After two years of complicated financing and careful cost cutting, the Seward Co-op and Deli has moved into a fine new home one block west of its original location on East Franklin Avenue. A product of excellent teamwork between Co-op manager Gail Graham, her staff and consultants, general contractor Watson-Forsberg and their subcontractors, and our staff and engineers, the construction finished with few surprises or extra costs. Seward Redesign, our neighborhood developer, helped site the Co-op to share parking with the Blue Nile restaurant across the street. 

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Issues of cost, function, and fit with the neighborhood were Close Associates' familiar assignment. Rows of de-barked tree trunks provide graceful, inexpensive columns at the entrance. The natural wood theme, reflecting the Co-op's philosophy and Seward neighborhood's working class roots, is continued inside in the exposed wood roof trusses stained a deep red brown. Light walls, bright yellow floor, and four skylights make the interior cheerful. Three of the building's corners are squared to agree with surrounding commercial buildings. The fourth sports a green canopy which marks and protects the entrance and makes a place for signage.