Lecture focuses on the future of cities

City planner Alan Mallach will give a talk titled “Building Smart, Sustainable Cities” at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 6 at Town Hall in Seattle.

Mallach and Ray Tomalty wrote the book “America's Urban Future,” in which they call for rethinking public policies to encourage urban revival; building more walkable, energy-efficient communities; and helping cities adapt to the needs of an aging population.

Mallach is a senior fellow at the Center for Community Progress in Washington, D.C. He was director of housing and economic development for Trenton, N.J.

Tickets are $5. Buy them at http://tiny.cc/p1ludy/.

Actor offering tips at SMPS workshop

SMPS Seattle will hold a workshop titled “Better Networking, Interviewing, and Presenting Strengthen Your Interactive Skills” at 8 a.m. Oct. 11 in the AGC Building, 1220 Westlake Ave. N. in Seattle.

The presenter is Matt Smith, an actor, filmmaker and communications consultant whose clients include Amazon, Vulcan and British Petroleum.

He will talk about how to strengthen your interaction skills and think on your feet.

Cost is $75 for members and $90 for non-members before Oct. 5, and $10 more after that.

Register at http://tiny.cc/2xepey/.

Preservation grant applications due

Washington Trust for Historic Preservation is accepting grant applications until Oct. 17 for the 2017 Valerie Sivinski Washington Preserves Fund, which provides up to $2,000 for projects.

The recipient may also receive building assessment services.

Local groups have received over $118,000 for 124 projects. Recent projects include restoration of Centralia's 1930 Fox Theatre and repairs on the 1894 Redmen Hall in Skamokawa.

Sivinski was a preservationist who died in 2000. She was a longtime member of the Washington Trust board.

Applications are at http://tiny.cc/fbtiey/.

AIA offers course on green materials

AIA Seattle will offer a series titled “Materials Matter” on selecting healthy, sustainable materials in five sessions from October to February at Seattle City Hall.

The Puget Sound chapter of the Construction Specifications Institute is co-presenting the series.

Sessions will run from 8 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., with presentations, panels, case studies and activities. The sessions are: Healthy Planet: Materials + the Environment on Oct. 14; Healthy People: Materials Science + Human Health on Nov. 4; Tools of the Trade: Assessment + Implementation on Dec. 2; Just Do It: Strategies for Projects on Jan. 13; and Beyond Transparency: Materials Disclosure + Practice on Feb. 3.

For information and to register, go to http://tiny.cc/fhr5dy/.

SAME holds awards banquet Oct. 14

The Society of American Military Engineers will announce the winners of this year's Projects of Excellence Awards at a banquet at 6 p.m. Oct. 14 at Bell Harbor International Conference Center in Seattle.

Judges representing the Army, Navy, Coast Guard and Public Health Service will award gold and silver honors to design and construction firms for exceptional delivery of military projects.

Entertainment is by The Henrik Maneuver. Tickets are $135, $50 for government employees and $20 for junior officers and agency project managers. Register at http://sameseattlepost.eventbrite.com. Call John Hickey at (206) 696-6680 for more information.

MAS Spokane talk on development

On Oct. 13, CEOs Todd Mielke of Greater Spokane Inc. and Katherine Morgan of Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce will talk about their efforts to bring more development work to the region.

The Marketing Associates of Spokane event is from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Spokane Convention Center.

Design Festival after-party Friday

Design in Public will hold a party from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday to celebrate the people and groups that put on the 2016 Seattle Design Festival.

The party will be at Makers, 92 Lenora St. in Seattle. A $20 donation at the door is suggested.

There will be food and drink, an art installation by the University of Washington summer design/build studio and music by DJ T.Wan.

The festival runs through Friday at the Center for Architecture & Design and other venues around the city. It is presented by AIA Seattle's Design in Public, in collaboration with community organizations.

How neuroscience helps you innovate

SMPS Seattle will hold a program titled “Neuroscience and Other Strategies to Help your Company Innovate” at 7:30 a.m. Sept. 27 at Washington Athletic Club, 1325 Sixth Ave. in Seattle.

The presenter is Jeremy Richards, learning and development program manager at Amazon.com.

Topics include how an improvisational mindset provides a shortcut to creativity, what neuroscience teaches us about storytelling and how to pursue the right ideas at the right time.

Cost is $55 for members, $65 for member firms and $75 for non-members.

Register at http://tiny.cc/uidpey/.

Summer social for AIA mentor program

AIA Seattle's Laddership Program's annual free Summer Kick-Off Social will meet at 5:30 p.m. today at Pike Place Hill Climb, 1427 Western Ave.

Participants can join an event celebrating a mural titled “Room for Change” that Carolina Silva created at the top of the hill climb for the Seattle Design Festival.

Seattle nonprofits Space.City and Urban ArtWorks, in partnership with Downtown Seattle and Friends of Waterfront Seattle, collaborated with Silva.

The Laddership Program matches mentors with emerging professionals.

R.S.V.P. at http://tiny.cc/k5tiey/.

‘The Rich Life' tour on Capitol Hill

Seattle Architecture Foundation is offering a tour at 10 a.m. Oct. 1 of the Harvard Belmont District. “The Rich Life on Capitol Hill” explores the landmark district's early 20th century architecture.

The two-hour tour begins at the driveway of Merrill Court Townhouses at 901 Harvard Ave. E.

Tickets are $15 in advance. Buy them at http://tiny.cc/kwmjay/.

Tour rehabbed buildings in Lynden

Photo courtesy of Jim Krause Designs [enlarge]

Waples Mercantile is in Lynden’s historic district.

The Northwest Washington Chapter of the American Institute of Architects is offering a tour of three buildings in the Dutch-influenced city of Lynden that have undergone adaptive reuse that highlights the city's historic character.

