Gathering Places

The personality of a community comes to life when local residents come together to create a place of significance that will bring them together over and over again.
- Milenko Matanovic

A gathering place is a space for the entire community—what used to be called the commons—serving as a focal point for a community’s civic and cultural life, and an anchor point around which new, more livable urban patterns can emerge. We integrate social, artistic, and environmental activism into the creation of community-developed gathering places—working together with community members to create spaces that capture their collective talents, aspirations, and connections.

Pomegranate Center has led the design and construction of more than 20 gathering places in communities throughout the U.S. and abroad. These have ranged from amphitheaters for 300 people to shelters, community gardens, and small parks.

Selected Projects

Recent

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  Edith-Carrie Gathering Place
  Transforming a community with an infusion of energy and art
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  High Point Gathering Places
  Creating “heart” spaces for a new community
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  Pacific Connections Interpretive Shelter
  A focal point for a new Washington Park Arboretum garden

Past

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  Medina Elementary School, Medina, Washington
  Linking art with learning, architecture and community
  
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  Cambie Community Gathering Place, East Richmond, British Columbia, Canada
  Creating a focal point for a neighborhood seeking a stronger identity
  
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  Croft Place, West Seattle, Washington
  Engaging residents in personalizing and beautifying their new neighborhood
  
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  Pickering Farm Community Teaching Garden, Issaquah, Washington
  Demonstrating low-impact urban landscaping in a living classroom
  
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  Riverwalk Point, Spokane, Washington
  Integrating community-made art, street furniture and social spaces into an affordable neighborhood
  
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  Benson East, Kent, Washington
  Social spaces created with salvaged materials
  
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  Village at Overlake Station, Redmond, Washington
  Integrating art into high-density, affordable housing
  
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  Longfellow Creek/Roxhill Gateway, West Seattle, Washington
  Making gateways to a neighborhood legacy trail
  
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  Springwood, Kent Washington
  Mailbox shelters as community gathering places
  
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  Pacific Rim Park, Yantai, China
  Linking nations through artistic collaboration
  
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  Lazear Elementary School, Oakland, California
  Turning blacktop into learning environments
  
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  Terrace Hill, Redmond, Washington
  Liberating parking spaces for children
  
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  Kelkari, Issaquah, Washington
  Providing a venue for celebrations, performances and play
  
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  Esperanza, Mattawa, Washington
  Adding outdoor amenities to a migrant farmworkers’ village
  
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  Pearl of the Pacific, San Diego, California
  Celebrating unity among the diverse cultures of the Pacific Rim
  
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  Ashland Circle, Issaquah, Washington
  Making a park as a neighborhood focal point
  
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  Children’s Gateway, Issaquah, Washington
  Turning a wall that separates into a gateway that connects
  
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  Salishan, Tacoma, Washington
  Using art to create a unifying space in a diverse community
  
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  Pickering Place Park
  Crafting a public plaza, amphitheater and connecting bridge
  
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  Pearl Amphitheater, Vladivostock, Russia
  Celebrating friendship around the Pacific Rim
  
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  Kuchumaa Passage, Tecate, Mexico
  Making a gateway to a sacred mountain
  
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  International “Soil and Soul” Projects
  Pioneering a participatory design-build process