Friday, March 15, 2013
Eagle Harbor Market Building - COMING SOON!
Exceptional ground level retail space available for lease along Winslow Way in the new Eagle Harbor Market Building.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Corner by ferry becomes welcoming spot for Bainbridge - KITSAP SUN
KITSAP SUN
By Tad Sooter
Posted February 27, 2013 at 6:40 p.m.
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND —
A construction crew and volunteers put the final flourishes Wednesday on what will become Bainbridge Island’s most visible park.
Workers installed signs and fastened down benches along the serpentine walking boulevard above the ferry landing, while others raked gravel. All their labor was being donated, something that’s become the norm for The Waypoint project.
“Pretty much everyone has volunteered everything,” said park supporter Bruce Weiland, neatly summing up the two-year effort that brought The Waypoint into existence.
The gateway park opens Friday on a 1-acre lot wedged into the bustling southwest corner of Winslow Way and Highway 305.
The property is jointly owned by the city and Kitsap Transit and will be managed by the Bainbridge park district, but credit for the creation of the park rests largely with a committee of volunteer organizers.
The Bainbridge Island Park Task Force spearheaded the planning, funding and building of The Waypoint, transforming a vacant and contaminated property into a public amenity. Organizer Jim Chapel estimates 700 people lent time, expertise or money to the effort.
“Here’s an example, that doesn’t happen often, of an entire community coming together to make something happen,” Chapel said at the site Wednesday.
The Waypoint was a unifying project in part because it addressed a glaring need. The property is located at one of the island’s busiest intersections and across the street from the new Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, now in the final phase of construction. Yet the high-profile property sat vacant since a gas station closed on the site in 1989.
The city and Kitsap Transit bought the land in 2005, with interest in
widening the highway, building a bus terminal and opening park space.
Budget constraints put the brakes on those plans.
The property gathered weeds. A chain-link fence around the lot was used to hang banners and painted signs. Ideas for development were floated and sunk over the years.
\
In the meantime, nearly every island resident and visitor to Bainbridge passed by the lot while traveling to and from the ferry. What they saw was a “postindustrial eyesore,” Weiland said.
“It was already the gateway anyway,” he said. “It was just ugly.”
That thought ran through Chapel’s mind in 2011 when he became stuck in traffic while driving off the ferry and had a few minutes to revel in the ungainliness of the property. The longtime islander decided to pitch the idea of a gateway park to the City Council and recruited the help of Bainbridge Island Museum of Art board member Steve Davis. Chapel and Davis secured the blessing of the city to explore options and joined with Weiland to create the park task force. The city gave the group two clear directives from the start.
“They said, you can’t cost us money and you can’t do anything environmentally harmful,” Weiland recalled.
The second directive proved trickiest. Fuel leaks from the Unocal gas station left contamination soaked into the soil below the property. Unocal hauled away 6,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil and capped the site with clean fill but testing showed some petroleum chemicals remained. The state Department of Ecology added the property to its hazardous site register in 2008.
Scientists and community members were concerned contamination from the site was leaching into an adjacent creek and Eagle Harbor, and worried construction could stir up contaminants locked underground.
The park plan earned official approval from the City Council and Kitsap Transit board in early 2012, only after the agencies were convinced it could be built without significant excavation. The effort received a boost when a series of groundwater tests in 2012 showed contaminants were declining and not migrating off the site. The city and Kitsap Transit have agreed to continue testing in 2013.
The park task force enjoyed a groundswell of support from islanders from the beginning of the effort. The group quickly swelled to 60 members and a series of public planning meetings were well attended. The Bainbridge Rotary signed on to manage the project and renowned island architect Johnpaul Jones volunteered to design the park.
Fundraising also was a grass-roots effort. Rotary launched the campaign with an $80,000 grant, and other large donations, combined with more than 500 individual contributions, fleshed out the $360,000 project budget. A large sign at The Waypoint will recognize donors.
Chapel estimates the project received another $170,000 in labor and services. PHC Construction and other contractors donated labor and equipment, while island groups like the park district and Bainbridge Historical Museum offered support. Bloedel Reserve sent down a squad of volunteer landscapers to install plantings on four occasions, devoting 500 work hours to the site.
“And that’s just what one group did,” Chapel said.
Construction began in September and continued through the winter. The completed park features a broad walking corridor and a curved stone wall, surrounded by raised landscaping. Historical signs, benches and lighting punctuate the walkway.
Jones said managing expectations given the constraints of the property was the most difficult part of the design.
“There were a lot of demands on that site,” Jones said during a recent interview, adding the key was to keep the vision simple. “It’s a welcoming place, it’s not a park.”
Kitsap Transit board member and City Councilwoman Anne Blair said The Waypoint reflects the inclusive effort behind its creation.
“It’s a place that makes tangible the welcoming spirit that exists in the community,” she said.
