Saltwater Farm Boutique Hotel / RAD LAB (July 2020)
A stylish boutique hotel and rural retreat on 162 wild and beautiful acres
“After inviting the architects to camp on the land and explore the property, five small cabins were thoughtfully placed amidst towering pines to ensure solitude and privacy for guests.”
- Paula Pintos
Saltwater Farm by RADLAB (June 2020)
An Outdoors-Loving Couple Build a Dreamy Retreat in a Pristine Pacific Northwest Forest
“It was a lifelong dream for couple Merriss Waters and Andrew Fleming to live in a cabin nestled into a forest on an island, far removed from the hustle and bustle of the city.”
- Mandi Keighran
Updated Rules Allow Local community to Reinvent Public Spaces
“Placemaking participants said whether the improvements are small or large, it's the community's passion that brings the project to life.”
- May Tjao
Unleash the Beast Podcast (January 2019)
Episode 002 : Phil Auchettl
RAD LAB Founder and CEO Phil Auchettl sits down with Robert T. Campbell to discuss his insights on business development and goal achievement.
California Live (January 2019)
Coming to you Live from Quartyard!
“The city owns all of these empty properties, they’re planning on developing them but not for the next 2-10 years, so the question remains, what can we do with them now? Lets create a cool, vibrant, community space and that’s essentially what we did. ”
- Phil Auchettl
San Diego’s Temporary Park Quartyard Opens In New Location This Week
“Quartyard was open at Park Boulevard and Market Street for two years, but then the city decided it was time to build a high-rise on the lot. So, Quartyard picked up and moved to 13th and Market streets. Luckily, the parks' structures are made out of shipping containers”
- Claire Trageser
Quartyard Returns to the East Village
“After shuttering its previous site last June, Quartyard has re-emerged in the East Village in a new location at the corner of 13th and Market.”
- Candice Woo
Architect & Developer (Febuary 2018)
Philip Auchettl of RAD LAB
-Philip Auchettl
San Diego Eater (October 2017)
Quartyard Embarks on Road to Reopening in the East Village
"Though it will now span a slightly smaller footprint, the second iteration of Quartyard will still contain all of its key elements, ranging from an outdoor beer garden with 25 taps and a full cocktail bar to a cafe and the Canteen eatery operated by Best Beverage Catering which serves salads, flatbread pizza, sandwiches and more."
Vicariously Podcast (June 2017)
Check out RAD Labs latest podcast!
Founders Jason Grauten and Philip Auchettl share their insights on Quartyard and RAD LAB.
Monterey County Weekly (June 2017)
The Fieldwork Brewing Co. addition to Monterey craft beer is big
"Slick modular design, using three specialized shipping containers that have been transformed into a taproom, toilets and storage/utility by a group called Rad Lab"
- Mark C. Anderson
CBS (May 2017)
The Quartyard pop-up is moving to a new home
- Loewenstein
San Diego Downtown News (October 2017)
An Urban Experiment
"In 2014, three young entrepreneurs forever changed a blighted East Village block into a unique, thriving entertainment center, called Quartyard. It was the brainchild of three architectural students, David Loewenstein, Phillip Auchettl, and Jason Grauten, who named their company Rad Lab."
- Joan Wojcik
San Francisco Business Times (December 2016)
San Mateo’s Bay Meadows scores Popular Craft Brewer for Beer Garden
"The beer garden is set to open April 2017. The garden will be designed by CMG Landscape Design – the group responsible for projects such as SFMOMA’s Sculpture Garden and Mint Plaza – and RadLab, a San Diego-based team known for its creative use of shipping containers in popup parks. “
- Tessa Love
New York Times (July 2016)
A Beer Garden Lays Down Roots for a Technology Hub
"Quartyard — conceived of and built by a Rad Lab, a student-led organization, and the community — is a beer garden, event space and dog park in the downtown East Village neighborhood of this city. Its projected transition from 25,000-square-foot vacant lot to urban park to housing is part of a larger plan to create an employment hub in the neighborhood’s tech corridor."
- Lauren Herstik
SD Local, The New Kid On The Block ( September 2015)
The Vision Behind San Diego's Quartyard Urban Park
"Sustainability and repurposed materials were a core building block in this project, from the shipping containers to our tree planters made from recycled dumpsters. Our trash bins are even repurposed barrels, and the wood for our beer garden tables is all reclaimed—some of it is 100 years old. In my opinion, as young designers, it is our responsibility to design environmentally friendly projects. Sustainability is simply part of the way we need to be looking at future architecture."
