A physical home

One of my main jobs at the moment is to find a physical place for this educational expression to coalesce. This is harder than it sounds. There are many considerations and so many cool places in Portland. After creating a list of criteria, we find possible buildings. But more importantly I open myself to a space when I tour a building. I let myself imagine children in the space, how would they flow through it? How would the space influence them and how would they influence it? Are there opportunities for learning built into it? Are there nooks and crannies – places like I used to find in the Buckeye trees of our backyard when I was a kid.

The idea of space’s influence on us is not a new one, but it is new to me to consider it in this way. We have an architect we are working with and he is always filling my head with new perspectives on space. An architect moves through space in a totally unique way. A mother moves through space in a totally unique way. And an urban commercial real estate agent moves through space in a totally unique way. Put all those unique perspectives together and you get a taste for what this process has been like.

So what have I seen? Old brick buildings built in the early 20’s, like the old City Water Building, complete with unique features like a water powered freight elevator and beautiful red brick architecture, huge wood framed windows and sloping floors. Warehouses that are like open shells with vast wood beamed ceilings just waiting to be loved and completely re-purposed. 4-20 story office buildings in the heart of downtown with commercial carpeting and halls of cubicles and possible opportunities for rooftop play areas. This part of the process has given me a new appreciation for our town and the diversity in its buildings. But where does it leave me in terms of finding a home. Realizing that we could fit into a lot of different types of spaces. Realizing that it is the partnership opportunities with the building owners, tenants and commercial developers that are going to make the difference. I have to find the right fit, and that means looking at the whole picture, it may seem obvious to most, but to me it has been a new learning.