OFFICIAL OPENING
WHAT: Grand opening
WHEN: 11:20 a.m. Friday
WHERE: The Waypoint at Highway 305 and Winslow Way
By Tad Sooter
Posted February 27, 2013 at 6:40 p.m.
Workers installed signs and fastened down benches along the serpentine walking boulevard above the ferry landing, while others raked gravel. All their labor was being donated, something that’s become the norm for The Waypoint project.
“Pretty much everyone has volunteered everything,” said park supporter Bruce Weiland, neatly summing up the two-year effort that brought The Waypoint into existence.
The gateway park opens Friday on a 1-acre lot wedged into the bustling southwest corner of Winslow Way and Highway 305.
The property is jointly owned by the city and Kitsap Transit and will be managed by the Bainbridge park district, but credit for the creation of the park rests largely with a committee of volunteer organizers.
The Bainbridge Island Park Task Force spearheaded the planning, funding and building of The Waypoint, transforming a vacant and contaminated property into a public amenity. Organizer Jim Chapel estimates 700 people lent time, expertise or money to the effort.
“Here’s an example, that doesn’t happen often, of an entire community coming together to make something happen,” Chapel said at the site Wednesday.
The Waypoint was a unifying project in part because it addressed a glaring need. The property is located at one of the island’s busiest intersections and across the street from the new Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, now in the final phase of construction. Yet the high-profile property sat vacant since a gas station closed on the site in 1989.
The property gathered weeds. A chain-link fence around the lot was used to hang banners and painted signs. Ideas for development were floated and sunk over the years.
\
In the meantime, nearly every island resident and visitor to Bainbridge passed by the lot while traveling to and from the ferry. What they saw was a “postindustrial eyesore,” Weiland said.
“It was already the gateway anyway,” he said. “It was just ugly.”
That thought ran through Chapel’s mind in 2011 when he became stuck in traffic while driving off the ferry and had a few minutes to revel in the ungainliness of the property. The longtime islander decided to pitch the idea of a gateway park to the City Council and recruited the help of Bainbridge Island Museum of Art board member Steve Davis. Chapel and Davis secured the blessing of the city to explore options and joined with Weiland to create the park task force. The city gave the group two clear directives from the start.
“They said, you can’t cost us money and you can’t do anything environmentally harmful,” Weiland recalled.
The second directive proved trickiest. Fuel leaks from the Unocal gas station left contamination soaked into the soil below the property. Unocal hauled away 6,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil and capped the site with clean fill but testing showed some petroleum chemicals remained. The state Department of Ecology added the property to its hazardous site register in 2008.
Scientists and community members were concerned contamination from the site was leaching into an adjacent creek and Eagle Harbor, and worried construction could stir up contaminants locked underground.
The park plan earned official approval from the City Council and Kitsap Transit board in early 2012, only after the agencies were convinced it could be built without significant excavation. The effort received a boost when a series of groundwater tests in 2012 showed contaminants were declining and not migrating off the site. The city and Kitsap Transit have agreed to continue testing in 2013.
The park task force enjoyed a groundswell of support from islanders from the beginning of the effort. The group quickly swelled to 60 members and a series of public planning meetings were well attended. The Bainbridge Rotary signed on to manage the project and renowned island architect Johnpaul Jones volunteered to design the park.
Fundraising also was a grass-roots effort. Rotary launched the campaign with an $80,000 grant, and other large donations, combined with more than 500 individual contributions, fleshed out the $360,000 project budget. A large sign at The Waypoint will recognize donors.
Chapel estimates the project received another $170,000 in labor and services. PHC Construction and other contractors donated labor and equipment, while island groups like the park district and Bainbridge Historical Museum offered support. Bloedel Reserve sent down a squad of volunteer landscapers to install plantings on four occasions, devoting 500 work hours to the site.
“And that’s just what one group did,” Chapel said.
Construction began in September and continued through the winter. The completed park features a broad walking corridor and a curved stone wall, surrounded by raised landscaping. Historical signs, benches and lighting punctuate the walkway.
Jones said managing expectations given the constraints of the property was the most difficult part of the design.
“There were a lot of demands on that site,” Jones said during a recent interview, adding the key was to keep the vision simple. “It’s a welcoming place, it’s not a park.”
Kitsap Transit board member and City Councilwoman Anne Blair said The Waypoint reflects the inclusive effort behind its creation.
“It’s a place that makes tangible the welcoming spirit that exists in the community,” she said.
OFFICIAL OPENING
WHAT: Grand opening
WHEN: 11:20 a.m. Friday
WHERE: The Waypoint at Highway 305 and Winslow Way
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
The Art of Creating an Art Museum - Bainbridge Island Review
By CONNIE MEARS
Bainbridge Island Review Staff writer
February 24, 2012 · 2:23 PM
As winter comes to an end, the island’s bare branches might appear lifeless – but if you look closer, you’ll find them covered in buds just waiting to burst.