- Auchettl
City Kickstarts, The Daily Dot (August 2015)
Strolling through Quartyard San Diego, the new urban piazza
“Quartyard is an urban park and the first of its kind downtown,” says David Loewenstein, 30, the designer and co-founder of the pop-up urban space. “The most surprising part about downtown [San Diego] is there just isn’t a place you can already go to sit outside, have a beer, just hang out, bring a lunch, have a lunch—so to be able to set up a location like that is such a no-brainer.”
- Loewenstein
30 Under 30 (August 2015)
America’s Finest go-getters have business on their minds and success in sight
San Diego entrepreneurs have been launching everything from cold-pressed juices to biomedical research products, transforming this military mega-plex into a startup capital. No longer just a vacation destination, San Diego has a business scene that’s brewing… and producing a lot more than just beer. These days, the “app for that” may well have been born here, and the mind(s) behind it may have been born not so long ago. Here are a few dozen local folks who are going for glory, many of whom have traded their jobs to pursue new trades — not to mention to end up in good company.
- Paul Body
Best of San Diego 2015: Culture & Business (August 2015)
Must-see galleries, performances, Tijuana hotspots, and more
"In an area previously skimpy on public space, the vacant lot-turned-urban park has filled a void. The brainchild of RadLab’s Jason Grauten, David Lowenstein, and Philip Auchettl, who pitched the idea as their thesis at the New School of Architecture & Design, the Quartyard boasts a beer garden, sausage restaurant, dog park, night markets, and more. Everything on site is transportable, including the Paul Basile-retrofitted shipping containers that double as a coffee shop, full-service bar, office space, and more. 1102 Market Street, East Village"
- Erin Meanley Glenny
Hospitality Design Magazine (July 2015)
Game Changers: The People Issue
" Once the team at San Diego's RAD Lab graduated from NewSchool of Architecture and Design, they wasted no time in implementing their thesis project: Quartyard a 25,000 - square-foot mobile urban park that opened in March in a vacant lot in downtown San Diego."
- Hospitalitydesign.com
The 10 best outdoor drinking spots in San Diego: Quartyard ranked #2
"This all-in-one urban park in the East Village populated with repurposed shipping containers and long, communal tables has a dog run, free Wi-Fi, and a bar with 26 local brews on tap. Beer-friendly food, like sausage sandwiches from S&M Sausage and Meat, and a host of grub provided by rotating food trucks makes it a great place to make new friends in the neighborhood, whether you’re a human or a dog."
- Erin Jackson
Kickass Entrepreneurs: RAD Lab
"Their company is called Rad Lab and just a few years ago they came together to provide cutting-edge design and development within both a public and private space. Quartyard is a perfect example of what these guys can do, turning a vacant 25,000-square-foot lot into what is now an eco-friendly outdoor community for people to enjoy coffee, food and live entertainment. And with summer around the corner, they plan on hosting cultural events, farmers markets and film festivals as well."
- Amber Mesker
San Diego Channel 6 News (March 2015)
COLD BEER, LIVE MUSIC AND FRESH FOOD IN EAST VILLAGE
"The Quartyard is Rad Lab's first design and development project that utilizes a vacant lot on the corner of Market Street and Park Boulevard and turns it into an enjoyable space for the public."
- Heidi Kwon
Sounddiego Channel 7 news (March 2015)
Going the Whole Nine Quartyards
"Quartyard -- the new outdoor music venue in East Village -- had its grand opening to the tune of L.A.'s Madi Diaz and locals Swim Team on March 7, and SoundDiego host Daye Salani was there to chat up Diaz and to get the man behind the Quartyard music, Alex Collins, to dish on what's to come."
- Sound Diego
Voice of San Diego (March 2015)
Culture Report: Courting the Quartyard
"The first project of RAD LAB, a design and development company, Quartyard is an urban park at 1102 Market St. in the East Village. It was created with the San Diegan in mind, boasting a coffee shop, dog park, food trucks, free wifi, open spaces and a beer garden available from 11 a.m. onward every day. This past weekend marked the grand opening of the space, which CEO Philip Auchettl says went phenomenally and gave folks a glimpse into the role Quartyard will play in residents’ day-to-day lives."
