DEPLOYABLE GREENHOUSES
On a disused lot facing Seattle’s Thurgood Marshall Elementary School, atelierjones proposed a series of modular greenhouses that would serve the student community next door. These greenhouses are designed as low-cost, self sufficient growing tents, using recycled plastic bags as raised beds on site’s otherwise thin and unusable soil.
Each greenhouse supports a micro solar panel that powers a grow light, extending the growing season under Seattle’s grey winter skies. Rainwater is funneled from the tent’s surface through fabric gutters and collected in drums for irrigation. The greenhouses are designed to be quickly and easily demountable for repeated use on other sites.
Working with parents, school staff, the city of Seattle, and local urban agriculture nonprofit Alleycat Acres, atelierjones envisions these greenhouses as a means of introducing local sustainability and healthy food into early education, building a healthier city from the grassroots.
2009-2011
Seattle, WA
atelierjones: Susan Jones, Brian Gerich, Kristin Saunders
COLLABORATORS
Contractor: Alleycat Acres
Structural Engineering: Harriott Valentine Engineers
AWARDS
2010 AIA Seattle Awards - Citation for Visionary Work
2010 Seattle Design Commission - Honorable Mention
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