seattle’s best park a few blocks away. Enjoying lunch on the roof deck. How spacious the office feels.

Margaret T: I like being so close to home and in the middle of Cap Hill – it feels like a community here, and we’re so close to my favorite haunts.  I also like that Cap Hill is not so touristy!

Abby: I’ve enjoyed being able to walk to work. Not only is it a quick and easy commute, it’s fun seeing the neighborhood wake up as I make my way into the office. I was anticipating the open office layout to be very distracting, and I’m surprised by how little that’s been a problem for me.

Mike: Seeing people I know while walking around the neighborhood—that didn’t happen much in the temp location. Being close to our daughter and the CHUC community throughout the day. It’s hotter than I hoped…need to work on ventilation and night cooling.

Joann: I enjoy the natural daylight in the office, the standing desk configuration and being so close to the park. I’m looking forward to exploring the neighborhood and getting to know the local businesses.

Mira: I love being able to walk to work and seeing all the quirky personalities of those on Capitol Hill. I enjoy being together in one big space as one big Schemata family. I look forward to settling in, decluttering, and adding some personality back to our second home! One thing that never ceases to amaze me, despite the transition pains, is how seamless it has been to work on virtual machines.

Sarah: The office moving to the Hill has meant that everyone is starting over together in a new space. As the newest person in the office, this has helped me feel like one of the team faster than if we hadn’t all participated in the big move!

Grace: I like being immersed in the community where I have invested my personal and professional time. Within the walls of our new building I enjoy the sounds of kids playing, neighbors talking and laughing, and the clink of dishes as they get washed or neighbors eat dinner. Outside the gate to the building I enjoy a vibrant business district where I meet my neighbors of the greater Capitol Hill community.

And we’re not done celebrating!

9/16: Stop by any time to enjoy our PARKing Day pop-up parklet, then join us for our Open House

Cheers!

-The Froggers