Project Description
Wedgeview is a newly completed multi-family residential building located across the street from Tacoma’s historic Wedge neighborhood. Vacant for many years after a blighted duplex was demolished, the 40’x 75’ infill site now contains four new dwellings in the missing middle housing category.
The building is designed as rowhouse apartments in an L-shaped configuration extending to the public edges of the site. From south to north and east to west, the apartments grow in volume to emphasize the corner. The unit along bustling 6th Avenue is the longest and the tallest to make room for ground floor office space for a small architectural agency and a third-floor caretaker suite tucked under the highest point of the wedge-shaped roofline. All units have open plan living areas on the ground level with bedrooms upstairs. Skylights, along with large windows and doors on opposite ends of the living spaces provide cross-ventilation and allow natural light to flood the multistory units.
Ten trees were planted around the building to provide shade from afternoon summer sun, and to support the efforts of the local urban forestry advocacy group, Tacoma Needs Trees. Developing relationships with neighbors was an integral part in the project’s succes. Though the site did not have alley access, a shared driveway agreement with the adjacent property owners made vehicle access from the alley possible. Parking could thus be stowed out of sight beneath the building in a daylight basement fashion and the street facade fully occupied with tenant space.
Corrugated metal, grooved plywood, and extra wide window flashings lend texture and depth to the monochromatic building, which actually varies in appearance from black to silver to gold as the sun travels across the facade. A playful window arrangement balances the sleek volume. Front doors and bike racks in shades of green, patios with seating, dynamic perrenial landscaping, and a shared stair connecting the parking level to the public realm all help activate the streetscape and create plenty of “eyes on the street.”
Wedgeview is a self-initiated design-build project in Tacoma. Acting as our own client, we are literally invested in seeing our neighbors and community thrive as our city grows. We believe in architect-led development as a means to cultivate livable communities with thoughtful urban design and buildings that are beloved by residents and neighbors.