Transpo policy forum Sept. 4

The public policy board of the American Institute of Architect's Seattle chapter will explore what Seattle transportation projects the chapter should try to shape at a free forum from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Sept. 4 at 1010 Western Ave.

The discussion will focus on AIA's policy agenda for bikes, pedestrians, cars and transit, and whether the chapter should focus on equity, environmental impacts, utility, health or design excellence as it looks to influence transportation.

R.S.V.P. at https://tinyurl.com/y9peghke/.

SMPS kick-off party Sept. 13

The Seattle chapter of the Society for Marketing Professional Services will hold its 2018-2019 Kick-Off Party from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Sept. 13 at OpenSquare, 5601 Sixth Ave. S., Suite 470, in Seattle.

The event will include the annual report, the new board of directors, and information on volunteer and committee opportunities as well as other ways to support the chapter.

Tickets are $40 for members, with or without a guest, and $50 for non-members. Register at https://smpsseattle.org/meetinginfo.php/.

Sound Transit oversight panel

Sound Transit is seeking a volunteer from north King County for the Citizen Oversight Panel, which monitors the agency and its commitments to build and operate bus, light rail and commuter rail systems.

The panel acts as independent oversight by digging into agency details, asking questions and reporting its findings to the Sound Transit Board of Directors.

To be eligible, you must be a registered voter within the Sound Transit District and live and/or work in north King County.

Apply at https://tinyurl.com/ybcwrfse/.

Tour UW campus Sept. 29 with SAF

Seattle Architecture Foundation will offer a University of Washington campus tour from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sept. 29.

The UW's 16th president, Henry Suzzallo, called on the state to create a “university of a thousand years,” and this two-hour tour will look at the first 150 years.

Gothic, Renaissance, Beaux Arts and contemporary buildings will be featured, as well as quads and gardens.

Cost is $18, or $12 for SAF members. Buy tickets at http://tiny.cc/8ua8sy/.

Meet at the War Memorial flagpole on Memorial Way Northeast, between Parrington and Kane halls.

Design Matters event in November

The 2018 Design Matters Conference is Nov. 14-17 at the Center for Architecture & Design, Central Library and other venues in downtown Seattle.

The annual meeting brings together designers, journalists and civic leaders to talk with not-for-profit professionals and volunteers about cultural programs that will spur public interest in architecture, urbanism and culture.

The 2018 key themes are affordable housing, climate change and inclusive growth.

The program is presented by the Association of Architecture Organizations, with local hosts AIA Seattle, Design in Public and the Seattle Architecture Foundation. AAO is a member-based global network that connects organizations to promote architecture and design.

Cost is $80 to $290. Register at https://tinyurl.com/ybamh599/.

Design West opens office in Spokane

Design West Architects said it has opened an office in downtown Spokane in the Empire State Building at 905 W. Riverside Ave., Suite 605, to serve clients in the area.

This the fifth location for 40-person the firm, which was founded in Idaho in 1983. It also has offices in Pullman and Kennewick; Meridian, Idaho; and Ontario, Oregon.

The firm specializes in educational, commercial and multi-family projects.

New primer on energy evolution

A new publication offers buildings professionals a practical look at the future of the energy sector and the role of buildings.

“Building Our New Energy Future” aims to prepare professionals for the challenges and opportunities of designing efficient and grid-responsive buildings within the changing energy sector, according to a press release from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.

The primer was developed for ASHRAE, in collaboration with the American Institute of Architects, the National Institute of Building Sciences, and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It explores distributed energy, electric vehicles, the Internet of Things, smart grids, the future of utilities, and high-performance building design. Electronic versions can be downloaded at https://tinyurl.com/ybvy9m6r/.

AIA happy hour on urban design

AIA Seattle's Urban Design Forum will hold a happy hour event from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Aug. 22 to brainstorm about urban design in the region.

The free event will be at Old Stove Brewing, 1901 Western Ave. in Seattle.

Registration is not necessary.

SAF skyline tour set for Sept. 9

Seattle Architecture Foundation will offer a tour of buildings that define Seattle's skyline — from the Post-Modernism of the 1980s to 21st-century Contemporary — at 1 p.m. Sept. 9.

Buildings on the two-hour tour include Smith Tower, Alaska Building, Arctic Club, Hoge Building, Safeco Plaza and Columbia Tower. Meet at Smith Tower, 506 Second Ave.

Cost is $18, or $12 for members. Register at http://tiny.cc/ukynsy/.

Happy 120th for PSF Mechanical

Photo by Sky-Pix Aerial Photography [enlarge]

PSF was the design-build mechanical contractor for 400 Dexter, a life sciences building in Seattle.

PSF Mechanical, a Tukwila-based mechanical design-build contractor, is celebrating 120 years in business.

Founded in 1898 by David W. Bowen as Puget Sound Sheet Metal Works, the firm said it grew during the Klondike Gold Rush by fabricating and selling stoves and gold pans to prospectors headed to Alaska.

It now has 350 employees and serves clients involved in online retail, high-end retail, mixed-use residential high-rises, life sciences and high-tech. Projects have been completed recently for Seattle Genetics, Gilead Sciences, Juno Therapeutics, MultiCare and CHI Franciscan Health.

PSF's residential high-rises include 970 Denny, 2116 4th Avenue and Premiere on Pine.

Its headquarters is at 11621 E. Marginal Way S., Suite A.

Blueline buys The LA Studio

Kirkland-based Blueline said it bought The LA Studio, a landscape architecture, land planning and land entitlement firm in Tukwila, to expand its landscape architecture business.

Terms of the deal were not released.

Blueline is a civil engineering, land use planning and landscape architecture firm that was founded in 2003. It works on commercial, multifamily, residential subdivisions and public works projects.

