Design Detailings: Monorail forum: What's next?

A monorail forum, titled "What Do We Do Now?," will be held at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The moderator is Seattle Channel's C.R. Douglas, and panelists include Kristina Hill, acting chair of the Seattle Monorail Project; Bob Klein, chair of the Municipal League's Monorail Committee; state Sen. Ken Jacobsen; and Tom Till, co-director of the Cascadia Project, an effort to establish a transportation system that connects Washington, Oregon and British Columbia.

Cost is $5, and the event will be held at Town Hall, at Eighth Avenue and Seneca Street.

Design Commission seeks new member

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels is looking for a new member for the Seattle Design Commission. The member can serve in one of the following positions: urban or environmental landscape architect, site engineer or urban planner.

The position begins in the fall. Candidates with transportation planning expertise are strongly encouraged to apply.

Design Commission members serve renewable, two-year terms. The commission has 10 members. It was established in 1968 to advise city officials on design and environmental aspects of capital improvement projects. The commission reviews projects over several design phases.

Send a letter of interest and resume by Sept. 9 to Layne Cubell, coordinator, Seattle Design Commission, Department of Planning and Development, city of Seattle, P.O. Box 34019, Seattle 98124-4019. For information, call Layne Cubell at (206) 233-7911, or e-mail layne.cubell@seattle.gov.

Varney new owner at KPFF Consulting

Greg Varney has been named an owner at KPFF Consulting Engineers in Seattle. Varney is working on a high-rise mixed use project in Seattle, projects for Boeing and projects for public clients including the University of Washington, Coast Guard, Navy and Army Corps of Engineers.

Varney is responsible for design-build work including historic renovation of bachelor officers quarters at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., a new dining facility for enlisted personnel at Twentynine Palms, Calif., and a new bachelor enlisted quarters at Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton.

KPFF is the largest structural and civil consulting engineering firm in the U.S., with 15 offices nationwide.

Design Detailings: Otak opening Yakima office

Knutson

Otak, a planning, design and engineering firm with headquarters in Lake Oswego, Ore., will open a Yakima office this month.

Engineer John Knutson, who managed surface water and flood control for Yakima County for five years, will set up the new office. Otak will work with central and eastern Washington clients on stormwater planning, regulatory compliance, and flood and drainage programs. The company has eight offices, including ones in Seattle and Kirkland.

Local team to study in Europe

A local team has won a fellowship to study in the Netherlands in the spring of 2006.

Artist Claudia Fitch, landscape architect Barbara Swift and architect John Fleming will focus on ceramic cladding at the European Ceramics Work Centre Art + Architecture program in Hertogenbosch. The goal of this program is to give international artists and designers a chance to work together on ceramics projects.

Barker will plan Olympia boardwalk

The city of Olympia Public Works Department recently awarded a contract to Seattle-based Barker Landscape Architects for the Percival Landing waterfront boardwalk visioning plan.

Jay Burney is project manager for the city on the plan.

Architecture critic wins Harvard fellowship

The Oregonian newspaper's architecture and urban design critic Randy Gragg won a fellowship to study at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design for the 2005-2006 academic year.

The Loeb fellowship is for mid-career professionals in fields related to the built and natural environment. Gragg has covered Oregon's land-use planning system, major infrastructure projects and buildings.

Design Detailings: Sparling's Duncan on executive committee

Duncan

The group enterpriseSeattle recently named Sparling Chief Executive Officer Jim Duncan to its executive committee. Duncan was an active board member for five years.

The group aims to work with businesses and individuals to attract new companies to King County. Its board of directors and executive committee offer free services to companies relocating or expanding in the area.

Elcon Associates buys Power System

Portland electrical engineering firm Elcon Associates has acquired Tigard, Ore.-based consulting company Power System Engineers.

Michael Unger, former president of Power System Engineers, will be one of Elcon's principal electrical engineers and manage the firm's transmission and distribution group. Amit Sinha, who has been a principal electrical engineer with Elcon for 12 years, will keep overseeing its electric utility division.

Power System Engineers does transmission and distribution planning and design work, and Elcon offers planning, design and construction management services.

Elcon's clients include utility, transit, marine and wastewater treatment plants throughout the West Coast.

Design Detailings: New R.W. Beck president/CEO

Stepp

R.W. Beck picked Russell J. Stepp of Seattle to be president and chief executive officer. He will replace Nicholas P. Guarriello, who will remain a senior consultant role before retiring in late 2006.

Stepp was the national director of the water and waste resources practice, and has 30 years of experience in water-related contract negotiations, and resolving disputes.

