Bellevue, Washington

The essence of the Transportation Maintenance Facility is the bringing together of three important groups of people - The Administrators, The Drivers, The Mechanics - to serve the students of the District.

Ultimately the purpose of this building is to create more than an office, a training center, and a garage. It is to create a place where people come to work every day to serve the students by focusing on being:

SAFE        CARING        DEPENDABLE

Owner/ Client: Bellevue School District

Photographer: Ben Benschnider

Award/ Certification: LEED GOLD

Kent, Washington

Mill Creek Middle School is located on a 10+ acre site in the city center of town. The existing school is bordered by major arterial streets as well as Mill Creek. The area around the school was defined by a variety of small business and light industrial properties, lacking a consistent urban character.

Phase I consisted of the modernization of 65,000 square feet and an addition to the existing school. Included in this phase was the complete remodel of two major buildings, a new library addition, multi-use learning center, science, and mathematics classrooms, each with state of the art technology.

Phase II included remodeling and expanding the existing cafeteria as well as replacing the kitchen and music rooms. The music rooms were designed for integrated sound recording equipment.

Phase III addressed the gymnasium and locker rooms. The existing gym floors were raised to avoid seasonal flooding. The locker rooms were replaced with brand new facilities, and the gymnasiums, weight room, and locker rooms were unified with a central galleria.

The campus needed identity, organization, and most importantly, a school the students would be proud of. The removal of the central existing building provided the campus with a new central courtyard which acts as the organizing component of the campus. The courtyard is connected to the urban corner to create a community plaza which transforms the entire school entrance and image.

Also critical to the program was the redefinition of the culture of the school to become a place which places a higher value on knowledge. Leading the way in this initiative was the integration of the Kent Technology Academy that brings students from around the district to Mill Creek. The new design of the school also integrated small learning communities by grouping classrooms in a manner that encourages and provides collaborative learning and project development.

Seattle, Washington

Bambuza is a Vietnamese restaurant located in the Seattle Convention Center Building. The project called for the comprehensive redesign and construction of the entire tenant space in the building.

The restaurant includes a commercial kitchen and food preparation area as well as dining room.

The interior was envisioned as a space that was artistically engaging to the eyes and invoked the intense color, classic forms, and natural materials native to Vietnam with an added contemporary twist.

Seattle, Washington

Chief Sealth High School is in a diverse community that emphasizes international education in a dynamic, multi-cultural environment. The school is a tribute to Chief Sealth, the leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish Native American tribes.

The modernization of the existing Chief Sealth High School consisted of transforming the existing student center, math academy, science lab, and 9th grade academy. More importantly, a fresh, new school image was desired for the campus.

The new, iconic entrance was inspired by Native American culture and served to tie the campus together.

Woodinville, Washington

The Church is located on a hillside within an evergreen forest and the design was inspired by the spirit of the Church’s membership. The central sanctuary skylight acts as a beacon within the wooded site, a concept inspired by the Unitarian Chalice, the most prominent symbol of the Church.

The program for the new church building consisted of the primary sanctuary and narthex spaces supported by offices, conference, classroom, kitchen, and service spaces.

Seattle, Washington

The design for Coal Creek Terrace was created in a partnership with Habitat for Humanity. 

Kent, Washington

The site is unique because the addition is surrounded by existing buildings. The topography is relatively flat, but the elementary school needed a number of new elements inserted around the existing structures. The existing power, data, and fire alarm services crossing the courtyard needed to be preserved and limited street improvements were needed.

The primary task was to add a cafeteria to the existing site. The central paved courtyard was utilized to create a cafeteria and multi-purpose room. The space is surrounded by four buildings including the administration, gymnasium, and two classroom wings. This new multi-purpose room and conference room added 6,000 square feet.

The existing covered walkways supported the power, data, and fire alarm cabling which needed to remain. Where the new building attaches to the gymnasium, the cabling was concealed in a supported ceiling space. The addition serves as a central gathering point for the entire school. It can be broken into smaller flexible spaces, or transformed into a performance hall. 

Seattle, Washington

The new Food Lifeline Facility was envisioned on a 10.6 acre site in south Seattle between West Marginal Way, Highland Park Way, and 2nd Ave South, near the Duwamish River. The site offers optimal vehicular and public transportation access with a direct connection to the First Avenue Bridge and SR 509/Hwy 99. It also has ideal orientation for views to Mount Rainier, Downtown Seattle, and solar access for daylighting and solar power generation.

Food Lifeline had two main facilities in Shoreline and South Seattle. The Shoreline facility had an area of 27,382 square feet and the South Seattle facility contained 27,446 square feet. The primary goal of the vision study was to consolidate these two facilities under the same roof with a total gross area of 150,000 square feet.

The feasibility vision, designed for implementation in 2015, was a building that empowers the organization to more efficiently carry out its mission to support regional and local communities. The new facility will utilize the concepts of transparency, accessibility, and visibility to reinforce the organization’s values and better fulfill its mission of ending hunger in Western Washington. This will be done by not only providing meals to the hungry, but also by providing a healthy, safe, and sustainable workplace.

