TOC Management Services
regional office
Architect: Sclater Partners Architects
Engineers: BTL Engineering (structural), W&H Pacific (civil), MacDonald Miller (mechanical), Seahurst Electric (electrical)
Owner: TOC Management Services
ABC members: General Storefronts, iLevel By Weyerhaeuser, Moncrieff Construction, Propel Insurance, Ralph's Concrete Pumping, Ski's Painting, Wilder Construction Co.
TOC Management Services, formerly known as the Timber Operations Council, selected Kirtley-Cole Associates to build its new office at the Seaway Center in Everett. The 20,100-square-foot, two-story building has a complex design of exposed timber and utilities.
Before construction could begin, Kirtley-Cole cleared the heavily wooded site, taking care to preserve as much of the native growth as possible. While clearing the site, the team encountered a 6-by-6-by-8-foot boulder that they excavated and placed near the front of the facility as a landscaping feature.
Deer and cougars were frequent visitors to the site and, when workers discovered several dens of mountain beavers, they contacted a local wildlife refuge. After several months of care at the refuge, the grown beavers were reintroduced near the site. Work and deliveries were phased throughout the project to avoid disrupting a neighboring school.
A stormwater pollution prevention plan was instigated to protect the grounds and a stream at the back of the property. Also, 6,000 yards of imported fill and processed on-site materials were used to raise the property's ground level, including an 8-foot increase at the front of the site.
In order to showcase the finishes of all of the exposed lumber and electrical and mechanical systems, the contractor took great care to ensure that no damage occurred during installation. All markings and labels were sanded and removed from the wood, and the team skeleton-framed the building so that all exterior second-floor walls could be hung from the roof structure rather than being carried by the cantilever deck.
The crews notched and knifeplated most connections in the exposed timbers with basic construction tools such as chainsaws and routers, equipment rarely found on modern construction sites. Kirtley-Cole self-performed all of the carpentry-related work, including framing, woodwork, trim, stairs (open glu-lam treads and platforms), the wood accent entry wall and monument signage.
In the 11,200 project hours worked, there were only three minor medical-only injuries.