May 31, 2000

Design Detailings: SDC holds urban design forum

An urban design forum sponsored by the Seattle Design Commission will be held from June 1-3 at the U.S. Naval Reserve Station, 860 Terry Avenue N. Keynote speakers include Bob Kroin, chief architect for the Boston Redevelopment Authority, and Ray Gastil, executive director of the Van Alen Institute in New York. For more information, call Denni Shefrin (206) 233-7223.

New building to open at Children's Theatre

Seattle Children's Theatre will unveil its new facility, The Allen Family Pavilion, on Saturday, June 10. The event will be held from 12 to 2:30 p.m. The three-story technical pavilion will house scene, prop, costume and paint ships and an entire floor of rehearsal studios and classroom space. The opening event is free to the public and will include tours of the facility. LMN Architects designed the pavilion; Sellen Construction Co. was the general contractor.

East Coast firm buys W&H Pacific

The IT Group, a Pennsylvania-based, publicly traded engineering and construction corporation, has acquired W&H Pacific, a 300-person engineering firm headquartered in Bothell.The combined annual revenue both firms is reported to be about $1.3 billion. The IT Group has about 1,700 employees nationwide.With the acquisition, the IT Group, which specializes in environmental management, will diversify into new infrastructure markets, such as transportation, land development and energy/telecommunications, and will further its presence in the Northwest.Senior management, project teams and offices for W&H will remain the same, company executives said.

Vancouver firm and Mahlum team up

Henriquez Architects of Vancouver, B.C., and Mahlum Architects of Seattle have established a specialized studio in Seattle to work on residential, mixed-use and commercial projects.Henriquez is known for its mixed-use and residential projects that span the market from affordable housing to luxury high rises. Among its portfolio is The Presidio Residential Tower, a high rise in Vancouver. Mahlum does a variety of educational, medical and commercial buildings, such as the Washington Mutual Tower in Seattle.

ZGF gets Duke University job

Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership, with Northwest offices in Seattle and Portland, has been awarded a contract to study feasibility and site options for a new biomedical engineering research center at Duke University in North Carolina.The goal of the project is to provide interdisciplinary research for biomedical, electrical and computer, mechanical science, and civil and environmental engineering.ZGF has won numerous awards for its work, and recently received accolades for its design of Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland.

Architect chosen for library renovations

The Seattle Public Library board of trustees has selected Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects to design the renovations of both the Green Lake and West Seattle branch libraries.The libraries, which opened in 1910, are Carnegie-funded branches designed by W. Marbury Somervell and Joseph S. Cote. They are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.The Seattle-based firm was one of six firms competing for the contract. Founded in 1997, Snyder Hartung Kane Strauss Architects specializes in the restoration and rehabilitation of historic buildings. Its principals have worked on the Burien Library, the Everett Public Library, the Green Lake Library and the Suzzallo Library at the University of Washington.Seattle voters approved spending $602,000 to renovate the 8,690-square-foot Green Lake Library and $778,000 to renovate the 7,670-square-foot West Seattle Library.

School facility planners hold conference

The Council of Educational Facilities Planners International will be holding its regional conference from July 21-24 in Bellevue.Attendees registering by May 31 receive a discount.The keynote speaker is Gene Sharratt, superintendent of North Central Educational Service District in Wenatchee. He will discuss how student diversity affects facilities design. Other topics include sustainable design, the effect of the Endangered Species Act on school construction and school safety.For information about the conference schedule and cost, call Phyllis Keithly at (360) 871-7552.

New software helps select paint

A new software program that helps architects and interior designers select paint will be introduced at a free luncheon on Thursday, June 1. Called RoddaVision, the program allows designers to choose colors from the Rodda Paint company. A spokesperson from the company said the program will cost under $40 and will be sold at all Rodda Paint's retail stores and on the Web site www.hardware.com beginning June 1.Darren Alexander of Autech Research, the company that developed the software program in Australia for Rodda Paints, will be the keynote speaker.

The luncheon will be held at Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., Seattle.

Kubota Kato Chin moves

The office of Architects Kubota Kato Chin has moved to 6201 Roosevelt Way N.E., Seattle. The new telephone number is (206) 985-5800. The firm specializes in community design and works in both public and private sectors. The prior office at 307 Sixth Ave. S. will be retained as a temporary project office for the International District Village Square Phase Two project, a mixed-use facility that includes a public community center, public library branch, office space, retail space and parking. Kovalenko Hale Architects is the joint venture partner on the project.

AIA elects officers

At the AIA Seattle annual meeting May 17, members elected officers and directors for terms beginning September 2000. Norm Strong is the new president. Joining him on the executive committee are First Vice President/President-elect Steven Arai; Secretary Randy Everett; and Treasurer Kristen Scott.Three newly elected directors will also begin their terms in September: Douglas Bailey, S. Keli Hagen and Carol Simpson. They will join incumbent directors whose terms continue: Carolyn Graves, Rena Klein and Wolf Saar. Current President Donald Carlson will continue on the board for another year.

Film series on design

The Northwest Film Forum and the American Institute of Graphic Arts are sponsoring a series of films on design at the Little Theater on Capitol Hill, 608 19th Ave E. The series, which starts today and runs through Sunday, June 18, includes films by Ray and Charles Eames.