The LA Studio was founded in 2011. It will operate as The LA Studio at Blueline at 15200 52nd Ave. S., Suite 210, in Tukwila, working on housing, hospitality, mixed-use development, and community and master planning. The staff will be joined by other employees of Blueline to offer a fuller range of services and expand its geographic reach.

All five employees of The LA Studio are now with Blueline, bringing the staff total to 47.

Aug. 15 is AIA's Policy Pub Night

AIA Seattle will hold it 2nd annual Policy Pub Night from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Aug. 15 to consider top priorities for Seattle's public realm.

The free event is put on by the chapter's public policy board, and hosted by DLR Group at 51 University St. in Seattle. It will explore how to leverage the public realm to build community, provide urban greenspace, add art/aesthetics, provide connections, achieve equity, inspire democracy and promote tourism.

Drinks and appetizers will be provided. R.S.V.P. at https://tinyurl.com/ycst5c2r/.

More homeowners adding rental units

More homeowners are seeking to add rental units and finished basements to their properties, according to the latest American Institute of Architects Home Design Trends survey.

“Data from the first quarter shows that homeowners are increasingly looking to architects to design additional living quarters for their homes,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker in a press release. “It could be due to kids returning home to live with their parents to save money or homeowners taking advantage of a growing rental market due to the lack of affordable housing in major markets throughout the country.”

Sixty-three percent of architecture firms reported clients interested in adding rental units and accessory dwellings, up from 51 percent reporting such an interest in 2017's first quarter;

Almost 40 percent reported increasing interest in finished basements or attics, up from 32 percent at the same time last year.

Thirty-four percent said clients are interested in building micro-housing units on their properties, compared with 31 percent in the first quarter of 2017.

AIA/AGC golf tourney Aug. 24

On Aug. 24, the Northwest Washington Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the Associated General Contractors Northern District will hold the 2018 Scholarship Golf Tournament.

It is from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Avalon Golf Links, 19345 Kelleher Road in Burlington.

Register at https://tinyurl.com/ycozbzfh/. Ticket includes lunch, a bucket of range balls, 18 holes of golf, dinner and awards program, and raffle prizes.

The scholarship helps students in architecture, engineering and construction.

Tour SLU with SAF on Sept. 8

Seattle Architecture Foundation will offer a tour of South Lake Union on Sept. 8 from 10 a.m. to noon.

The tour will explore the key ingredients of urban revitalization, and look at the design and architectural strategies of this fast-growing and vibrant neighborhood. Learn about growth in the neighborhood, from Amazon's historic lease agreement to today's expansion of housing and hotels.

The tour includes Amazon's SLU campus, South Lake Union Park, UW Medicine and the emerging campuses for Google and Facebook, now under construction. The tour starts at Triangle Park across from Whole Foods.

Cost is $18, or $12 for members. Buy tickets at https://tinyurl.com/y897ukr6/.

Arcade event on design and activism

Arcade magazine will hold a salon on design and citizen activism with former Seattle Councilmember Nick Licata and University of Washington professor Karen Cheng, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Aug. 8 at Capitol Cider at 818 E Pike St.

Licata was on the council for 18 years and is an author and activist. In 2012, the Nation named him as Progressive Municipal Official of the Year; and The Seattle Weekly named him Best Local Politician twice.

Cheng teaches information design and data visualization, with an emphasis on communicating political and social issues, and contributes to Arcade's Info Feed column.

The program will explore how design can make citizen activism more effective. It will look at protesting, advocating and volunteering.

Tickets are $15, or $8 for students. Buy them at https://tinyurl.com/yb967aau/.

bluedot group joins PACE Engineers

Kirkland-based Pace Engineers said it bought the land surveying firm bluedot group of Tigard, Oregon, in May to serve clients in Oregon and Southwest Washington, and expand markets for 3D laser scanning technology.

Terms of the deal were not released.

Bluedot was started in 2002, and now has a staff of seven surveyors. They will move to Pace's Lake Oswego office, and the surveying group will be led by Robert Lennox, bluedot's founder. That will give Pace 31 employees there.

Pace is a civil and structural engineering, planning, and land surveying firm with 110 employees, and an office also in Wenatchee.

‘Taste of Cement' film Aug. 16

The documentary “Taste of Cement,” about Syrian construction workers who are building a skyscraper in Beirut while their own houses at home are being shelled, will be shown at 7 p.m. Aug. 16 at Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave. in Seattle.

The film by Ziad Khaltoum looks at how the workers are not allowed to leave the site at night because the Lebanese government has imposed night-time curfews on refugees.

Tickets are $12, $9 for students or seniors, and $7 for members at https://tinyurl.com/y8e5s9a9/.

Happy hour for emerging leaders

SMPS Seattle and several local commercial real estate associations will hold a happy hour from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Aug. 9 on the rooftop deck of Sellen Construction at 227 Westlake Ave. N. in Seattle.

Young professionals from SMPS, CoreNet, CREW, DBIA, NAIOP, AGC and BOMA are expected to attend the Real Estate Emerging Leaders networking event.

Tickets are $45 at https://tinyurl.com/y8fdza7c/. Proceeds go to Urban ArtWorks, which provides opportunities for underserved youth and contemporary artists to create public works of art.

Tour Queen Anne with SAF Aug. 11

Seattle Architecture Foundation is offering a tour of Queen Anne titled “Evolution of an Urban Neighborhood” at 10 a.m. Aug. 11.

The two-hour tour includes landmark houses, renovated buildings, viewpoints and hidden estates.

Cost is $18, or $12 for members, at http://tiny.cc/1i0csy/. Meet at West Queen Anne Elementary School, which is now condos, at 1401 Fifth Ave. W.