Hello from Ryan

Hello Volunteers, Partners and Friends: 

My name is Ryan Rinn and I am stepping in as the new Interim Executive Director for Storefront.  I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself to you in hopes that (if we haven’t already) we can meet in person soon. I’m coming to Storefront with a background in urban planning and community organizing having most recently served as the Project Manager for the City of Richmond’s Highland Park Quality of Life initiative.  Prior to that I worked as an organizer for the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy.  I’m a Richmonder of 13 years, a graduate of both UR and VCU, and I live in Byrd Park.

Over the next few weeks I will be working with Giles and our Board of Directors to learn about the skills and talents all of you possess and the excellent work you have done as volunteers for Storefront.  I already know that without your expertise and dedication, Storefront would not be able to meet the many needs that the community brings through our doors on a daily basis.  Thank you for your continued time, talents and vision toward making RVA a great place for all of our residents and visitors.

Please come by the Storefront and say hi. And most importantly, please please, keep volunteering.  There are a lot of great projects on the horizon and this is YOUR design shop.  If you would like to participate in the next volunteer orientation let me know when you're available.  I look forward to working for you and to meeting you in person.

Sincerely,
Ryan C. Rinn

PS.  As part of my first 30 days, I have a goal of getting 500 "likes" on Facebook.  Please help us get there -- and tell your friends!

A Changing of the Guard

We say a huge "Thank You!" to Giles Harnsberger and wish her all the best in the her next exciting venture. While she has stepped down from her official position, we are thrilled to say that she continues on as a volunteer and will lend her considerable brain trust in helping guide Storefront going forward.

We welcome Ryan Rinn as the new Interim Executive Director of the Storefront for Community Design. He comes to us after having served as Project Manager for the Highland Park Quality of Life initiative for the City of Richmond and Director of Grassroots Education at the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy.



Stop in and say thank you.... and hello.

Small is beautiful

Luck's Field Fruit Cart, Meggie Kelley

Design can be used to support healthy neighborhoods, as with this beautifully designed fruit cart by Meggie Kelley, Storefront consultant, on behalf of VCU's Fairmount neighborhood planning team.  From the design service request: "Having readily available, high quality fresh fruits and healthy snacks available in public recreation areas is a great way to support active lifestyles and healthy eating simultaneously. This service could be supplied through mobile fruit carts that move throughout the Fairmount neighborhood to its most active locations including Luck’s Field, Fairmount Pool, and outside of Sunday church services." Thanks to Professor Meghan Gough, Meggie Kelly and the Fairmount Neighborhood for working with Storefront on this community plan.

...the common goal.

Workshop #3 wraps up on a beautiful Saturday afternoon and our diligent contributers pose for a group photo. Stay tuned to the Springhill page as we draft up the final plan community vision plan.

Pocket-size Community Garden

Thanks to Sara Shirley for her contribution to the Fairmont Community Health Plan, a collaborative effort of Fairmont residents, New Visions Civic League Unity Civic League, and Union Hill Civic Association and the Masters of Urban & Regional Planning program
at VCU.  This illustration, rendered by Storefront volunteer and landscape architect Sara Shirley, shows a rehabilitated community garden located at Tate and N 28th Streets.

MoB JoB

MARK GORMUS/TIMES-DISPATCH

mOnument alley

mOb JOb Opens tOnight 

mOb + StOrefront

205 east brOad

5 — 9 pm

we shOw the results of Our week lOng

design / build ( been thinking, making mOnuments )

with trOy schaum, architect / assistant prOfessOr / rice university / kOOlhaas / libeskind / marfa

big fOrms




Check it out, Mob Job made headlines!

Springhill sidewalk survey & other news

April 2013 News at Storefront

This Saturday March 30th at 10 am in an unprecedented show of teamwork between Springhill residents, Storefront and the City of Richmond Department of Public Works, a small group will walk the neighborhood of Springhill, mapping new sidewalk locations to be constructed as part of a comprehensive sidewalk plan for the neighborhood.  Storefront thanks the Department of Public Works for being involved, and the Springhill residents for their awesome civic engagement.

Read about this and more in our APRIL NEWSLETTER!  Email us at info@storefrontrichmond.org if you'd like to be added to our mailing list.

Full steam ahead with Design Education

Ever wanted to know more about graphic design, but didn't know the first thing about getting started?  You're in luck!  Ansel Olson, of Ansel Olson Design is the next in our Sunday afternoon Design Education series at Storefront for Community Design.  Ansel, whose highly regarded photography and graphic design work is well known in the Richmond area, will present "Working with a graphic designer" on Sunday April 28th from 1:30 until 3pm.  