You might make that same conclusion looking at the site of the future Bainbridge Island Museum of Art.
Its gray foundation mirrors winter’s bleak skies, but like the tulips and daffodils, a lot is going on below the surface. Literally.
The museum, aiming for environmentally friendly LEED gold
designation, took a detour to incorporate geothermal heating, digging 14
underground wells that will draw heat from the earth. That’s in
addition to plans for solar panels on the roof; use of recycled
materials, including insulation made from old denim; a vegetated roof
garden and a “living” wall. The building, designed by Bainbridge
resident and architect Matthew Coates with input from the community,
would be the first museum in Washington state and one of only a handful
in the country to earn that designation.
“It’s not easy for museums to qualify because they have a high energy need – to keep the temperature and humidity constant for the art, along with high lighting requirements,” Coates said.
And while Coates contemplates possible gold status,
BIMA’s Executive Director Greg Robinson is pretty excited about the basement.
“It’s not a space that a lot of people think about,” he said. “It’s not the sexiest part.”
It’s important to Robinson because it contains the museum’s archival space for art storage, a loading dock, offices and the mechanical rooms. In other words, it’s the guts of the museum, and essential to behind-the-scenes magic. Attention was paid to meet the highest museum standards to be eligible to host exhibits from other museums in the region.
Above ground, Phase I includes the 95-seat auditorium which has already been used for plays, documentary screenings and civic events, and classroom space which hosted numerous KiDiMu summer camps last year, as well as an ongoing Life Drawing class on Tuesdays.
Learning curve
The building’s curve will lead visitors toward the entrance, and the generous use of glass allows people to see into the museum.
“We wanted it to be accessible, approachable, inviting,” Coates said. “Not just a box with cool stuff in it.”
“Sherry Grover taught me about public spaces,” said Cynthia Sears, the museum’s initiator. “People want to know they’re not going to be trapped; they want to know how something works, that they can move at their own pace and won’t get stuck with someone lecturing them.”
Once inside the lobby and reception area, an adjacent orientation gallery will enable docents and teachers to orient small groups and relay “museum manners” before setting off on an aesthetic adventure. That area spills out into the permanent collection gallery and an adjacent children’s and youth-focused space that might house art by kids – or art that is of interest to them.
Around the corner is a small gift shop that will carry touchstones, not trinkets.
From there, the Grand Hall leads to a dramatic staircase that ascends along the building’s curved wall of windows.
The top floor will house revolving exhibits in the main gallery and in the intimate spaces of the Sherry Grover Room and the Beacon Gallery, named for its visibility to those traveling by ferry.
A 300-square-foot roof terrace and garden overlooking the courtyard has been named in honor of Island Treasures and early museum supporters George Little and David Lewis.
An elevator (or stairs) will take visitors to the small cafe or back to the lobby.
The overall size is ample but not intimidating and natural light, greenery and natural materials will add warmth to the space as well.
A beacon
From the beginning, the project has been charmed, not only in landing such a fortuitous location, but in drawing a team of talented, gracious people.
Board member and engineer Ralph Spillenger, formerly in charge of NASA facilities, has been instrumental in shaving $1 million off building costs, said Sears. “He checks everything. And he’s one of the nicest human beings I’ve ever met.”
Coates is so local people forget he’s a nationally acclaimed architect – whose specialty happens to be environmentally progressive buildings.
“It’s been a huge honor to be involved in this project,” he said (repeatedly).
Even one of the building’s design elements metaphorically reflects the magnetic draw the project has had, and will have into the future. When lit, a two-story glass structure facing the corner will act as a beacon, visible from the water and to those pulling in from the ferry.
To learn more, or to get involved, visit www.bainbridgeartmuseum.org.
Contact Bainbridge Island Review Staff writer Connie Mears at cmears@bainbridgereview.com or 206-842-6613.
Bainbridge Island Review Staff writer
February 24, 2012 · 2:23 PM
As winter comes to an end, the island’s bare branches might appear lifeless – but if you look closer, you’ll find them covered in buds just waiting to burst.
You might make that same conclusion looking at the site of the future Bainbridge Island Museum of Art.
Its gray foundation mirrors winter’s bleak skies, but like the tulips and daffodils, a lot is going on below the surface. Literally.
“It’s not easy for museums to qualify because they have a high energy need – to keep the temperature and humidity constant for the art, along with high lighting requirements,” Coates said.
And while Coates contemplates possible gold status,
BIMA’s Executive Director Greg Robinson is pretty excited about the basement.
“It’s not a space that a lot of people think about,” he said. “It’s not the sexiest part.”
