WSU Starting Work On Child Development Center

Vancouver – Work started last month on the expansion of the WSU Vancouver Child Development Program. Funding from the Tod and Maxine McClaskey Foundation totaling $1.5 million will be used for a variety of start-up costs including remodeling of the interior classrooms, technology upgrades, curriculum development, community engagement and staff salaries. Construction on the expansion is slated to begin spring 2009.

Turner Lands Huge Sea-Tac Parking Garage

Seattle - Turner Construction Company, has been selected by the Port of Seattle to provide general contracting and construction management services for the $224 million Consolidated Rental Car Facility at Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) International Airport. The scope of work includes a five-story, 1.1 million sq ft facility on a 27-acre site to accommodate the increasing rental car customer demand traveling through the Sea-Tac airport each year. Upon completion in 2011, the facility will seek a LEED Silver Certification from the United States Green Building Council.

Scholarships Given Out To UW Students

Seattle - Skanska USA Building Inc. announced that two University of Washington (UW) students, Tristie Tajima and Brett Valicoff, were awarded $3,000 academic scholarships as part of thel Skanska Scholars program for students pursuing construction management degrees. The awards are part of Skanska’s self-perform work effort to build construction minds of the future.

“Students who showed a strong passion for construction management in both the classroom and outside participation were the most important factors in choosing this year’s recipients,” said Kevin McCain, Project Executive at Skanska and Chairman of the scholarship program. The scholarships were reviewed by both Skanska representatives and UW’s Construction Management Department faculty. Both students will graduate in June, 2009.

ZGF Designs Master Plan For Evergreen State

Seattle - The Evergreen State College has officially adopted a new sustainable Campus Master Plan, designed by Zimmer Gunsul Frasca, to guide the development of campus over the next 15 years. The Evergreen State College adopted a strategic objective of pursuing a ‘net-zero’ carbon and waste footprint by the year 2020. As part of this ambitious goal, the Campus Master Plan translates the College’s existing programs and initiatives into a comprehensive plan for the sustainable development of campus.

Mahlum Designs Alaskan Hospital to Match Landscape

Seattle - Northern Alaska’s stark landscape and intense weather conditions influenced the design of the new hospital that Norton Sound Health Corp. plans to build in Nome. Work on the gravel site pad was completed in July.

The 150,000 sq ft, three-story hospital will be located on a 38.9-acre site that overlooks downtown with sweeping views of Norton Sound to the south and broad views of mountains to the north. The project has a construction cost of $102 million and is expected to go for bid in early 2009. Because of the short construction window and the need to barge materials to the site, construction will extend over several years. The projected opening date is September, 2012. The structure will be built on more than 200 steel piles hammered through the permafrost to a loose bedrock. The building itself will be five to nine feet above the ground to allow the wind to scour out the snow beneath so that it doesn’t pile into drifts that would otherwise contribute to the melting of the permafrost. Kumin Associates of Anchorage is the prime architect.

All public areas will have large expanses of glass with views to the waters of the sound and Bering Sea, which unites all the people of the region. An open grand staircase with a glass curtain wall will allow visitors, patients and staff to move easily from ground level to the third floor.ll Besides Mahlum and Kumin, project team members include Notkin Engineering mechanical; Sparling, electrical; Bristol Environmental Engineering Services Group, civil; DOWL Engineers, geotechnical consultant, and BBFM Engineers, structural. Local mechanical and engineering services will be provided by Hay Zietlow & Associates.

Noise Barrier Project Designed to Zap the Zip

Tacoma - Crews from Tri-State Construction, Inc. out of Bellevue will began a three-month project constructing noise barriers along SR 16’s eastbound span of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The noise barriers will help reduce the sound, which nearby residents say is similar to a zipper opening. This sound can be heard an average of 40,000 times a day, when cars travel over the expansion joints on both ends of the bridge. Engineers hope to zap the zipper sound with noise-absorbent panels placed on the sides of the bridge anchors. These panels will also be placed on four noise barrier walls built on top of existing traffic barriers alongside the bridge. The noise walls are designed to mimic the geometric shape of the nearby anchorages. Studies show that noise barriers can reduce noise levels by 10 to 15 decibels, cutting traffic noise in half. Construction is scheduled to wrap up by the end of the year. This project costs about $1 million to complete and is part of the $735 million price tag for the new Tacoma Narrows Bridge which is on pace to finish about $114 million under budget. WSDOT awarded the $531,698 construction contract to Tri-State Construction, Inc., in July.

Engineers Volunteer For Community Service

Seattle - Fifteen Sparling staff members found an opportunity to give back to the community on August 6th with their volunteer work for the American Red Cross in Seattle. The Sparling "Community Service Day- On" encourages employees to give of their time and talents with the full support of the firm behind them. The recent Red Cross event was a day filled with a variety of activities and projects, including a presentation and tour of the Red Cross facility, washing and detailing of emergency response vehicles, painting areas of the building in need of an aesthetic facelift, and assembling 900 workplace training/preparedness packets. Sparling volunteers included Leah Benson, Tera Cyphert, Lindsey Gilmore, Casey Hackett, Semir Halilovic, Gail Jensen, Tara Knudson, Kyle Madson, Lan Nguyen, Eric Overton, Alisa Parks, John Parry, Robert Smulling, Mark Trepus and Josh Wittmier.