The tour is from 4 to 6 p.m. Sept. 29. It begins at Jansen Art Center at 321 Front St., and ends with happy hour at Overflow Tap House.

One building on the tour is Waples Mercantile in the historic business district. RMC Architects designed the renovation.

The tour is free for members and $10 for non-members. R.S.V.P. at http://tiny.cc/r4kkey/.

BDA program on Grand Connection

Image courtesy of Balmori Associates [enlarge]

This image shows proposed improvements to Compass Plaza.

Bellevue Downtown Association will hold a program on the Grand Connection, a proposal to build a pedestrian and bike corridor through the city, at 7:30 a.m. Sept. 27 at Bellevue Club, 11200 S.E. Sixth St.

Bradley Calvert, Bellevue community development program manager, will talk about the process and designs for the corridor, which would run from Meydenbauer Bay to the Eastside Rail Corridor.

Balmori Associates of New York is the lead design consultant on the project.

Calvert said no construction date has been set, but the city is looking at early projects — from art to public space improvements — for the bay to City Hall section of the corridor.

Cost to attend the breakfast meeting is $30 for members and $40 for non-members. Register at http://tiny.cc/6hpoey/.

Event looks at how we grow

AIA Seattle will hold a panel discussion on “Growing A City — Density, Displacement and Policy in an Urbanizing Seattle” from 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 19 at 1010 Western Ave. in Seattle.

The free event is organized by AIA Seattle's Urban Design Forum and is part of Seattle Design Festival.

Panelists include Roger Valdez of Smart Growth Seattle, Alex Brennan of Capitol Hill Housing and Capitol Hill restaurateur Linda Derschang. The moderator is journalist Erica C. Barnett.

Registration in not necessary.

Free SAF panel on neighborhoods

Seattle Architecture Foundation will hold a free panel discussion on “Making Change in Your Neighborhood” from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Sept. 20 at 1010 Western Ave. in Seattle.

Topics include what it takes to build a park or playground, or create a shared space in Seattle neighborhoods. There will be tips and case studies.

Panelists are Lesley Bain of Framework, Eric Higbee of Pomegranate Center, Karen Selander of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods and Lisa Rutzick of Seattle Department of Construction & Inspections.

Register at http://tiny.cc/9o9gdy/.

Tips for architects acting as developers

Andron Continuing Education will hold a seminar on “The Architect/Developer: A Blueprint for Professional & Financial Independence” Sept. 22 at Courtyard by Marriott Seattle Downtown/Lake Union.

The seminar will focus on how to choose the right project for your market, assemble a team, secure funding, manage and minimize risk, and handle marketing.

Several multifamily and retail/office projects designed and developed by Richard Andron will be analyzed.

Cost is $399. Register at http://tiny.cc/btfaey/.

Honor Awards entries due soon

Sept. 28 is the deadline for submissions to AIA Seattle's 2016 Honor Awards for Washington Architecture.

A new Energy in Design Award had been added for projects that balance design and innovative energy performance.

A demonstration of the Energy in Design Calculator will be held Friday from noon to 1 p.m. at GGLO's Space at the Steps, 1301 First Ave., in Seattle.

For information about submitting projects, go to http://tiny.cc/2xqjey/.

The awards ceremony is at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 7 at Benaroya Hall, 200 University St. in Seattle. Buy tickets at http://tiny.cc/4zqjey/.

Lighting summit Sept. 22 at WSCC

Event production company Exponation LLC will hold the LED Specifier Summit Northwest on Sept. 22 at Washington State Conference Center.

There will be seminars on products and practices, LED exhibits and product demonstrations.

Speakers include Deborah Burnett of Benya Burnett Consultancy, Andrew Pultorak of Puget Sound Energy, Lisa Rosenow of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Council, Shannon Markey of LeGrand and Charles Knuffke of Wattstopper.

Register at http://tiny.cc/mq1pey/.

Pioneer Square tour is Sept. 24

Seattle Architecture Foundation is offering a tour at 10 a.m. Sept. 24 called “Pioneer Square: Wilderness to Metropolis.”

The tour begins at Cafe Umbria at 320 Occidental Ave. S. Participants will learn about the neighborhood and its history, including its recent evolution as home to a new crop of chefs, entrepreneurs, developers and community groups.

Cost is $15. Register at http://tiny.cc/za9zdy/.

MOHAI program: Seattle archaeology

The Museum of History & Industry will hold a free program on “Archaeology of Early Seattle Near Pike Place Market and the Seattle Train Tunnel” at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow in MOHAI Cafe.

The museum said a city block near the market once was a 19th century shantytown. Construction of modern projects has turned up the remnants of middens and old privies. The shantytown cabins covered hillsides above the waterfront until people were evicted in 1902 to prepare for the Great Northern Railroad tunnel construction.

Alicia Valentino, an archaeologist with Environmental Science Associates in Seattle, is the presenter. She has excavated sites in and around Seattle.

The program is part of the History Cafe series, co-presented by MOHAI, Seattle Public Library and HistoryLink.org.

GGLO celebrates with Step It Up!

Seattle design firm GGLO and Harbor Steps will present STEP IT UP! on Sept. 15, with interactive public design installations and performances at Harbor Steps as part GGLO's 30th anniversary celebration.

The free event will be from noon to 10 p.m., but the main show will begin at 5:30 p.m. Installations will be in place from Sept. 10 to Sept. 23 and are part of the Seattle Design Festival.

Organizers said STEP IT UP! is designed to activate and “hack” Harbor Steps at First Avenue and University Street in Seattle by “engaging one's body, senses, and spatial relationships — moving people up, down, in and out.”