R.W. Beck is a management consulting and engineering firm.

Planning award winners announced

Two planning associations recently announced the winners of their joint awards.

Seven projects submitted were picked for top awards in the competition, which was sponsored by the Washington chapter of the American Planning Association and the Planning Association of Washington.

Awards went to OTAK for a plan to manage Whidbey Island Scenic Isle Way, the city of Lynnwood for its city center plan, the city of Gig Harbor for a design manual it produced, the city of Bellingham for looking at adaptable space, Thurston Regional Planning Council for its visioning task force, the city of Enumclaw for its downtown streetscape plan, and AHBL for a sustainability plan it created.

Also recognized with honor awards were EDAW, Seattle Parks and Recreation and King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks.

Rusten new CEO at Berger/Abam

Rusten

Berger/Abam Engineers board of directors picked Arnfinn (Arnie) Rusten as president and chief executive officer. He will succeed Robert L. Wallace, who recently retired.

Rusten joined Berger/Abam Engineers in 1977. The Norway native started as a junior design engineer, and has worked on facilities for the U.S. Navy Carrier Battle Group in Everett, the U.S. Coast Guard in Seattle, and Washington State Ferries. He headed the company's domestic waterfront department for six years.

Elmer Ozolin was promoted to vice president and will lead the waterfront department. David Brown was promoted to vice president and will remain Portland branch manager.

Berger/Abam has offices in Federal Way, Seattle, Portland and Las Vegas, and is an affiliate of the global company Berger Group Holdings.

Landmarks commission openings in Tacoma

Applications are being accepted to fill five positions on the Pierce County Landmarks Commission.

The commission makes recommendations on historic preservation matters such as nominations to historic registers, and applications for historic road names.

History, architecture, and archaeology professionals or residents with interests in architectural history are encouraged to apply. Positions are unpaid.

For more information, contact the Department of Planning and Land Services at (253) 798-2783.

Art Anderson hires Titan for Navy study

Bremerton naval architecture and engineering company Art Anderson Associates has hired San Diego-based Titan Corp. to help with a new study for the U.S. Navy. Titan has simulation software Art Anderson can use to design and engineer a Navy vessel. Navy officials will set parameters.

This project is a new phase of work Art Anderson is doing through a series of Small Business Innovative Research contracts with the U.S. Navy. The federal government set up this research program in 1982 to help small businesses get involved with federal government research and development.

Art Anderson Associates focuses on naval architecture and engineering and has local offices in Bremerton and Seattle.

Design Detailings: Freiheit & Ho designs retail center

Rendering courtesy of Freiheit & Ho Architects

Freiheit & Ho Architects is designing Maple Valley Commons, a 31,000-square-foot retail center on a 2.8-acre site at state Route 169 and 276th Street Southeast. The center will have four single-story buildings.

Freiheit & Ho faced several challenges, including a long, narrow site and the city of Maple Valley's design guidelines. The colorful center was designed to fit in with newer developments in the area, according to the firm.

The general contractor is GLY Construction. The structural engineer is Richard Hudson & Associates and the civil engineer is Barghausen Consulting Engineers. Construction will begin later this summer and will be complete early next year.

SAME gives out design awards

The Society of American Military Engineers held its 9th Annual Design Excellence Awards Banquet in Seattle this spring.

In the large business category, The Gold Award went to The Austin Co. for the Fort Lewis Deployment Center. The First Silver Award went to Tetra Tech ECI for the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Confined Aquatic Disposal Site. The Second Silver Award went to the design/build team of Tetra Tech/KCM and the joint venture construction contractors of JKT & PCL for the Submarine Base Bangor Small Arms Training Center.

In the small business category, The Gold Award went to the design/build team of FSi Consulting Engineers and Anthony Construction Contractors for the Shore Intermediate Maintenance Facility at Naval Station Everett.

The First Silver Award went to the design/build team of Notkin mechanical engineers and Soltek Pacific General contractors for the Bachelor Officers Quarters at Naval Station Bremerton. The Silver Award went to WJA Design Collaborative for the Child Development Center at Malmstrom Air Force Base.

NEBC rooftop mixer Thursday

The 12th Annual Olympic Chapter rooftop mixer, sponsored by the Northwest Environmental Business Council, will be held 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday. It will be at Hart Crowser, 1910 Fairview Ave. E.

Overlooking Lake Union, the event will feature a semi-hosted bar and hors d'oeuvres buffet. Cost is $35 for NEBC members and guests, and $45 for non-members. For information, e-mail Nebc.Admin@state.or.us.

