Q: Can any other information be provided with relation to the dimensions and construction of the existing pontoons? Do you have any photos of the interiors of the pontoons?

A: Unfortunately we are unable to provide any information that is not already public. However, as this is a design ideas competition, we are more interested in the creativity in the designs than in its feasability.

Q: Do you have any photos of the interiors of the pontoons?

A: No, but video footage of the interiors can be seen in the Travel Channel video link.

Q: Is this competiton open to any professions?  limited to a licensed architect or students?

A: The competition is open to both professionals and students of all of the design and art fields. You do not need to have a registered architect on the team. The goal is to reach as broad of an audience as possible, and receive a diverse array of entries.

Q: If participating as a student, could my entry be awarded with the “First Place” prize ($3,000) or could it only achieve the “Best Student Entry” Prize ($500)?

A: Student entries will be available to win all of the awards, however only a student entry may win the "Best Student Entry" award. Be sure and specify that you are a student and what school you are affiliated with in your registration email.

Q: May I email my work to you a day earllier(or days earllier)？

A: You may email your submittal to submit@rethinkreuse.org anytime after you register, but all submittals must be in by midnight, Pacific Standard Time, on August 15th. Entries will be kept confidential until the competition has ended.

Q: Is it possible to provide us with the Seattle city actual plans in .dwg, especially the downtown area?

A: Unfortunately we do not have a set of .dwgs of downtown Seattle. Also, please keep in mind that the parameters of the competition require that the pontoons be used in Lake Washington, Lake Union or the Puget Sound (ie, places where they can be floated to), which means they must remain in the water and should not be relocated to the land.

Q: Is there any graphic information on the way the pontoons are attached to each other and their anchorage system?

A: We do not have information on the connections of the existing plans, however connections for the design of the new bridge are available in pdf format on the downloads page.

Q:From the Google Sketchup model we have measured a standard pontoon to be 242' x 62' x 16', but the literature on the website would suggest these units are 360' x 60' x 14.9'. Which set of dimensions is correct, or is there is more than one size of pontoon?

A: The pontoons vary in size. Some are as long as 360', others are shorter. For the SketchUp file we averaged based on the length of the floating portion of the bridge and the fact that there are 33 pontoons (the size also had to do with making the replicating cavities fit, so they are a little bigger than the actual pontoons, but they're close). You may use either the SketchUp dimensions or the literature for your design purposes, but keep in mind that all 33 pontoons should fit into the 7,578 ft length of the floating portion give or take a little (ie. don't do 33 - 360 ft lengths). Our main concern is the idea behind the design.

NBBJ is a global architecture, planning and design firm with offices in the United Kingdom, North America, the Middle East and China. Our approach is based on the belief that design can support and enhance organizational performance. We customize our solutions based on each client’s enterprise, using an engaging process of discovery, design and delivery. NBBJ is a leader in architecture for civic, corporate, commercial, science & education, research, hospitality, retail and sports & entertainment. Other services offered include Change Management, Environmental Graphic Design, Landscape Architecture, Lighting, Retail, Consulting,Sustainability Consulting, Urban and Master Planning and Workplace Strategy.

MulvannyG2 Architecture is the No. 3 retail architect in the worlds and among the largest 50 architecture firms worldwide (BD World Architecture, 2012). We design retail, office, mixed-use, and hospitality facilities for global clients, including five of 2012's top 20 Fortune 500 retailers. Our mixed use developments in expanding and emerging markets, such as the Pacific Rim, have received prestigious design awards.

MulvannyG2 has 300 employees at offices in Bellevue, Wash.; Portland, Ore.; Irvine, Calif.; Washington, D.C.; and Shanghai, China.

KSI principal William Strouse has been practicing architecture since graduating from Washington State University in 1968. The firm, started in 1978 after teaching at WSU for two years, has focused on retail, office, educational, industrial, multi-family, and single family residential. Through the years KSI has been committed to providing their client with services that explore and develop each project’s potential. From initial meeting and programming through construction documents, construction administration and final turnover, KSI recognizes that each client’s requirements and project goals deserve decisions that provide the most thoughtful and comprehensive long-term solutions.

KSI clients include Genie Terex AWP, Seattle Music Theatre, Buchanan General, The Little School, Fischer Properties, Radford & Company, AT&T Wireless, Vong’s White Center, Salish Lodge, Boyer’s Children’s Clinic, Friends of Youth, City University, Bellevue Medical Imaging. KSI tenant improvement experience ranges from small to a $22 Million conversion of a B-52 hangar into a modern manufacturing facility for Genie.

Kiewit/General/Manson a Joint Venture is the contractor awarded the $586.5 million design-build SR520 Floating Bridge and Landings project for WSDOT, continuing a long history of these three companies working together, including significant endeavors such as the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge Skyway contract.  The three joint venture partners bring over 325 years of construction experience to the project, and have worked alongside WSDOT for the last 70 years to construct and preserve Washington’s floating bridges.

