PHOENIX, AZ, February 2023 - Connecting Communities with Concrete Solutions. This is the core value of QCP and led us to work with the Arizona School for the Arts on one of our most fulfilling projects to date. Using innovative designs created by Dig Studio, we offered our concrete outdoor furniture to rejuvenate the school’s outdoor spaces over Fall Break of 2022. The collaborative project turned unused exterior spaces into creative hubs where students can gather for learning, rehearsing, eating lunch, or simply hanging out.
Collaborating With Our Community
When one of QCP’s sales executives, Anthony Vargas, was in search of a youth-focused organization for the company's annual charitable project, he knew exactly who to connect with: QCP’s longtime partner, Dig Studio. According to Vargas, the landscape design firm is deeply involved in the communities it serves, and it was no surprise that Dig’s Principal Brandon Sobiech and Landscape Designer José Muñoz had just the project in mind.
Through Dig’s membership in the Phoenix Community Alliance, the team knew the perfect candidate for an exterior makeover using QCP concrete products: the Arizona School for the Arts. The Blue Ribbon award-winning, non-profit charter school has a college preparatory curriculum and an emphasis on the performing arts. For its diverse community it provides rigorous academics and a supportive environment for students grades 7 through 12.
“We knew this was the right partner for the project, because we immediately saw how kind and caring the leadership of the school was,” Sobiech said.
At the time, the school’s outdoor spaces offered very little. The paved surfaces and empty fields had minimal seating and limited functionality. And after the past few years, the students were in serious need of fresh air with lots of room to spread out.
Dig brought in their partner, Willmeng Construction, for the heavy lifting. As part of this major team effort, the construction company helped place each piece of QCP furniture in its new home.
Creative Uses for Our Products
Taking a note from the artistic students at the school, Dig crafted innovative designs to upgrade the urban schoolyard’s “forgotten pockets.” Sobiech noted the unique versatility of QCP’s products as a huge benefit. The Jo three-legged chair and the Shear ring both double as seating and tabletop space for eating, doing homework, and beyond.
In this project, the Shear serves a special role as a rehearsal stage for actors and musicians as well. Plus, it’s surrounded by our large and small Kernel seating solutions, perfect for audience members in this mini performance space. Sobiech incorporated QCP’s oversized Bonk chairs, too, imagining multiple friends piling onto them together.
All-weather durability was an important factor for the school. The Phoenix climate is beautiful for much of the year, but dry desert heat and powerful sun degrades outdoor furniture rapidly. Plus, these items needed to endure students sitting, standing, and performing on them every day! Luckily, our precast concrete furniture is commercial grade and made to stand the test of time—and teenagers. The easy-to-clean pieces won’t warp or fade.
Living Spaces for Students and Staff
Students, staff, and the broader community have all loved having more space to spread out on school grounds, according to Min Skivington, the school’s donor relations and marketing manager. Before this project, everyone congregated in one outdoor dining space. Now, there are “outdoor living rooms” that let the students enjoy more freedom and independence. The teachers and staff appreciate the gathering hubs, too, for a sunny planning period or quiet lunch with a colleague.
Skivington called the project a “hands-on partnership” from start to finish, with helpful and flexible contributors. “We are just so honored and grateful for the donation, which provides so much for our students,” said Skivington. “It has improved our campus and our community as a whole.”
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QCP Corp was thrilled to participate in this meaningful project contributing over $45,000 of product to a worthy recipient. If you’re interested in working with us for a charitable mission, we are looking for one pro-bono project every year. Contact us to submit an RFP.