Design Detailings: CDi Engineers adds principals

CDi Engineers added three new principals — Norm Brown, Richard Gerber and Jim Grimm — and will be moving to new offices in Lynnwood this fall.

Brown manages the company's technical expertise and is working on projects at Sea-Tac Airport and the Seattle Center. Business development manager Gerber is doing projects at Providence Portland Medical Center and St. Anthony's hospital in Gig Harbor.

Grimm oversees business management and quality control. He directs CDi's long-term relationships with hospitals in Washington and Oregon.

Dick Moeller is the new president of the company's board of directors and will oversee the firm's direction and management. CDi's founder Paul Dias will remain on the board and continue to be involved in firm management.

CDi is a mechanical consulting engineering firm.

Kreager joins advisory board

Kreager

Mithun principal Bill Kreager was recently named to chair an editorial advisory board for a magazine that gives information on marketing trends for people who build and sell homes.

Sales + Marketing Ideas magazine is produced by a section of The National Association of Home Builders, which also appointed Kreager to its National Sales and Marketing Council's board of trustees.

UO gives award to Johnpaul Jones

Jones

Architect Johnpaul Jones was recently recognized with a distinguished service award at the University of Oregon's commencement ceremony.

The award goes to individuals who contribute to Oregon's cultural development. Jones is a 1967 graduate of the University of Oregon's School of Architecture and Allied Arts, and a principal with Seattle-based Jones & Jones Architects and Landscape Architects.

His recent projects include the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., and the Many Nations Longhouse on the University of Oregon's campus.

Design Detailings: Haag shortlisted for $353M park

Richard Haag and Associates of Seattle is one of seven international architecture firms shortlisted in a competition to design the $353 million Orange County Great Park in Irvine, Calif.

Twenty-four firms submitted proposals.

Others finalists are firms from Madrid, Barcelona, Mexico City, San Francisco, Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles and Mill Valley, Calif.

They will submit conceptual master designs for the Great Park to be displayed for public comments and critiques. The park's board of directors is expected to choose the Great Park master designer in October.

The Great Park will be developed on the site of the decommissioned El Toro Marine Corps Air Station, seven square miles of land in the geographic center of Orange County.

Design groups agree on green

Officials from 16 architectural institutions have agreed to support sustainable building and make reducing climate change a priority at a yearly gathering AIA holds for presidents of architectural associations.

George Ferguson, president of the Royal Institute of British Architects, took the lead in drafting the statement called the Las Vegas Declaration. Among their shared concerns was a desire to promote responsible stewardship of resources in the architecture and construction industries.

The declaration states they will make climate change a priority and work with governments to influence legislation and funding to reduce pollution.

Hart Crowser wins for WaMu

The Seattle section of the American Society of Civil Engineers gave Hart Crowser awards for its approach to difficult site conditions on two projects: a stream channel restoration at The Brookside Creek and the Washington Mutual-Seattle Art Museum building.

At Brookside Creek, Hart Crowser designed a fish passage that allows salmonids to swim past an eight-foot-high dam on private property. Crews breached the dam, placed a cedar log weir, and added a 100-foot stream channel with cobbles, gravel, and boulders. The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation also worked on this project.

The 42-story Washington Mutual-Seattle Art Museum tower being built in downtown Seattle required excavation to 90 feet below street grade, one of the deepest excavations ever done in Seattle. The site had limited right of way for tieback installation, and required underpinning of the adjacent Seattle Art Museum.

Design Detailings: Morss Medical wins 2 projects

Two medical facilities recently picked Bainbridge Island firm Morss Medical Architecture to design and update facilities.

The company will design and build a 10,000-square-foot, free-standing building for Bellingham OB/GYN on Squalicum Way. This set to open in the fourth quarter of 2006 and will house five physicians.

Morss will also work on three Kitsap County projects for Bremerton-based Olympic Peninsula Kidney Centers: a new 5,000-square-foot facility planned for Poulsbo, new interiors for a facility in Bremerton, and updates to a Port Orchard facility. They will be designed to bring in as much natural light as possible.

Morss Medical has 30 years of medical architecture experience.

Parametrix planner national APA head

Siegel

David M. Siegel of Parametrix's Portland office was recently named national president of the American Planning Association, which runs research and education programs to encourage better community design.

Siegel oversees long-range planning and growth management projects for Parametrix as a planning and communications manager. He has been in planning and public works agencies for 28 years.

Models sought for SAF exhibit

Seattle Architecture Foundation is calling for entries for its yearly architectural model exhibition. Physical models, 3D computer images or digital animations will be accepted.

