July 28, 2004

Design Detailings: AIA Seattle's 110th birthday

AIA Seattle holds its 110th birthday party from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Aug. 5 at The Henry Art Gallery on the University of Washington campus in Seattle. All AIA Seattle members are welcome and can visit the gallery's exhibit, "Santiago Calatrava: The Architect's Studio." To RSVP, call (206) 448-4938, e-mail aia@aiaseattle.org or visit http://www.aiaseattle.org.

Swenson Say Faget opens in Tacoma

Structural engineering company Swenson Say Faget opened a Tacoma office earlier this month at 932 Broadway. Phone (253) 284-9470. Fax (253) 284-9471. The firm also has an office in Seattle, at 2124 Third Ave. The Seattle phone number is (206) 443-6212. The Web site is http://www.swensonsayfaget.com.

MTC opens new Bellingham office

Materials Testing and Consulting has opened a branch office in Bellingham. The office is at 1208 Bay St., Bellingham, WA 98225. The phone is (360) 647-6061, and fax is (360) 647-8111. The Web site is http://www.mtc-inc.net. MTC also has offices in Burlington and Centralia.

The firm has been involved the St. Joseph Hospital expansion, Western Washington University Campus Services Facility and the WWU Student Recreation Center.

Otak architects LEED accredited

Otak announced that Nora Daley and Erik Dodge have earned accreditation by the U.S. Green Building Council after completing the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design exam.

Daley and Dodge, registered landscape architects in Washington, are also completing the nine-month Sustainable Building Advisor Certificate Program.

Otak is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council. The company is pursuing a LEED Silver rating for its King County Power Distribution headquarters project in Seattle. The new building will use at least 50 percent recycled content for its building materials, reduce design energy costs by 32 percent and provide a 30 percent reduction in water use. The landscape will not use a permanent irrigation system and provides 210 percent of the local zoning requirements for open space.

Call for entries in AIA awards

IA Seattle seeks design submissions for recently completed or unbuilt projects. In the completed category, eligible projects are built work completed from January 1999 to November of this year. Project teams must include a Washington-licensed architect. Artists, students and other design professionals may submit commissioned or conceptual designs for the unbuilt category.

Awards moderator John Morris Dixon is an architectural journalist and is writing a book on the course of modern architecture. Jury members are Ming Fung of Hodgetts + Fung in Los Angeles, Carlos Jimenez of Jimenez Studio in Houston and Mehrdad Yazdani of Cannon Design in Los Angeles.

Submission information will be available Sept. 9 on http://www.aiaseattle.org. Application deadline is Oct. 7. An awards presentation will be held on Nov. 8 at McCaw Hall, Seattle Center. For more information, call AIA Seattle at (206) 448-4938.

ASCE course on tunnels in October

The American Society of Civil Engineers will hold an introductory course on the design and construction of tunnels from Oct. 6 to 8 in Seattle. Construction and project managers, engineers and geotechnical engineering graduates are invited.

Tunnel construction in soft ground, pipe jacking, microtunnelling and safety are some of the items on the agenda. Seminar instructor David Abbott has more than 32 years of experience in design and construction of tunnels, including feasibility studies, conceptual and detailed engineering, equipment selection and operation management. For information call (800) 548-2723 or visit http://www.asce.org/conted.

Spokane wants to create a U District

The August meeting of the Marketing Associates of Spokane will feature Tom Reese, economic development advisor for the Office of the Mayor, who will be discussing Spokane's efforts to develop a University District plan. His presentation will cover the impact of the plan on the design and construction industry.

The city recently announced its intention to create Spokane's first University District, which would help recruit faculty, students, researchers and companies to the area.

Reese guides business and development assistance programs, brownfields redevelopment, sustainable development and workforce development. His projects include working to revitalize the Ninth & Perry District on the South Hill, and creating the Community Stewards Program. He is an adjunct professor at the Washington State University Interdisciplinary Design Institute.

The meeting will be held Thursday, Aug. 12, from noon to 1:30 at the Red Lion River Inn, 700 N. Division St., in Spokane. The cost is $15 for MAS members and $25 for non-members, and includes lunch. Reservation deadline is Aug. 11. For information or reservations call Jamie Miller at (509) 927-7747 or visit the MAS Web site at http://www.maspokane.org.