Call (804) 322-9556 or email info@storefrontrichmond.org to RSVP.

Thanks to David Cooley of Restoration Builders of Virginia for presenting "Working with a Renovation Contractor" in March, and thanks to our partner the Better Housing Coalition for helping make it happen!

The mOb Job

The mOb studio (Storefront's VCU partner) is participating in a week long intensified design/build project with Architect Troy Schaum, from Rice University. Come see the outcome of mOb's hard work on the April First Friday Art Walk, April 5, from 5 to 9 pm. 

Every day is Volunteer Appreciation Day

We want to take a moment to say thank you to all the volunteers who come to Storefront to work on projects that bring architecture and urban design to neighborhoods, residents and business owners in Richmond.  Over the weekend volunteers Andrea Almond, Evan MacKenzie, Ulysses Brown, Jenna Evers, Will Wright, Smokey Powers and Meggie Kelley worked with Springhill residents to sort through issues of architecture, development, pedestrian circulation and parks and open space, providing great support to workshop leader Burt Pinnock.

Sunday, architect and volunteer consultant Jennifer Wimmer teamed up with landscape architect Juliellen Sarver and city planner Tyler Potterfield to walk the Robinson Street commercial corridor with merchants association leader Bob Adams and other interested residents.  The goal of the Sunday walk is to provide green-scaping ideas for this multi-modal transit artery located in the heart of Richmond.

And finally, Storefront thanks those who help in our office, especially Nora Bland, Meggie Kelley and Smokey Powers. We appreciate all of our volunteers for all you do to make Richmond a happier -- and better designed -- place!

The City I Live In

Come check out the poster show before it's gone!  Props to John Malinoski of MoB for gathering some of the finest graphic design we've ever seen in one place.  The show is up at MoB + Storefront, 205 E Broad Street, through the month of March.  Stop by during business hours (9:00 am until 5:00 pm), or click here to visit MoB's tumblr site.

Family supermarket design consultation

If you're a Storefront architectural consultant and you'd like to make an immediate impact on a neighborhood in the Richmond, this is a great opportunity.  The Union Hill Civic Association is working with the Family Supermarket to make design improvements to the facade of this historic building on Jefferson Street.  Call us at (804) 322-9556 or send an email to info@storefrontrichmond.org if you are an architect or illustrator and you are interested in assisting residents of Union Hill on the Family Supermarket project.

Volunteers Needed: Springhill Neighborhood Workshop Series

Storefront is calling all volunteer facilitators for a workshop series with residents and business owners living in and around the neighborhood of Springhill. The purpose of the 3-part workshop series is to develop a Springhill neighborhood vision statement that may be used in the future as a statement of community-endorsed land use and improved quality of life and urban environment measures. The workshops will be held March 9, March 23 and April 6 from 10am until 12pm.  If you are interested in volunteering for one or more of these workshops, call us at (804)322-9556 or email info@storefrontrichmond.org.

Urban Design Film Series

A Storefront Design Education Program

On the Third Thursday of every month at 7:00 pm, Storefront will be showing a film related to Urban Design, Architecture, or Sustainable Design. Come watch, discuss, and enjoy!

Free and open to the public.

Thursday, March 21:

Urbanized looks at the issues and strategies behind urban design, explores a diverse range of urban design projects around the world, and frames a global discussion on the future of cities.
7:00 pm at Storefront





Thursday, April 18:

Design & Thinking is a documentary featuring designers, businessmen, and social change-makers discussing the achievements and the criticisms of this invigorating school of thought.
7:00 pm at Storefront






Thursday, May 16:

Surviving Progress is a bracing documentary that considers whether human "progress" stemming from the Industrial Age could be paving the way for civilization's collapse. The film asks a range of thinkers whether the modern world might be headed for a "progress trap."
7:00 pm at Storefront








For more information or to R.S.V.P. please email or call Storefront for Community Design.

804.322.9556
info@storefrontrichmond.org

Affiche #1 The City I Live In

An exhibition of very large posters at mOb + Storefront is opening March 1 from 5 to 9 pm.  Designers were asked to create a visual interpretation of the city they live in ranging from New York,  Gothenburg, past, present, future, dark, green, Richmond, etc. Styles are diverse, the walls are bright and demonstrate the need to respect the poster as a critical component of our city streets. 

mOb + Storefront is located at 205 EAST Broad, Richmond, VA.

Happy birthday Storefront

Public presentation of Fulton Memorial Park drawings

RK&K & Cite Design Present:
Initial Drawings of
Fulton Memorial Park



Please Come and Comment!