The "Ideas in Form 8" exhibit will take place Aug. 4-21 and is sponsored by Swensen Say Faget and Unico. Entry fee for the first project is $50 for firms, $25 for sole practitioners or free for students. Deadline for entries is July 1. For more information call (206) 667-9184.

Grace Garland wins SDA awards

Grace Garland of Huckell/Weinman Associates recently won three national awards for her work on the Society for Design Administration's newsletter and local Web site, http://www.sda-seattle.com.

Garland is the office manager for Huckell/Weinman Associates, a Kirkland-based environmental and economics planning firm.

Kundig finalist for Cooper-Hewitt award

Tom Kundig, a partner in Seattle-based architecture firm Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects, was recently named a finalist in a design competition sponsored by the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

Other finaliststs in the architecture design category were New York's Diller, Scofidio + Renfro, and Albuquerque-based Antoine Predock. Nominations came from a committee of 800 designers, educators, journalists and corporate representatives from every state.

For more information see www.nationaldesignawards.org.

New officers at Hammond Collier

Hammond Collier Wade Livingstone, a civil engineering firm, has elected new officers and members to its board of directors. The newly elected officers are: Robin Nelson as president, Jorge Garcia asvVice president and treasurer, Bill Reynolds as vice president and secretary, Larry Cordes as vice president, Peter Weber as chairman of the board, Larry Riegert and John Tilley as board members and Bruce Livingstone as honorary board member. Hammond Collier has offices in Seattle, Lakewood, Wenatchee, Omak and Winthrop.

Fong speaks today on sustainability

Denise Fong, a principal at Candela, will speak about sustainability in Denmark, Sweden, Germany and China at the Lighting Design Lab at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The presentation will include attitudes toward lighting and also touch on electrical generation, waste management, water issues and other green strategies.

Fong writes a regular column on sustainability issues for LD+A Magazine and has been honored with design awards for her creative lighting applications for projects such as the ACT Theatre and Pacific Science Center's IMAX Theater addition. She is a former Lighting Specialist at the Lighting Design Lab. For information, call (206) 325-9711, Ext. 0.

Design Detailings: Design Center lighting lessons

The Seattle Design Center's next Third Thursday seminar will be tomorrow from noon to 2 p.m.

There will be two sessions. The first is on lighting basics for new and remodeled projects. Also Joseph Jeup, owner of Jeup Furniture, will give a talk on furnishings. Seattle Design Center is at 5701 Sixth Ave S., for information call (206) 762-1200.

NBBJ assistant wins SDA award

The Society of Design Administration gave recently a $1,000 scholarship to Cathy Comstock of NBBJ.

Comstock is an administrative assistant and has been a member of the society's Seattle chapter for six years.

ESM moves to Federal Way

The engineering, surveying and planning firm ESM Consulting Engineers has expanded and moved its Federal Way offices. The new address is 33915 First Way S., Suite 200, Federal Way, WA 98003. Phone is (253) 838-6113 and fax is (253) 838-7104. The Web site address is http://www.esmcivil.com.

The company is based in Federal Way, and has offices in Bothell and Cle Elum.

Carson to lead ACEC Corps committee

The American Council of Engineering Companies recently appointed Joel G. Carson to lead the Seattle district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Liaison Committee. Carson is a civil engineer in Seattle and is the Northwest region manager for the San Diego-based consulting firm Kleinfelder.

The liaison committee tries to connect the district with the local engineering community.

Fundraiser at SAM tomorrow

Architects Without Borders will sponsor a fundraiser tomorrow for tsunami relief and civil war orphans in Sri Lanka.

The fundraiser will be at the Seattle Art Museum's board room from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

There will be a slideshow and presentation of the project, music by Elliott Bay Wind Ensemble, food and a cash bar.

Minimum suggested donation is $25.

For more information, see http://www.asianaeducationdevelopment.org.

Design Detailings: Alaskan Way Viaduct gets award for DEIS

Groups that worked on the draft environmental impact statement for the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Project were recognized by the National Association of Environmental Professionals for clear writing and graphics.

They are Parametrix, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Federal Highway Administration, the city of Seattle and the Washington State Department of Transportation.

The viaduct DEIS was the first to use a new WSDOT approach that emphasizes clear writing and high-quality graphics to invite the public into the decision-making process.

Schacht Aslani in Smith Tower

Schacht Aslani Architects recently moved to Smith Tower, 506 Second Ave., Suite 700.

Principal Cima Malek-Aslani said, "I'm looking forward to working in one of Seattle's great structures. Our new office gives us the space and resources we need to deal with our growing workload."

