Portland, Ore.-based architectural firm Giffin Bolte Jurgens was recently awarded $120 million in new hospital construction and remodel projects in the Pacific Northwest.

Tacoma General Hospital and Mary Bridge Children's Hospital, both part of the MultiCare Medical Ccampus in Tacoma, Wash., has retained Giffin Bolte Jurgens to design a $75 million expansion adding four new floors of state-of-the-art adult and pediatric surgical suites to an existing facility shared by both hospitals. The 150,000 sq.ft 'Surgical Complex and Heart Center' addition will be constructed on top of an existing four-story building (also designed by Giffin Bolte Jurgens in l994), which houses many of the hospitals outpatient clinics and labs. Skanska USA (Seattle) is serving as general contractor with an anticipated Spring 2004 completion.

Also for Mary Bridge Children's Hospital and Health Center the firm has been awarded a $17 million addition to the pediatric outpatient center. The three-story addition will add 60,000 sq.ft. to the existing 63,000 sq.ft. outpatient space. The project is currently finishing design and is targeted for a June 2003 groundbreaking with Seattle-based J.R. Abbott serving as general contractor.

Giffin Bolte Jurgens has been serving both Tacoma General and Mary Bridge Children's Hospitals master planning and architectural needs since l984.

In other firm news, Giffin Bolte Jurgens is in construction on $30 million of renewal projects for Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia, Wash. That design work includes a three-story, $18 million emergency room addition; $5 million, 400-car parking structure; and an $8 million concourse remodel. The most challenging project, the concourse and lobby remodel, involves a complex design to improved patient privacy and convenience by allowing for separation of public and patient traffic flow. Sellen Construction of Seattle is the general contractor on all three projects.

EH&S Completes New Credit Union Branch

Ellensburg - Retail planning and architecture firm Emick Howard & Seibert Inc. recently announced the completion of the newest Catholic Credit Union branch here.

The Ellensburg branch is the second building designed by EH&S for the credit union, preceded by the Yakima, Wash., branch and headquarters. EH&S designed the Ellensburg branch to follow the same design as the Yakima building to support the clear and successful physical identity previously developed for Catholic Credit Union. The completion of the Ellensburg branch expands the credit union's presence in the community, replacing the existing downtown branch.

EH&S worked with Catholic Credit Union to design and plan the branch to allow for growth, adaptations, and flexibility. The 5,200-sq.-ft., one-story structure includes 2,000 sq. ft. of flexible lease space to be occupied by Edward Jones, an investment specialist. This allows the credit union to provide retail space in the short term with the flexibility to reclaim that space for growth of the credit union in years to come. The branch also offers three drive-up lanes and parking for 41 cars.

Architectural design features include intricate, patterned masonry work and design; a central clerestory ceiling to maximize natural light within the interior; and passive solar shading.

Olympia - Seattle architecture firm Arai/Jackson Architects and Planners recently won an award from the state for its work on the Temple of Justice rehabilitation on the Washington Capitol Campus here.

The annual State Historic Preservation Officer's Awards were presented in May by the Washington Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, and Arai/Jackson received the Valerie Sivinski Award for Outstanding Achievement in Historic Preservation Rehabilitation.

Arai/Jackson's rehabilitation designs followed the 2001 Nisqually earthquake that damaged the significant structure, which was built on the capitol campus in 1920. The most significant damage was by shockwaves that caused elements of decorative plaster to crack, break and fall from the high ceilings in the lobby, law library, and Supreme Court chamber. Damage to other portions of the Temple were less obvious but included displaced marble wainscot paneling, cracked plaster walls in the law library, cracked terrazzo flooring on the ground floor, the displacement of a half-ton parking barricade, cracked sandstone cladding and damage to the roof.

Arai/Jackson's award acknowledges the restoration or rehabilitation of a property listed in the State or National Register of Historic Places. Awarded projects demonstrate the best of preservation practice, meeting or exceeding the guidelines of the Secretary of the Interior's standards for rehabilitation, and contribute significantly to the community at large. The award is named in honor of Tacoma preservationist Valerie Sivinski.

ABC of Western Wash. Launches Safety Alliance

Bellevue - The Associated Builders and Contractors of Western Washington has launched a new safety program called Safety Alliance. The voluntary program provides a consistent method for members to self-evaluate their safety programs with results externally validated by ABC-approved safety consultants.

"The Safety Alliance program takes our safety to the top level for our members," said Ann Jarvis, ABC of Western Washington's director of education and safety.

After reviewing the Safety Alliance program materials, Michael Wood, senior program manager for WISHA Policy and Technical Services with the Sate of Washington Department of Labor and Industries wrote a letter encouraging ABC members to pursue Safety Alliance membership to ensure that their workplaces are exceptionally safe places to work.

Seattle - Skanska USA Building Inc. (Seattle) was recently awarded the preconstruction services assignment for the University of Washington's Johnson Hall renovation here.

The preconstruction phase will begin in the third quarter of 2003. If the project proceeds into the construction phase - anticipated for January 2004 - the expected construction value of the project would be approximately $35 million.

Skanska will oversee the project, which includes seismic upgrades and renovation of the 121,000-sq.-ft., five-story historic structure built in the 1930s. Significant seismic upgrades include the addition of a lateral bracing system and installation of floor diaphragms. When complete, the lab and classroom/administration facility will house the Earth Sciences and Biology departments.