Ball Fields Replace Disposal Facility in Eastern Washington

Medical Lake - The familiar call of "play ball" soon will be heard across the Graham Road Recycling and Disposal Facility in Medical Lake, Wash. The Waste Management-owned and -operated landfill is leasing 25 acres to the West Plains Little League Association for a six-field baseball complex.

The 15-year lease will provide space for two girls' softball fields, three Little League fields (one of which will be lighted for nighttime play) and one full-size junior league field. Other amenities will include a concession stand, bleachers, landscaping and paved parking.

Currently, the West Plains Little League Association plays on public adult softball fields. The three-year-old league is outgrowing its current fields, which aren't well-suited for children's baseball, said Adam Smith, Little League president.

Waste Management is leasing the property for $1 per year. Construction of the 25-acre complex will be completed in four phases, Smith said. The estimated cost is $2 million to $2.5 million, which the Little League will fund through grants.

Korsmo Rebuilding Historic Park Lodge at Paradise

Lakewood - The National Park Service has selected John Korsmo Construction of Lakewood, WA and Watts Constructors of Novato, CA to jointly build the new Paradise Visitor Center and complete historical renovations and preservation of Paradise Inn at Mount Rainier. This is the largest current National Park Service project in the nation.

Initial construction of the $34.7 million project began on June 5. Visitor center construction and rehabilitation of the Paradise Inn will continue through summer 2008 followed by demolition of the existing visitor center and redesign of the parking lots.

When completed, the new visitor center will replace the existing Henry M. Jackson Visitor Center. The new center will be located in the upper parking lot next to Paradise Inn and feature architecture that complements the inn.

Paradise Inn was originally built in 1916. The scope of work includes stabilizing and rebuilding the foundation, cleaning and rebuilding the three historic 90-foot chimneys and a complete modernization of seven guest rooms to ADA accessible standards.

Korsmo forecasts the project will employ approximately 150 people at a time when construction reaches full stride. All of the subcontractors are from the Pacific Northwest, with the vast majority from the Puget Sound region. Nearly half of the overall contract price is for subcontractors.

Visitors to Paradise should expect some inconvenience during construction although the National Park Service and Watts Constructors/Korsmo are proactively working to minimize it. Among those steps are the Watts Constructors/Korsmo Good Neighbor Policy which limits noise and interference with guests

Planning Awards Go To Local Firm

Seattle - BHC Consultants, LLC, formerly a division of Berryman & Henigar, earned awards for three municipal projects in the 2006 Planning Association of Washington - American Planning Association competition. The Vision 2010 for Skykomish and the City of Port Townsend, Shoreline Master Program received Merit Awards. The City of Orting Parks, Trails and Open Space Plan received an Honorable Mention Award.

BHC helped Port Townsend become the first community in the state to adopt a Shoreline Master Program (SMP) under new state guidelines. The program, developed over two years, involved citizens, the City, the Port of Port Angeles and government agencies, many with differing agendas. The updated SMP balances the fundamental goals of public access, environmental protection and appropriate uses with retaining the small-scale historic character and maritime heritage of the city.

The Vision for Skykomish was an intensive public involvement process done in conjunction with the University of Washington Northwest Center for Livable Communities to show how the town should look after the cleanup required to mitigate contaminants in the soil and groundwater from a former railroad maintenance facility. The plan establishes strategies - from economic planning to infrastructure development - designed to help local businesses survive and grow during and after the cleanup and will make the city a model of environmental restoration.

Orting's Parks, Trails and Open Space Plan has energized the community with a myriad of new initiatives. The Parks Commission is expanding recreation services and upgrading existing facilities. The City has started construction of a new downtown park where a farmers' market will open next year, and, with the Orting School District, has secured a $750,000 Pierce County Conservation Futures Grant to acquire a significant site adjacent to a new middle school along the Puyallup River.

Barvern Breaks Ground as Areas Latest Downtown Condo

Bellevue - Skanska will immediately begin removing 330,000 cubic yards of dirt - enough to fill 100 Olympic size swimming pools - from the site and will continue for the next 11 weeks. A later excavation for The Bravern's second phase is expected to remove another 170,000 cubic yards of dirt.

The construction kickoff comes just a week after Neiman Marcus, the renowned fashion and specialty retailer, announced that it will anchor The Shops at The Bravern.

The Bravern is located at the highly visible interchange of I-405 and NE 8th St. in Bellevue, next to the Bellevue Transit Center and Meydenbauer Convention Center.