The firm's work includes museums, libraries, academic buildings and religious facilities.

Two local firms win AIA awards

The American Institute of Architects and its Committee on the Environment recently recognized Seattle firms Mahlum Architects and Mithun with awards for green design.

Mahlum won for its work on the 168,000-square-foot Seminar II building at The Evergreen State College in Olympia.

Mithun won for its urban design plan for a 35-block neighborhood in Portland. Use of energy, water and habitat are part of the sustainable design plan for the commercial area.

Positions open on Burke-Gilman Place PDA

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels is seeking applicants for the Burke-Gilman Place Public Development Authority, a board that manages the former Coast Guard property near Children's Hospital in northeast Seattle.

The facilities include Ronald McDonald House, Provail housing, Burke-Gilman Apartments, a child care center and low-income housing.

Board positions are open to Seattle residents with an interest in Burke-Gilman Place. Call Shirley Bishop at (206) 367-8704.

Design Detailings: Danish urbanist here on June 8

Jan Gehl, a Danish architect and professor of urban design, will speak in Seattle on Wednesday, June 8.

Gehl is a senior lecturer of urban design and director of the Center for Public Space Research at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts School of Architecture in Copenhagen.

He has been an advocate of turning car-oriented cities into pedestrian and people-friendly cities. In Copenhagen, 18 public squares that had been parking lots have been turned back to public squares.

The 6 to 9:30 p.m. event, sponsored by International Sustainable Solutions, will be a dinner party on Occidental Street in Pioneer Square, with Gehl as the guest speaker. The cost is $85. For more information, go to http://www.i-sustain.com/events/janGehl.htm

June 11 tour of Columbia City

Seattle Architecture Foundation sponsors "Valley on the Rise -- Columbia City," a tour of Columbia City, from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 11.

The foundation calls Columbia City one of Seattle's most dynamic, diverse and desirable neighborhoods. It was once a thriving mill town along the electric rail line to Renton before falling into disrepair. Now buildings have been restored and retail has returned, including restaurants, galleries and the Farmer's Market.

The tour will be from 9 a.m. to noon and begin at Rainier Valley Cultural Center, 3515 S. Alaska St. Tickets cost $20. Call (206) 667-9184 or go to http://www.seattlearchitecture.org for more information and to register online.

AIA convention draws 24,000

A record number of architects, exhibitors and design industry professionals attended the American Institute of Architects National Convention and Design Exposition recently in Las Vegas.

More than 24,000 attended, a 10 percent increase over the prior year. There were 860 exhibitors.

Highlights included unveiling a new stamp commemorating Masterworks in Modern Architecture, airing of a documentary entitled, "com

mu

nit

ty," and a conversation with Las Vegas developer Steve Wynn and architect Tony Marnell. AIA's 2005 Gold Medal Winner, Santiago Calatrava, spoke about how his work is inspired by the human form.

Architecture group honors Jacobs

The Seattle Architecture Foundation gave City Librarian Deborah Jacobs its 2005 Shaping Community: The A. O. Bumgardner Award. The award recognizes people who make "lasting contributions to the creation, appreciation and advocacy of excellent community design," according to the foundation.

Jacobs has helped oversee The Libraries for All program, a $256 million program to renovate or replace 28 libraries. She also was an advocate for enlisting Rem Koolhaas to design the Central Library, in association with LMN Architects.

She came to Seattle in 1997 and spent the first four months developing a plan to increase space in neighborhood branches and replace the downtown library. When it was passed, the Libraries for All campaign was the largest bond measure ever approved for libraries in the country.

Workshops look at design, aging

Health care and environmental design professionals will discuss ways they can develop supportive communities for active older Americans at a series of summer workshops led by Bob Scarfo, associate professor of landscape architecture at Washington State University Spokane.

Scarfo will conduct five national workshops on successful aging, bringing together gerontological and health care professionals, landscape architects and urban designers. He will lead a discussion, "Health and the Built Environment: Bridging Professional Outlooks and Practices."

The San Francisco workshop will be held on Friday, June 10, at the American Institute of Architects, 130 Sutter St., Suite 600. The cost is $150. For information on other locations and dates, go to http://www.spokane.wsu.edu/scarfo.

Bader moves to Capitol Hill

Bader Architecture has moved from 603 Stewart St. to 752 Harvard Ave. E., Seattle 98102. Its telephone is (206) 344-3878, and fax is (206) 344-5242.

The e-mail address is bader@barderarch.com, and Web site is http://www.baderarch.com.