December 1, 1999

Design Detailings: New president of Oregon ASCE named

Mel Sears, Portland regional manager for Parametrix, was recently elected to the position of president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Oregon section. In this role, he represents more than 1,700 civil engineers in Oregon and southwestern Washington. He is also on ASCE's Pacific Northwest council board of directors, which manages ASCE business in Alaska, Montana, Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

Sears has been a member of ASCE for more than 10 years.

McGowan Broz engineers set to move

McGowan Broz Engineers is moving from its north Bellevue location to new offices along the Interstate 90 corridor. Effective Dec. 6 the new address will be 15405 SE 37th St., suite 201, Bellevue, WA 98006. The new phone number is (425) 564-8400.

Located in the PCL building along I-90, McGowan Broz's new 5,500-square-foot office space features a number of design elements that, representatives of the firm say, reflect the firm's unique corporate identity. Specialized lighting was designed to take advantage of the latest lighting technologies. The new facility also has reserve space for planned future expansion.

Space planning and interior design was provided by GGLO, and McGowan Broz designed the lighting, electrical and mechanical systems. PCL is the general contractor.

Headed by Ken McGowan and Bill Broz, the firm provides mechanical and electrical engineering services to commercial, industrial and municipal clients throughout the Northwest and Asia.

Portland firm picked to design casinos

Scardina Design Studio, a Portland-based interior design firm, has been selected to provide space planning and interior design services for two casinos in La Center, Wash. The New Phoenix and Next Horizon casinos, owned by George Teeny, will undergo a renovation and expansion over the next few months. The new space will be open to the public in March 2000.

The architect for both projects is LSW Architects in Vancouver, Wash. Cisneros Construction in Portland is the contractor.

New book on landscape architecture

The American Society of Landscape Architects and Spacemaker Press have published "100 Years of Landscape Architecture: Some Patterns of a Century." Written by Melanie Simo, the book traces the evolution of landscape architecture from 1899 to 1999. The book can be purchased through the ASLA for $49.95. To order, call 1 (800) 787-2665 or go to the Web site http://www.asla.org.

National AIA winners named this week

The American Institute of Architects on Thursday, Dec. 2 will select this year's winner of the Gold Medal, its highest honor, the Architecture Firm Award and the Topaz Medallion, which recognizes excellence in architectural education. The winners will be announced shortly after a closed-session voting by the AIA board of directors at the organization's headquarters in Washington, D.C.

WALP winners announced

The Washington Association of Landscape Professionals has named Steve Pagel of Pagel's Landscape Maintenance in Vancouver, Wash., as member of the year. Country Green Turf Farms in Olympia was recognized as the associate member of the year.

WALP also awarded several environmental awards. In the category of design-build, the highest award went to Hendrikus Schraven Landscape Construction & Design in Issaquah and to the Highridge Corp., also in Issaquah. Two distinction awards went to Puget Sound Landscaping in Olympia.

In the category of public works, a distinction award went to Teufel Nursery in Woodinville for the Everett Memorial Stadium.

A series of other awards were also distributed. A full list of award winners will be posted in January on WALP's Web site.

SMPS hosts "Getting What You're Worth"

The Society of Marketing Professional Services is sponsoring a program to teach negotiation skills in the workplace. The program, "Getting What You're Worth" will be held from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 7 at the Rainier Square conference room.

The program will address compensation and fee issues, and participants will observe and critique an actual negotiation. Presenter Bob Ness provides negotiation training to executives and managers in major corporations. He works extensively in the architecture, engineering and construction industries.

The cost of the event is $30 for SMPS members, $35 for member firms and $40 for nonmembers. For more information about the education program, call Karen Johnston at the Johnston Training Group at (206) 256-0206.

Hackworth begins Issaquah project

Seattle-based Hackworth Architecture has broken ground on Huckleberry Circle, a 60-unit multifamily development in the Issaquah highlands being developed by Lozier Homes. Each home fronts on a street or a common green, with parking provided in garages, some of which can be accessed from interior streets. Most of the homes located on the "main street" have ground floor spaces that were conceived as home offices. The exterior elevations combine two-and three-story elements with a variety of roof forms.