One World Cafe

Moscow, Idaho

One World Café’s response to COVID-19 was to create a safe outdoor space that could be repurposed in the future, while improving the fabric of downtown Moscow.

Students constructed a series of durable and contained outdoor seating areas that mitigated short-term crisis concerns, while being adaptable for future use. The design broke up the narrow exterior space of the building facade into four primary zones: a lounge area with built-in benches and bar seating; an arrangement of loose tables and chairs for the higher traffic portion of the building; an ADA height bar; and an adaptable section of booths that fold away after hours.

A particularly challenging aspect of this design was the need to meet city requirements for a sidewalk cafe, including the ability for the entire design to be disassembled and removed in one day by two to three people. The students designed and detailed solutions that were sturdy enough to appear permanent, yet straightforward to disassemble and store when needed.

With material shortages and rising prices during the pandemic, students were constantly in need of creative and cost-effective solutions. This led to a partnership with a local salvage company to repurpose offcuts from utility pole production. The excess material was repurposed into cladding, seating and storage.