Ridgehaus
Arkiste Summer Challenge: Community Revival: Winner
Ridgehaus reimagines an abandoned barn in Fayetteville, Arkansas, as a walkable, community-oriented gathering space. Situated beside a church, the structure is currently neglected but holds strong cultural and spatial potential. Inspired by Airship Coffee in Bentonville, the project transforms the barn into a lively public destination rather than replacing it, conserving embodied energy and preserving a familiar neighborhood landmark.
Community input guided the design. Residents expressed a need for accessible, welcoming spaces within walking or biking distance and emphasized preserving the barn’s character as “part of the neighborhood’s memory.” These insights shaped the priorities: enhance walkability, celebrate the barn’s history, and create inclusive social spaces.
The design retains the barn’s open volume while adapting it for flexible activities—performances, workshops, communal meals, and informal gatherings. Reclaimed timber, native landscaping, and passive environmental strategies minimize embodied carbon and energy use. Rainwater collection, operable panels, and shading improve comfort throughout the year, while new steel and glass interventions bring light and transparency.
The atmosphere is simple and warm: exposed wood, earthy tones, and soft lighting highlight the barn’s texture and history. Outdoor seating and shaded approaches encourage lingering and connection, while the adjacency to the church supports cross-use for community functions and daily gatherings.
Ridgehaus demonstrates how adaptive reuse can strengthen local identity, advance sustainability, and foster human connection. It transforms a forgotten structure into a walkable, inclusive, and enduring civic anchor.
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ridgehaus_east elevation
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