Here's one visitor's perspective on the workspaces of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation campus in the South Lake Union / Seattle Center area of Seattle. Pics taken yesterday when the campus was open for the public to tour. Here's a central plaza that's defined by two, narrow "L" shaped buildings. You can't tell from this perspective, which I wanted to approximate what it might be like to leave the building on a sunny day to find a spot to eat lunch, but the plaza affords dramatic views of the nearby Space Needle and, from another angle approximated below, the downtown Seattle skyline. Here's a representative shot of everyday workspace. Obviously going with the open floor philosophy. The buildings are narrow and what you see here, absent the hallway behind this perspective which looks out on the plaza, is basically the maximum width of the space. Though there are some common interior spaces that seem pretty spacious. I won't post a shot of the atrium because so much coverage of the grand opening features better shots using wider lenses. But here's the cafeteria. Speaking of which: there are so many restaurants on Roy Street around the corner (including the excellent, vegetarian, kosher Bamboo Garden), that one wonders a bit whether a cafeteria is as essential as it might be for a campus like this built on the eastside. Oh well, it can't hurt to have choices. Here's a small conference room. There are many of these. There are also three, large conference rooms tricked out with AV gear, and side spaces that appear intended to give visitors on business places to use phones and set up temporarily. And here's a view from between the blinds of the windows of the hallway from which I took the first picture above of the cubicles. The most uncanny thing about this campus is how well it ties South Lake Union and Seattle Center together. These photos also posted as a set on Flickr.
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