Kent, Washington

The site is unique because the addition is surrounded by existing buildings. The topography is relatively flat, but the elementary school needed a number of new elements inserted around the existing structures. The existing power, data, and fire alarm services crossing the courtyard needed to be preserved and limited street improvements were needed.

The primary task was to add a cafeteria to the existing site. The central paved courtyard was utilized to create a cafeteria and multi-purpose room. The space is surrounded by four buildings including the administration, gymnasium, and two classroom wings. This new multi-purpose room and conference room added 6,000 square feet.

The existing covered walkways supported the power, data, and fire alarm cabling which needed to remain. Where the new building attaches to the gymnasium, the cabling was concealed in a supported ceiling space. The addition serves as a central gathering point for the entire school. It can be broken into smaller flexible spaces, or transformed into a performance hall. 

Freeland, Washington

The Freeland Office Building is comprised of approximately 12,000 square feet, evenly divided into two levels with retail space below and office above. Our goal in the design of this building was to create an adaptive and flexible space that is able to grow and conform to the needs of this small community as well as helping to establish a character that will act as a precedent to future development.

In addition to the consideration of material life-cycle analysis this building takes a sustainable approach for mechanical, electrical, and civil engineering systems. On-site septic as well as photo-voltaic power systems and an exceptionally efficient elevator system helps to minimize the impact of the building on the surrounding infrastructure. The energy efficient elevator saves 50% compared to a conventional system. The site also provides bike storage and drainable pavers instead of impervious asphalt.

Orcas Island, Washington

The Orcas Island schools are located near the city of Eastsound on the north side of Orcas Island. The site sits on an elevated, relatively flat parcel of land that at the south border slopes steeply all the way to the water. It is surrounded by trees at the parcel boundaries. The slight slope from the soccer fields to the south of the site has created a variety of finish floor elevations for the various schools and programs.

SMA was brought in to conduct a study and survey for the elementary, middle, and high schools. After finding many deficiencies in the campus buildings the District hired SMA to complete educational specifications for the entire K-12 campus.

We met with school personnel and conducted site visits multiple times during the educational specification process to determine the needs, wants, and goals for the schools. We helped narrow down visions for the campus by presenting design ideas and budget numbers for each possible solution. This allowed us by the end of the process to present three possible scenarios based on bond size with a focus on a main solution that we recommended to meet the needs of the district.

The main solution involved the design of the three different schools by creating individual courtyards for the elementary, middle, and high schools. Each corresponding outdoor space is intended to have its own character which is specific to the nature of the ages and grades of the students in the respective school.

Bothell, Washington

Pop Keeney Stadium is the result of several years of hard work between the Northshore School District and the City of Bothell. The master plan that we produced was based on the needs and goals that the school district has for the stadium. The project master plan was originally inspired by the Roman Colosseum and the City of Bothell comprehensive master plan.

This project consists of providing a 1500 seat covered visitor grandstand, two locker room buildings, a concession stand building and a new entrance at the Northeast of the lot. In addition, the site includes a 500 stall parking lot along the North and East side of the property where a future aquatic center and parking garage may be built.

Oak Harbor, Washington

The end goal of a successful monument is to be memorable, timeless, meaningful, and inspirational. It must capture the essence of the memories it represents. Such a memorial must physically rest on a base anchored to the ground to signify permanence and necessity, and should reach to the sky to connect with our environment and free spirit.

The approach to the memorial is equally as important as the memorial itself. The placement should be prominent and dignified, as well as celebrate in a humble manner its character and meaning. The memorial, in the outdoor gathering area of the new Wildcat Memorial Stadium, establishes prominence and will commemorate the sacrifices of the men and women who served this country.

The new memorial embraces the essence and spirit of service, giving each branch of the military its place in time and space. The memorial uses the pentagon as the basic form with its base increasing in size as it reaches the top to form a central obelisk aligned with the main entrance to the stadium. Each side of the pentagon has an armed forces emblem. The pentagon holds a decommissioned navy ship’s bell symbolizing the memories and sacrifices the veterans of Oak Harbor made for their country. The bell is celebrated with lights reaching up from the ground on each of the five sides combining into one powerful light firing up into the sky from the top of the monument. The monument itself is constructed of a lasting material.

Seattle, Washington

The house is located on a two acre wooded site overlooking the Guemes Channel to the south.

The family wanted a house that could accommodate four children and their families as well as Mrs. Terrana.

The 4,000 square foot house was organized around a central great hall facing the channel. All rooms were placed in relation to each other and each room has a view of the channel as well.

Whidbey Island, Washington

Olympic View Elementary was built in 1968. The school was in need of updates and repairs in several areas when SMA was contracted.

This modernization primarily focused on the comprehensive redesign of the kitchen, administrative office, library, and entrance. Inclusive to the renovation were mechanical and electrical system upgrades as well as new data, intercom, and fire alarm systems. The project also included re-roofing of the entire school with a single-ply membrane system and replacement of the gutters and downspouts.