The new floating bridge will replace the existing SR 520 Bridge which opened in 1963, and is currently operating over its design capacity.  The new bridge is expected to be turned over to traffic by the end of 2014.

This design-build contract includes:

• Building 44 supplemental concrete pontoons and 58 anchors using casting facilities in Port of Tacoma and Kenmore.

• Towing the 33 pontoons built in Grays Harbor, under Kiewit-General’s SR 520 Pontoons contract, and assembling the floating bridge on Lake Washington.

• Constructing a six-lane superstructure on top of the assembled pontoons with wider shoulders, a transit/HOV lane in each direction, and a 14’ bicycle/pedestrian path. 

• Building a new maintenance facility and dock on the east shore of Lake Washington to service the bridge.

•  Constructing ~1/2 mile of new at grade roadway section.

•  Decommissioning the existing bridge through 2015.

The School of Design and Construction at Washington State University is comprised of professional accredited programs in Architecture, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture and Construction Management.  The school was formed in 2011 through the merger of the previous School of Architecture and Construction Management and the Departments of Interior Design and Landscape Architecture.

The goal of our school is to provide a collaborative educational experience that provides for the highest quality education and engages in innovative and collaborative research that advances the design and construction of the physical environment. The hallmark of our school is that students receive exceptional undergraduate and graduate education while also having opportunities to integrate their education with allied disciplines. With our alliances in Engineering, students in the school have the ability to interact with all disciplines required for the design and construction of the built environment.

Our Graduate programs also emphasize collaboration, as students in each discipline share required coursework and have the opportunity to integrate in teams for their graduate project. All students have access to elective courses in each discipline.

Students also have the opportunity to work with faculty on significant research related to our constructed environment. As an example, students may work with faculty in our Institute for Sustainable Design, as well as take advanced studios in our Integrated Design Experience (IdEX). Graduate students may also partner with professional design firms to create unique research program s that advances the body of knowledge in the professions. Our Integrated Education Symposiums also offer mechanisms for collaboration between students and professionals.

The School of Design and Construction is positioned to provide the next generation of professionals the education required to address the challenges of our built and natural environment. Please feel free to contact us with questions regarding our school and programs.

Sincerely,

Gregory Kessler, AIA, NCARB
Professor and Director

It's called upcycling and it's where boxes that once shipped auto parts become beautiful shades for pendant lights and worn bike tires become the bags their riders new carry.

Efikio curates products from designers with an eye toward craft, and connects them with consumers who appreciate the finer things. We also connect those same designers to large manufacturers where the excess materials originate.

In the end, companies reduce their waste, designers get inspired and you get access to goods with a very unique story.

BELFOR is the leading global restoration and repair company. We analyze and restore fire, water and storm damage of every kind and on any scale. We enable business and private customers to overcome the consequences of damage quickly, smoothly and cost-effectively. We invest every effort in minimizing business interruptions and getting things back to normal. We draw on more than 35 years of experience, use the latest technical equipment and employ highly qualified people. After all, our assignment is more than just a job: the survival of your assets is at stake.

Improving the quality of life for seniors through design.

Working for non-profit, faith-based providers of housing as well as for-profit developers and operators in senior housing, our design solutions respond to a broad variety of architectural styles, geographic requirements, and operational and management approaches.

The only think that is common between all our designs: putting clients' needs at the center of our solutions.

After graduating from Washington State University, Bob's achievements and distinctive design approach began during his four years with the Peace Corps in Afghanistan constructing schools. His work utilized indigenous materials and structures and was influenced by noted modernist architect Louis Kahn while traveling in Bangladesh and India. This work earned him an invitation from Marcel Breuer, in whose New York office Hull's modernist views were further shaped.

As a founding partner of The Miller Hull Partnership with David Miller, Bob has been the creative force behind the majority of the firm's higher education and sustainable projects. An award-winning design architect, Bob's design experience on a wide range of project types goes beyond meeting the program requirements: it is a search for ideal solutions. With over 30 years of practice, he has helped foster within his firm an emphasis on creative team design while providing strong inspirational conceptual leadership. Communication skills and ease in the public forum of architecture are recognizable talents that Bob has instilled into the firm practice. These attributes have resulted in design projects that reflect the input of the users in thoughtful and enriched design solutions. Through the leadership of Bob and David, Miller Hull received the National Firm Award from the American Institute of Architects in 2003.

Shannon Nichol is a founding partner of GGN. Her designs, including Millennium Park's Lurie Garden, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Campus, and Boston's North End Parks, are widely recognized for being deeply embedded in their neighborhoods and natural contexts. Shannon's work incorporates complex functions into simple frameworks and refined landforms.

