mOb Design Session Spring 2016

Every semester, Storefront's community design apprentices at mOb (Middle of Broad) take on community-initiated projects under the guidance of a professional mentor, VCUarts faculty, and Storefront staff. This semester, mOb students representing Fashion, Graphic, and Interior Design departments at VCUarts will be taking on 16 projects. The projects focus on creative design strategies for new urban mobility, historic preservation, socially engaged art practices, community gardens, and more. For the first time, we will also be welcoming students from the School of Engineering. Read more about the projects below:
 

BIKES AND ______. 

Lewis Ginter Mobile Education Station
Prototype a mobile education station for Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens that could be tested on campus and used in funding proposals.

Bibliospokes
Work with the Richmond Public Library to design a trailerable library, to be hitched to an electric bicycle, and taken to events around the city. Work on the Bibliospokes identity may also be included within the project scope.

• Here's what they're working with.

• Here's more information on the program.

Existing Bibliospokes trailer.

Rag & Bones Bike-in Theater
Transform an underutilized parking lot into a bike-in theater.

• Learn more about their programming here.

• Check out the site here.

Bike-in theater site (Rag & Bones to the left).

Bike & Pedestrian Plan for Spoonfed
Apply the principles of the bicycle master plan to the public and private spaces around Spoonfed, a restaurant in Westhampton.

• Check out the site here.

• Skim the Bicycle Master Plan here.

PARKS & URBAN AGRICULTURE

Farmstrong Shed
Work with Armstrong High School Green team to rehabilitate a former refrigeration unit — now used as a shed — to better accommodate gardening tools.

• Here's an article on Farmstrong.

• Read more about the client organization, GroundworkRVA.

Community High Greenhouse
Work with Community High Green Team to develop a plan to rehabilitate a vacant greenhouse.

• Here's the Green Team's facebook page.

• Check out the project site here.

James River Park System Wayfinding
Expand upon the outcomes from Fall 2015 to develop robust prototypes for a wayfinding system for the James River Park System.

• Here's what they did last semester.

Outcome for new signage system developed by mOb in 2015.

Poetry for Trash
Socially engaged art project that enters the conversation of litter with poetry. Build professional signs that can be installed in public space, which offer instructions for participation in the Poetry for Trash project.

• Their website explains the project far better than I do.

RECOVERY

Richmond Behavioral Health Authority
Determine the placement of posters created from last semester, oversee their production and installation.

• An article on Design Ignites Change about the program, Recovery by Design.

• Example of an outcome from last semester.
  

Rams in Recovery
Design a space in the Well for Rams in Recoevery — a student-run group for students overcoming substance use disorders.

• More about Rams in Recovery.

After-Care Dental Instructions
Develop after-care instruction for patients undergoing complex dental procedures, who often must comply with after-care instructions. This is a common problem among health care providers who serve urban populations like Richmond.

Camp Kesem Magic Booth
Create a magic booth as a fundraising tool for Camp Kesem, a camp for children who have parents with cancer.

• More about Camp Kesem here.

Grace & Holy Trinity Meditation Scrapbook
Redesign a book on meditation, which has existing content compiled by Candy Osdene.

PRESERVATION & REUSE

Cookie Factory Water Tank
Design a water tank wrap for the Cookie Factory Lofts.

Water tank at former Interbake Building at 900 Terminal Place.

Greensville County Training School
Communicate the vision of Marva Dunn to transform the Greensville County Training School into a community center.

• Citizens United to Preserve Greensville County Training School.

• Read more about the fascinating history of Rosenwald Schools here.

Remains of Greensville County Training School in Emporia, Virginia.

East End Listening: What We Heard

Storefront staff located at Creighton Court's resource center to engage residents about redevelopment.

As part of the team with the City of Richmond, Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA), The Community Builders (TCB), VCU Center on Society & Health, the Informed Neighbors Corps and residents of Church Hill North, the Storefront for Community Design began a passive engagement process to assist in providing perspective and insight from residents in and around Creighton Court. This was our first interjection into the neighborhood to begin the process of being present and gaining perspective on things they have heard, things that are still unclear, and their hopes for the future.

Scott's Addition Workshop Report

In June of 2013, the Scott’s Addition Business Association (SABA) and City Councilman Charles Samuels engaged Storefront to conduct a series of neighborhood workshops to develop a community design action plan.

Robinson Street Association Identifies Streetscape Needs

Storefront responded to a request from the newly formed Robinson Street Association to assist in a prioritization process by, first, organizing an urban design walk down the corridor with members of the City of Richmond’s Department of Planning and Development Review (PDR) in February of 2013. This report is a result of workshops around those observations.