Eastman Branch Plaza Intervention

The intervention in the Plaza Space of the Eastman Branch of the Cleveland Public Library is at once an architectural intervention and a bolstering of public infrastructure. Located in a predominantly Arab and Latinx community on the West Side of Cleveland, The library services a mostly low-income community where english is the second language.

Through a community engagement process, patrons of the library asked for after hours seating for WIFI access. along with more lighting to make the walk to and from the library in the winter hours feel more safe.

The proposal was awarded a Burning Man Global Arts Grant and was designed, fabricated, and installed with a budget of just $5000. The concept was to take a box with $4000 dollars worth of 4x8 plywood, leaving $1000 dollars for Installation. From that box was carved a two-tier seating and sun shading element which was carved up so as to elongate the perspective of the existing plaza space. The amount of wood removed from the $4000 dollar mass would be our fabrication budget. in essence designing the project backward from the budget to an object which satisfied our needs.

The project was completed in a neighborhood often overlooked by funders and designer, by politicians and developers. It utilizes the detail as the driver for urban change, by activating a streetscape, and reviving a public space. It was our goal to prove that on a very small budget, with a little community input, and a lot of good design, we can begin to transform our neighborhoods. At its most fundamental, the intervention offers a clean, well lit, comfortable, secure and non commercialized space, with access to the public infrastructure of Wifi treating the library as living room.

Date: 2017
Location: Cleveland, OH
Type: Urban Furniture
Status: Delivered
Collaborators: Kent State Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative, Jeff Kruth, Cleveland Public Library Patrons and Staff