Shannon's current projects include Phase II of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Campus, Rainier Vista at the University of Washington, and plans for Cleveland's historic Group Plan District and Civic Mall - Medical Mart and Convention Center.

Shannon is an honorary member of the American Institute of Architects (Seattle). Her work has received multiple Design Excellence and Honor Awards from ASLA and AIA. Shannon and her partners received the 2011 Cooper- Hewitt National Design Award for Landscape Architecture. Shannon lectures internationally, frequently juries for design awards, and serves on advisory committees for universities and non-profits.

Ellen Sollod is an environmental artist and designer. She has been practicing the art of making places public for over 15 years. As an artist working in the public realm, she conceptualizes urban spaces as places for people. Adopting a collaborative approach that draws together art with landscape architecture, she creates art for plazas, parks, educational facilities, transit and transportation, and urban infrastructure. Her work speaks to the identity of place and creates intimacy even when the scale is large.

With a M.A. in Urban Studies and a B.A. in art history, Ellen brings a broad perspective to her work. She is interested in creating a balance between broad concepts and the particular–through art that brings excitement to the urban environment while revealing little known facts or the hidden histories, creating layers of meaning. She has created works throughout the Pacific Northwest and California. Recent projects include the entry plaza to Bellingham's Arts District (in collaboration with Nakano Associates), Burien Town Square Park (in collaboration with GGLO), and the Olympia,WA Gateway Corridor. She has recently completed work for the Brightwater Wastewater Treatment Plant and is creating art for the Mercer Street Corridor in Seattle.

Mark Hinshaw is the Director of Urban Design for LMN Architects, a 100-person firm based in Seattle. For over 30 years he has been responsible for a wide range of projects in both large cities and small towns including downtown development, public spaces and pedestrian facilities, design-oriented codes and guidelines, and master plans for public facilities. He has served as President of the Washington Chapter of the American Planning Association and as President of the Seattle Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Mark Hinshaw has extensive experience in community planning and urban design. He combines his education and earlier experience as an architect to his later education and experience as a city planner to help advise communities on the connections between public policy, public investments, regulations and procedures. He has been influential in the development of urban centers throughout the Puget Sound metropolitan area such as Bellevue, Tacoma, Bremerton, Redmond, Issaquah, Bainbridge Island, Edmonds, Lynnwood, Auburn, Kent, and Mercer Island -- all of which have had transit as a key element. During the 1980's he served as Principal Urban Designer for the City of Bellevue and was chiefly responsible for putting in place codes, design guidelines, streetscape and strategic public projects and public spaces which have led to that city becoming a national model for transforming suburban agglomerations into mixed use urban centers. Since then he has worked with many other cities elsewhere in the country in which the linkage between land use and transportation was key. He has also authored three books on urban development.

Ev Ruffcorn has applied the art of architecture and community building, with patience and tenacity, to attain not only design excellence, but also the completion of numerous influential and award-winning buildings. The fundamental premise that unites all of Ev’s work is that his buildings represents the intrinsic values of the people who occupy them, the institutions they symbolize and the communities of which they become a part.

Ev has more than forty years of experience as a principal designer and before joining NBBJ as a Principal Designer, he was the founding partner of ruffcorn mott hinthorne stine and partner-in- charge of design at the Seattle office of the nationally commended firm Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership.  Although Ev has designed a wide variety of project types, he has focused the majority of his professional career in designing buildings for public and academic clients across the country.

Ev is a graduate of Washington State University and he currently serves as a Member of the Advisory Board for the WSU School of Design and Construction. His contributions to the profession include service on many AIA chapter and regional design awards juries and selection committees for public artists; a member of the American Institute of Architects Committee on Design and is a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects.  He has also been a visiting professor and critic in design at the University of Oregon, Oregon School of Design, Washington State University, and University of Washington; and past President of the Seattle Architectural Foundation.

Peter Steinbrueck, FAIA is an architect, design strategist, and founding principal of Steinbrueck Urban Strategies, LLC. His clients have included mission-driven organizations, institutions, and municipalities concerned with optimizing urban infrastructure, urban design excellence and master planning of campus facilities. As a former three-term Seattle city council member from 1997 to 2007, Steinbrueck led numerous legislative efforts in to advance cutting edge urban policies in land use and development, energy, waste, water resource, transportation, parks, affordable housing, and ending homelessness,. Steinbrueck has been a visiting instructor at the University of Washington’s College of the Built Environments, and is a frequent speaker, writer, and thought leader on an emerging Framework for Advancing Sustainable Cities in the U.S and globally. In 2010, Steinbrueck was a Harvard Loeb Fellow, where his research focused on urban environmental policy in the U.S. He is a Core Member of the Harvard Working Group for Sustainable Cities, serves on the U.S. Congress Livable Communities Advisory Board, and is a founding member of the AIA Center for Civic Leadership. A Seattle native, Peter is proud father to two teenage boys, Mason and Ben.