Mingwei Samuel is a 27-year-old research software engineer, living with his parents in Piedmont, close to where Piedmont Ave. runs into Oakland. When he’s not biking around the Bay Area, he has been helping organize a volunteer mini public works department of sorts, building and installing bus benches around the East Bay.
Q: Where did this idea come from?
A: In early 2023, I built my first bench. I had seen and heard about the ones in the Richmond District in San Francisco, made by Chris Duderstadt. It’s a very easy-to-make design as far as woodworking goes…