While startup culture is beginning to inform larger corporate companies and their workplaces, the rock solid traditions of higher education have been more difficult to infiltrate. In Seattle, WA, the University of Washington is doing its part to begin bridging the gap between higher education and the Pacific Northwest’s thriving entrepreneurial community.
A public-private partnership between the University of Washington and three of the region’s top startup supporters, Techstars, Founders’ Co-Op and Up Global, was established in 2013 to help local innovators and investors connect and build the next generation of industry-leading companies.
In the fall of 2014, Startup Hall moved into its new home, 21,000 square feet of newly renovated space on the second floor of Condon Hall, an award-winning Brutalist building constructed in 1973. During the 10 years preceding Startup Hall’s tenancy, the university used the building as surge space resulting in a rabbit warren of offices and discarded furniture. The renovation of Condon Hall by Seattle-based design/build firm SHED Architecture & Design, transformed an outdated space into an incubator for innovation with an economy of means. Startup Hall is a place where ideas can flow out of the university in order to bring about opportunities with mentors and investors.
Notable to the project is the space’s location outside the bounds of Seattle’s more established tech communities in South Lake Union and Pioneer Square. On the western edge of the University of Washington’s campus in the U-District, the location was both intentional and pioneering, with the vision of establishing a new outpost to spur development of the Emerald City’s entrepreneurial frontier.
SHED’s design approach was direct and unsparing: remove all detritus, demolish non-structural elements to expose the native concrete structure, and design the infrastructure necessary to support and nurture a collaborative workplace.
“One of the reasons we were chosen to design the space was for our incredibly paired down, limited approach,” said Prentis Hale, lead architect and principal at SHED. “The plan was very undesigned in a way that aligned with the goals of the startup culture they were trying to create.”
The fundamental building block of Startup Hall’s design is a series of plywood-clad phone booths custom designed by the SHED design team. The distribution of the plywood cubes in between structural columns separates the central common areas and meeting rooms from the shared workspaces while maintaining the feeling of an open environment.
“The number and distributed locations of the phone booths was critical to the rhythm of the space,” said Mr. Hale. “We tore down all of the walls, so the acoustic performance of the phone booths was a very high priority. And the architecture that we inherited in the space was actually pretty strong. The volume of the space and the high concrete ceilings were good for noise reduction.”
While the new phone booths provide a quiet, private workspace insulated from the energetic startup environment, SHED reconfigured existing spaces for informal social interactions and large-scale events. Two library offices were transformed into a double height lounge area with a Ping-Pong table, gaming center and bar to decompress during off hours. The snack hub, as opposed to a traditional kitchen, features counter seating, vending machines and a coffee center. Events such as Waffle Wednesdays, a free networking event open to the whole community, flow easily in the space. SHED also axed traditional enclosed conference rooms in favor of transparent glass to maintain a visually open appearance and collaborative feel.
On one side of the hall, University of Washington oversees rentable coworking space, with meeting rooms available to members through an online reservation system. On the opposite side are areas for the three startup organizations to run their programs. One intent of the plan is to draw Techstars graduates from the startup side into the rentable space run by U of W once they’re done with their programs.
Aesthetically the space takes on a bare bones appearance that calls upon the unfinished, yet vibrant nature of startup work everywhere.
“This was definitely one of those projects where we really did not use a lot of materials,” said Mr. Hale. “The client was looking to spend the least amount of money possible.”
Plywood adds warmth to the bare concrete spaces of Condon Hall, and glass, chalkboard paint and whiteboards impart a tech-industrial aesthetic. Graphic design elements by the Seattle-based Transom in bright greens, yellows and blues invoke a youthful, poppy spark.
Startup Hall is seeing a lot of success in its new space, including a few big name acquisitions and high level valuations, and it’s planning an expansion to make room for more eager entrepreneurs in Seattle’s thriving startup community. SHED’s paired down design approach rings true with Startup Hall’s mission – provide aspiring entrepreneurs with a rugged, yet spirited place in which to achieve their goals.