- Alex Zaragoza
NBC San Diego: Morning News (March 2015)
Innovative Space Opening in East Village
"An empty city block in East Village is becoming a local destination for music, food and socializing. Phillip Achettl and Chuck Crawford join the NBC 7 morning show to talk about the Quartyard."
RAD Lab's Pop-Up Community Space in San Diego
"Abandoned spaces have become the preferred blank canvas for many urban designers, from San Francisco to Brooklyn to London to Detroit. And soon, San Diego will have its own vibrant community space in what is now a grease-stained parking lot edged with patchy grass and an empty historic building in the East Village district downtown."
- Sarah Amandolare
San Diego Reader (February 2015)
EAST VILLAGE: CONTAIN YOURSELF! YOUR TEMPORARY TOWN SQUARE'S ALMOST READY
"Or at least the Meshuggah Shack, which is built into an, uh, shipping container, is up and running, right here on Park Boulevard, just up from the Park and Market trolley station in East Village. They’re selling every coffee you could imagine, plus teas, pastries, the usual deal. But where it’s at is not the usual deal. Railroad ties keep the dirt floor level, casual tables and umbrellas give you plenty of space to hang out."
- Ed Bedford
Unique Music Venue Opens Doors in East Village
"The urban park comes to us by way of Rad Lab’s Philip Auchettl, David Loewenstein, Jason Grauten (a trio of NewSchool of Architecture + Design alum) and contractor Adam Jubela. The project started two years ago as the master’s candidates’ senior thesis. The then-grad students saw this vacant lot across from the school that wasn’t being put to use and had the idea to transform it into a communal space that could be put together and broken down relatively easily. The answer was in shipping containers."
- Hannah Lott-Schwartz
San Diego Metro - Daily Business Report (February 2015)
Quartyard Transforms Vacant Downtown Lot into a Temporary Urban Park
"A once-vacant Downtown lot is being turned into a temporary urban park where residents and visitors alike can play, bring their pets, listen to live musical performances and otherwise enjoy the trappings of Downtown life."
- SD Metro Magazine
Travel RAVE Magazine (February 2015)
Mission Impossible Made Possible at Quartyard San Diego
"In less than two years, in a city that is known far more for conservative rigidity than progressive experimentation, Quartyard went from thesis concept to cutting edge success. In the same two years, those visionary grad students, David Loewenstein, Adam Jubela, Jason Grauten and Philip Auchetti, launched a research, architecture and development laboratory conveniently named RAD Lab. (I’m quite certain we’ll be seeing a lot more of the RAD Lab boys and their transformative urban projects for many years to come.)"
- Janeckland
San Diego Eater (February 2015)
The Quartyard, East Village's Outdoor Food Hub, Kicks Off With Coffee
"The folks over at RAD LAB, whose ambitious Quartyard project is ramping up in the East Village, sent over a photo of the first tenant set to open for business on their 30,000-square-foot urban lot."
- Candice Woo
Riviera Magazine (Jan/Feb Print Issue 2015)
Riviera Magazine names RAD Lab in the "Best of the City" edition!
The Atlantic CityLab (November 2014)
Selling Conservative San Diego on Experimental Land Uses
“They [RAD Lab} had this seemingly crazy idea that you could build a temporary development project out of containers. Everyone assumed that that was not possible. And they're doing it."
- Bill Fulton
TACTICAL URBANISM: The Urbanist Guide (November 2014)
Turning empty, unused space into stuff we’ll actually use.
"In June, a “pocket park” opened in the formerly vacant lot next to The Mission on 13th and J St, pooling suggestions from residents as to what they’d like to see the space used for. Partnering with RAD Lab, the Downtown San Diego Partnership and local real estate company HP Investors completed the dog friendly urban park with repurposed wooden pallets and trees for shade."
- Nate Martins
Quartyard Project Breaks Ground: Eater (September 2014)
This new urban park brings food, drink, event space and more.
“RAD Lab an urban planning group aiming to develop underused or vacant lots into outdoor gathering places for local communities, has broken ground on its first project, the East Village’s Quartyard.”
- Candice Woo
U~T San Diego (September 2014)
Shipping Container Park Starts
“Parking is always a quick fix solution. I definitely don’t think that’s the end of it. I think there are a lot more ways to activate a space rather than turning it into a parking lot. You can generate more income and create a safer more exciting environment.”
