June 5, 2020

5 cities win AWC awards for municipal excellence

Photo from Tack Photography [enlarge]

The city of Kenmore won a Project award for The Hangar at Town Square development.

The Association of Washington Cities honored five cities with 2020 Municipal Excellence Awards, which recognize innovative city projects that significantly improve quality of life.

Awards were given in four categories: Project, Program, Race and Equity, and Small City Success. A panel from various cities judged 25 applicants on these criteria: value to the community, innovation, partnering and adaptability for other cities to use.

Here are the winners:

Project

The Hangar at Town Square

City of Kenmore

Part of an extensive downtown redevelopment, this is a community building and public plaza designed for gatherings and shared use. The building has a coffee shop, double-sided fireplace and array of furniture that create an intimate space to read, work on homework or hang with friends. City residents can reserve two rooms within the building at no cost. A hangar-style door opens on the plaza, which has a water feature, bike maintenance station and other amenities.

Revenues from private development covered construction costs of the public spaces, and public-private partnerships were used to ensure compatibility with the city's vision of a revitalized residential and commercial district.

Project

Fiber-optic cables inside water lines

City of Anacortes

The city needed to replace its aging radio-based system that connected its water treatment, wastewater and sewage pumping facilities. Using a “pipe-in-pipe” method developed in the United Kingdom, city workers installed fiber-optic lines inside the system's existing active water lines — making Anacortes the first North American city to use this approach. This solution also provided additional fiber capacity for broadband internet access. In addition to gaining the reliable and future-ready data capacity of a fiber-optic system, the city avoided the considerable costs and environmental impacts of running new lines through marine waterways, wetlands, private properties and flood-protection dikes along the Skagit River.

Program

Lacey Veterans Services Hub

City of Lacey

The Lacey Veterans Services Hub is a collaborative resource center where veterans in South Puget Sound can access an array of essential services in one location. Over 70 partners and providers offer services through the hub, including assistance with Veterans Affairs benefits, housing, employment, education, health care, mental health and legal aid. No veteran is turned away and all services are provided for free. There is a waiting list of providers wanting to participate, and the hub is being considered at the federal level as a prototype for projects across the country. The hub is a joint effort between the city of Lacey and several service providers.

Race and Equity

African-American historic properties

City of Pasco

East Pasco in the Tri-Cities area was home to the majority of African American residents who helped shape the early development of the city and worked on the Hanford Site, but many historically significant sites were lost during urban renewal in the 1980s. With help from a state grant, the city began documenting and preparing key heritage properties in the area to be submitted to the National Register of Historic Places. A city-produced video includes interviews and stories from longtime residents that highlight and preserve the unique and important aspects of daily life in the community and honor the struggle against racism.

Small City Success

Downtown pump station

City of Pateros

When the city of Pateros discovered that the most feasible location for a pump station for wildfire defense was the same site already slated for a public green space linking a waterfront park with the business district, the project was designed to meet both needs. Now a raised walkway, green space and a community pavilion share space with a reliable water source backed by an emergency generator. In addition, landscaping and regrading that came with the construction improved stormwater collection and sanitary control, reducing potential contaminants in the water supply.

Winners will be recognized at AWC's Annual Conference, which will be held June 23-26 online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The competition is open to any city or town in Washington.

AWC is a nonprofit founded in 1933 and represents Washington's cities and towns.