Oct 10, 2012

Swenson Say Faget

Seattle structural engineering firm Swenson Say Faget rehired Bart Blans. He worked for the firm from 1999 to 2006 until he joined Arup and worked in Istanbul and Amsterdam. Blans has more than 20 years of engineering and project management experience with historic buildings, hospitality, mixed-use, office and housing. He is working on Alley 111, a Bellevue apartment project that H+dlT Collaborative is designing for Skanska USA.

Runberg Architecture Group

Runberg Architecture Group of Seattle promoted Melissa Wechsler to principal. Wechsler is project manager of Vulcan Real Estate's StackHouse Apartments in South Lake Union and managed The Chloe Apartments, a Barrientos mixed-use project on Capitol Hill. She has more than 11 years of experience on projects, including historic remodels, housing, mixed-use, and civic buildings. Runberg specializes in urban mixed-use and adaptive reuse projects.

Freiheit & Ho Architects

The board of directors of Kirkland-based Freiheit & Ho Architects elected David Hills to executive vice president as part of a leadership transition plan. Founder Dick Freiheit remains president and continues to guide day-to-day activities. Freiheit & Ho said it has had growth of 75 percent over the past three years. Hills has been with the firm for 26 years, and will continue to lead projects and support client relationships while assuming greater leadership responsibilities. Larry Ho, the firm's founder and outgoing vice president, will remain as a design principal.

Sclater Partners Architects

Sclater Partners Architects added Robert Martin to the design team. Martin has 20 years of retail, residential and health care experience. He is working on the Lincoln Square expansion in Bellevue. Seattle-based Sclater provides design and planning.

GeoEngineers

GeoEngineers hired Spencer Allison as a marketing coordinator in the Portland office. He was previously a marketing coordinator for Coffman Engineers in Spokane. GeoEngineers is an earth science, engineering and technology consulting firm based in Seattle.

DeForest Architects

Melissa Nordquist joined DeForest Architects. Nordquist is an architect with more than 15 years of experience, focusing on custom homes and mixed-use buildings. She holds degrees from Williams College and Harvard Graduate School of Design, and worked for firms in Boston, Houston and San Francisco.

Buckland & Taylor

Scott Roux was appointed vice president of U.S. operations for Buckland & Taylor as part the bridge engineering company's plan for growth. The North Vancouver, B.C.-based firm works with clients worldwide and has a Seattle office. It is owned by the Danish company Cowi Group.

Sound Telecom

Seattle-based Sound Telecom hired Lakesha Smith as office administrator. Smith has more than 16 years of experience in call center support, customer service management and office administration. Sound Telecom provides 24-hour telephone answering, call center and communication services.

K&L Gates

K&L Gates hired Hugh Matsubayashi as a Seattle partner in the intellectual property procurement and portfolio management practice. Matsubayashi was vice president of legal affairs and intellectual property at NeuroVista, and prior to that was partner with a Silicon Valley law firm and senior patent counsel for Sun Microsystems. K&L Gates has more than 40 offices in North America, Europe, Asia, South America and the Middle East.

The Bellevue Collection

The Bellevue Collection said Eastside restaurateur Lakshmi Thanu has opened Moksha restaurant, serving a new style of Indian cuisine: Karaikudi. An Indian native, Thanu's family has operated restaurants in India since the 1940s.