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Stone34

Outdoor eating at Brooks Sports Headquarters Building (Stone34). Image credit: LMN Architects

Stone34 is a five-storey, mixed-use commercial building in Seattle, USA on Stone Way between 34th and 35th streets in the Fremont neighbourhood. The building was designed according to the City of Seattle’s Deep Green Program (now Living Building Pilot Program) which is aligned with the International Living Future Institute (ILFI). Stone34 is certified LEED Platinum. The building uses around 75 percent less energy and water than similar projects. It was envisaged to act as an urban “trailhead” to Seattle’s popular Burke-Gilman, a 43 km cycling and walking trail. The project’s goals to support both physical activity and sustainability across the building and site were further strengthened when the main tenant, Brooks Sports, a company that makes running shoes and attire, was secured.

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies and this case study was written by Elizabeth Cooper.

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Folkets Park

New playground at Folkets Park. Image: Kenneth A. Balfelt.

Nørrebro, one of the most densely populated, diverse, and disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Copenhagen, is home to Folkets Park (literally, “People’s Park”). It is a small urban park with a rich history as a place associated with local grassroots activism.

Residents created the park in 1971 on the site of a burned down building as a place for children to play. The adjacent Folkets Hus community centre was the site of local activism between the 1960s and 1980s, largely focused on disagreement over urban renewal. In the decades following there was not much municipal intervention in the park, but this shifted after a violent crime in 2012 that spurred the need for a re-design process focused on safety and inclusion.

The 2013 renovation of Folkets Park aimed to create a public space where all users could feel safe and comfortable. Perceived safety and the provision of public greenspace were the main determinants of health for this project. Another key aspect of this project was the aspiration to embed an inclusive and collaborative approach throughout the design process. As explained in guidance by the Gehl Institute, this exemplary project demonstrates how “when designing healthy places, inclusion can be a goal, a process, and a result”.(1)

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies and this case study was written by Elizabeth Cooper.

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