Wednesday, February 13 ( 6-8 pm )

At Cavalry United Methodist Church
1637 Williamsburg Road

Light refreshments will be served.

For further information please call:
Jason Sawyer at the Neighborhood Resource Center
804-864-5797

"It has to be beautiful."

We like the challenge.

Design Plan 2013 kicks off this month with a new slate of projects, MoB student designers, and mentors from the architecture and design profession.

One project takes up the cause of a vacant lot on Broad Street, where late night violence has been known to wake neighbors.  Site owner Walter Parks is working with a Middle of Broad + Storefront design team to come up with an environmental solution to the chronic crime issue.  Architectural mentor Emily Striffler of BCWH is working with students on a buildable and temporary urban design scheme for the lot.

Design Lab work will be posted at Storefront for Community Design throughout the Spring of 2013.  If you have a project for Design Lab to take on, don't hesitate to email us at info@storefrontrichmond.org.

B+D: Get Outta Here!

We don't like to toot our own horn, but Storefront is excited to host this Virginia Society AIA event on Wednesday, February 6 (5-8:00 pm) at our office at 205 East Broad Street.  Does it get any better than design talk and locally made brew with friends?  Come join the fun next Wednesday after work, and find out from speakers Thom White, Fred Wolf, Nelly Kate, Giles Harnsberger, and Peter O'Shea what's happening outside the box in the design profession.  Check out the website for more details on this VSAIA event.  Thanks to Tim Hamnett & Kevin Jones for bringing B+D3 to the neighborhood!

How to make your house work for you!

Storefront Richmond & Better Housing Coalition Present:
How to make your house work for you,  a free educational workshop series

Open to the public, Storefront and the Better Housing Coalition's Design Education workshops help you learn about how to make your house work for you!  Storefront board member Peter Fraser kicks off the 8-part series in February with "Working with an Interior Designer."












Sunday, February 24, 2013
1:30-3:00 PM
Peter Fraser, Fraser Design Associates
"Working with an Interior Designer"

Talks will be the fourth Sunday of the month unless otherwise noted at
205 E. Broad St, Richmond, VA 23219

These talks are free and open to the public, with a $10 suggested donation to support Storefront programs.  For more information or to R.S.V.P, email info@storefrontrichmond.org or call 804.322.9556.

Damon & David work out a floor plan

Thanks to Damon Pearson of 3north for kicking off 2013 with a great design consultation with David Williams, president of the DLW Veterans Outreach & Training Center on Chamberlayne Avenue.  Damon worked with David to create a floor plan that will help the Veterans Center increase services to homeless veterans in Richmond.  Big props to David for providing workforce training and shelter for Richmond's veterans, and thanks to Damon for his excellent volunteer work at Storefront!

First Friday in February: Rab & Tod

Storefront welcomes the public back to MoB+Storefront for First Fridays Artwalk on February 1st from 5:00 until 9:00 pm.  See work by Todd Dykshorn and Rab McClure and talk about your ideas for Richmond in the Zoetrope machine!

Retail & Detail on Broad Street

Thanks to Tyler Potterfield for leading an fun and educational Retail & Detail Design Walk on Broad Street this Saturday.  Thanks very much to Bachrach's Jewelers, Waller & Company Jewelers, Barky's Spiritual Store, Fashion Design Center, Renovation Resources, Pibby's, Quirk, Steady Sounds and Nick's Produce.  Business owners proved that there is great variety and vitality on Richmond's central commercial corridor.  It's apparent that momentum is swinging in the direction of Broad Street renaissance.  Happy holidays to all!

"The park's got to tell the story."

From left to right, Malachi Mills of RK&K Spencer Jones
of the Fulton Foundation, and
Andrew Bleckley of Cite Design

There is a story to be told in Fulton, and it's one that the community has been preparing to tell for decades.  When the historic Fulton neighborhood was demolished during the 1970s, residents of the once tight-knit community scattered to other neighborhoods with memories of the village that they knew.

Thanks to the tenacious leadership of Spencer Jones of the Legacy Committee of the Greater Fulton Futures Initiative (a Virginia LISC and Neighborhood Resource Center program), and thanks to the City of Richmond Department of Parks & Recreation, the history of Fulton's golden years and tragic demise will now be commemorated by the Fulton Memorial Park.

 Malachi Mills of RK&K, Andrew Bleckley, Liz Crim and John Hershey of Cite Design met with Mr. Jones, Storefront manager Giles Harnsberger and Doug Mawby of the Department of Public Works at the City of Richmond's granite stockpile yard to inspect the remains of the Fulton neighborhood.  In large piles rest the curbs and cobblestones that are the bones of Fulton.  These pieces of infrastructure will be incorporated in the design of the park, which will be located at the base of Powhatan Hill Park on Williamsburg Road.  The City of Richmond, Storefront, the Greater Fulton Futures Initiative and the RK&K and Cite Design team are working to begin construction on the Fulton Memorial Park in Spring of 2013.