It’s important to Robinson because it contains the museum’s archival space for art storage, a loading dock, offices and the mechanical rooms. In other words, it’s the guts of the museum, and essential to behind-the-scenes magic. Attention was paid to meet the highest museum standards to be eligible to host exhibits from other museums in the region.
Above ground, Phase I includes the 95-seat auditorium which has already been used for plays, documentary screenings and civic events, and classroom space which hosted numerous KiDiMu summer camps last year, as well as an ongoing Life Drawing class on Tuesdays.
Learning curve
The building’s curve will lead visitors toward the entrance, and the generous use of glass allows people to see into the museum.
“We wanted it to be accessible, approachable, inviting,” Coates said. “Not just a box with cool stuff in it.”
“Sherry Grover taught me about public spaces,” said Cynthia Sears, the museum’s initiator. “People want to know they’re not going to be trapped; they want to know how something works, that they can move at their own pace and won’t get stuck with someone lecturing them.”
Once inside the lobby and reception area, an adjacent orientation gallery will enable docents and teachers to orient small groups and relay “museum manners” before setting off on an aesthetic adventure. That area spills out into the permanent collection gallery and an adjacent children’s and youth-focused space that might house art by kids – or art that is of interest to them.
Around the corner is a small gift shop that will carry touchstones, not trinkets.
From there, the Grand Hall leads to a dramatic staircase that ascends along the building’s curved wall of windows.
The top floor will house revolving exhibits in the main gallery and in the intimate spaces of the Sherry Grover Room and the Beacon Gallery, named for its visibility to those traveling by ferry.
A 300-square-foot roof terrace and garden overlooking the courtyard has been named in honor of Island Treasures and early museum supporters George Little and David Lewis.
An elevator (or stairs) will take visitors to the small cafe or back to the lobby.
The overall size is ample but not intimidating and natural light, greenery and natural materials will add warmth to the space as well.
A beacon
From the beginning, the project has been charmed, not only in landing such a fortuitous location, but in drawing a team of talented, gracious people.
Board member and engineer Ralph Spillenger, formerly in charge of NASA facilities, has been instrumental in shaving $1 million off building costs, said Sears. “He checks everything. And he’s one of the nicest human beings I’ve ever met.”
Coates is so local people forget he’s a nationally acclaimed architect – whose specialty happens to be environmentally progressive buildings.
“It’s been a huge honor to be involved in this project,” he said (repeatedly).
Even one of the building’s design elements metaphorically reflects the magnetic draw the project has had, and will have into the future. When lit, a two-story glass structure facing the corner will act as a beacon, visible from the water and to those pulling in from the ferry.
To learn more, or to get involved, visit www.bainbridgeartmuseum.org.
Contact Bainbridge Island Review Staff writer Connie Mears at cmears@bainbridgereview.com or 206-842-6613.
Friday, February 3, 2012
"The Lorax" Trees for Global Benefits Fundraiser - March 3rd!
SAVE THE DATE - BUY YOUR TICKETS NOW!
The Lorax is coming to
Bainbridge Island!
Bainbridge Island!
Join your community for a private showing of Dr Seuss'
"The Lorax" on opening weekend to raise funds to support EcoTrust - Uganda's Trees for Global Benefits initiative.
"The Lorax" on opening weekend to raise funds to support EcoTrust - Uganda's Trees for Global Benefits initiative.
Your ticket will grant you
access to a pre-movie reception where there will be refreshments and
kid-friendly activities, followed by a private showing of Dr Seuss' "The
Lorax" movie. All proceeds from ticket sales will support EcoTrust -
Uganda's TREES FOR GLOBAL BENEFITS initiative, assisting small farmers
in Uganda to plant and maintain trees, a program that helps to offset
global carbon impacts while improving economic opportunity.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
DJC: Kitsap County gets its first LEED gold office
Daily Journal of Commerce
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
A development firm named
Asani teamed up with PHC Construction and Coates Design Architects to turn a
neighborhood eyesore into an energy efficient building.
All three companies now
have their offices in the Granero Office Building on Bainbridge Island. Asani said the project recently became Kitsap
County’s first LEED gold building.
The structure was a
municipal shed built in the 1950s and used for truck maintenance. Today, it is an energy efficient,
light-filled office space. The project
was completed in 2009.
Marty Sievertson, owner
and president of PHC Construction, said he was delighted to participate in the
project and is happy with the results.
“Our people really enjoy the open airy feel and collaborative work
environment that was created here.”
More than half of the
original structure was reused. The new
building has exterior shades to reduce light pollution, extremely low-water
fixtures including waterless urinals and dual-flush toilets. The landscaping requires no irrigation. Interior lights are on timers or occupancy
sensors and 75 percent of the building is daylit. FSC wood was used for the majority of the
framing and all composite wood is free or urea formaldehyde.
The building is near the
Bainbridge Island ferry terminal at 710 John Nelson Lane N.E. Nearby bus routes offer alternative commuting
options.
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