- Philip Auchettl
Urban Design at Dwell on Design: RAD Lab Speaking at LA Convention Center
"The team from RAD LAB will be on hand to discuss Quartyard, a pop-up park in San Diego that features a beer garden, dog park, food trucks, and displays of local artwork."
- Dwell on Design
Man About Downtown by: Ron Donoho (March 2014)
Quartyard: A RAD Infill Plan for East Village
“Right now, it’s brave and fairly rare for so much interest and energy to be poured into an East Village block. But the master’s students enthusiasm is infectious. And their rolde in finding a real life solution deserves an A grade.”
- Ron Donoho
‘Tactical Urbanism’ KPBS (March 2014)
Converting Vacant Lot in Downtown San Diego into an Urban Park
“An empty parking lot doesn't have to be an empty parking lot forever. It can be transformed into something amazing. And it doesn’t take that much money, it doesn’t take a lot of time, it just takes people who are willing to participate and really want to make a difference.”
- David Loewenstein – C.O.O RAD LAB
Eater – San Diego (February 2014)
Beer Garden, Coffee, Food Trucks, & More Fill Quartyard
‘Quartyard’: Grad students’ rad idea for vacant lots
“We think this can act as a model not just for places across San Diego and California potentially but also across the whole United States.”
- Philip Auchettl – C.E.O RAD Lab
San Diego Source (December 2013)
Canter CEO kicks in last funding for East Village student project
“We decided to invest for two reasons… One being we really liked their concept of a reusable infill project in an open space and that the design could replicated in other parts. Second, we really wanted to support this group of students and see their thesis project come to life.”
- Andrew Canter – C.E.O Canter Companies
San Diego Magazine (December 2013)
10 Big Ideas for San Diego in 2014
“San Diego is primed right now for a public intervention. We’ve seen a trend lately where architects, designers, urbanists, and community activists are pushing the city to adapt new policies that allow for experimentation.”
- David Loewenstein – C.O.O RAD LAB
San Diego Source – The Daily Transcript (November 2013)
Coming Attraction – Quart Yard
“The plan is to build the pop-up marketplace with large storage and shipping containers on the city-owned block. The containers would need to be converted to meet local building code requirements and seismic regulations. They would be manufactured offsite and then installed at the city lot, across from the NewSchool of Architecture & Design.”
Voice of San Diego (October 2013)
Culture Report
“The Kickstarter campaign has been an exciting step towards making our project a reality. Not only have we been able to raise the funding required to move forward, but the amount of community support we received during the process has been truly overwhelming.”
- Philip Auchettl – C.E.O RAD LAB
Can San Diego Seed A Neighborhood With Pop-Up Cargotecture?
“The designers hope to make the area attractive for office tenants as well as the coming influx of residents. “There are a lot of empty lots of land with tons of potential for development, and development in the right way. With all these apartments going up, we want to create this organism that’s alive, at all times of the day.”
- Jason Grauten – C.C.O RAD LAB
San Diego’s Urbanist Guide (October 2013)
Kickstarter
RAD LAB’S KICKSTARTER WILL GIVE YOU AN URBAN PARK (AND DOG PARK) DOWNTOWN. Considering it has raised nearly $52,000 over the past month, it’s clear: San Diego wants an urban park downtown, right away, and the people are willing to put their money toward being an indispensable part of making that happen.
San Diego Source – The Daily Transcript (September 2013)
Kickstarter
Students at NewSchool of Architecture & Design who are trying to transform a vacant city lot into temporary working spaces opened a Kickstarter campaign on Friday to continue their efforts.
San Diego Source – The Daily Transcript (May 2013)
Public Private Partnership
“The project is very realistic. Graham said, “This is better rather than have a city property just dormant and fallow. This can become a point of attraction and example for the East Village and one that could be replicated in other parts of San Diego.”
- Jeff Graham – President of CIVIC San Diego
KPBS Channel 10 - 5:00 Evening Edition (May 2013)
Placemaking
“What moves me even more is their initiative to take action in their communities. The use of a vacant lot to create a communal gathering space around great food and architecture will be awesome! I will always listen to ideas, it’s what creates positive change in the world and I appreciate their efforts.”
- Mayor of San Diego