Passivhaus!

Adam Cohen, green architect and co-owner of Structures Design/Build, will deliver a presentation on the Passivhaus concept at Storefront at 205 East Broad Street this Sunday, December 2nd (1:30-3:00 pm).

This DesignEd event is free and open to the public, but space is limited.  Please register by clicking here.

Check out the flyer, designed by Jiyoon Cha of MoB.  This event is brought to you by the James River Building Council, Richmond Co-Housing, Transition Richmond, and Storefront.

Stuff Redux, thinking forward!

Young entrepreneur Rachel Cohen is getting her business up and running in Richmond's north side, and she has a great idea.  The mission of Stuff Redux is "To promote environmental sustainability, creativity, and community engagement in Richmond by collecting traditionally discarded materials from local businesses and redistributing them to community members for use in creative and educational projects." Cohen's vision for the reuse and redistribution of still useful objects is awesome; if only she had a logo concept.

Graphic designers, this project is calling you!  Email us at info@storefrontrichmond.org.  Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Brookland Theatre Workshop: A community forum

Brookland Theatre (above) and Brookland Park Boulevard.
Photos courtesy of John Murden.

Come take part in discussions on the revitalization of the Brookland Theatre, the north side's art deco movie palace designed by Fred Bishop, who also designed the Byrd Theatre in Carytown. The forum will focus on the upcoming renewal of the Brookland Theatre and its future as an anchor in the revitalization of Brookland Park Boulevard. This workshop is free and open to the public. Click here to see the flyer.  

Please call Storefront at (804) 649-4935 or email giles@storefrontrichmond.org to RSVP. Refreshments provided.  

When:  Tuesday, November 27 (6:00-8:00 pm)

Where: Northminster Baptist Church, Contemporary Worship Center, 3121 Moss Side Avenue

Info: (804) 649-4935 or email giles@storefrontrichmond.org

Eyes on Broad Street

Tloke Nahuake Dancers 

Storefront had a great weekend. First Friday's was a circus, with Shockoe Denim, La Milpa, face painting, Richmond Women in Design, and a dance by the Tloke Nahuake, traditional Aztec fire dancers from Mexico City, celebrating Dia de los Muertos.

Finished tree well and MoB volunteers

Saturday Storefront and MoB volunteers worked on planting fall plants and a new willow oak to the tree wells outside of Storefront at 2nd and East Broad.  Come by sometime and see how the blueberries are doing!  Big thanks to landscape architect Kendra Taylor and aspiring LA Rachel Schneider, interior designer professor Camden Whitehead and design student Emily Yenke for their work.  We love passing by these wells on Broad!

Denim, Dancing and Design

 

Have you heard there's a new blue jean designer in town?  Stop by Storefront tomorrow for First Fridays! Shockoe Demin will be here with a display of all the pieces that make a pair of jeans, and a demonstration of how they are put together.

Don't wear jeans? What about a dance performance? Tloke Nahuake will perform and La Milpa will have food, face painting, and an altar celebrating Dia de los Muertos. Bring a photo of someone you would like to remember.  For our architectural friends, Richmond Women and Design is exhibiting the work of designers and artists from the Richmond area.

And finally it's InLight - Broad Street will be bright with light installations.  Make Storefront part of your First Friday's walk tomorrow!

Downtown design walk stirs conversation

Storefront's urban design walk downtown was a success (see the photos HERE), thanks to Mark Olinger and Tyler Potterfield's insights on Richmond's historic development and existing fabric. We checked out new shops on Brook Road, Belgian-brick lined alleys being used in a fashion photo shoot, and took a moment to pause at one special live oak tree at North Adams Street.  The walk took the group east on Grace Street, where Mr. Potterfield pointed out the "cacophonous" architectural quality of storefronts in the 300 block.

Walking in a direction counter to traffic, Mr. Olinger pointed out the dramatic view in the direction of George Washington's statue.  The axis is a missed urban design opportunity, as East Grace Street runs west from Capital Square.  Mr. Olinger pointed out Richmond's Downtown Masterplan includes one-way street conversion in its long-term goals, but one coffee shop owner on the tour who's opening a business on North 8th Street expressed that such a change is more immediately needed to support businesses like hers (check out aproposroasters.com!).  Storefront is planning a second urban design tour this winter, a holiday walk to focus on entrepreneurs who do business downtown.  Stay posted!