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Photo: Hufton & Crow

The Century Project at the Space Needle Receives AIA National Architecture Honor Award

2022/02/15

Olson Kundig is excited to announce that The Century Project at the Space Needle (led by principal/owner Alan Maskin) has received a 2022 American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Architecture Honor Award. This program highlights the best in contemporary architecture, showcasing the ways these places and spaces improve the lives of their users and communities. In 2019, AIA incorporated the Framework for Design Excellence to further assess building performance and foster a holistic, technically rigorous review process.

The Century Project, a $100 million renovation of Seattle’s historic Space Needle, focused on enhancing the visitor experience for the next 50 years. Providing a new sense of transparency, the redesign hearkens back to the Space Needle’s original guiding principle: providing unparalleled views. The new design includes nearly 200% more glass, including the world’s first and only rotating glass floor, new glass barriers with integral glass benches on the observation deck, a new steel and glass stairway and glass-floored oculus connecting all three floors, and revised interiors throughout the “top house” area of the Needle. The project is certified LEED® Gold for Commercial Interiors.

“We were thrilled to learn that our approach to re-use and reinvention at Seattle’s Space Needle received a 2022 National Architecture Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects,” shares Alan Maskin. “A construction project 500 feet in the air required fantastic collaborators and a brave client. Creating a space that imagines new ways to observe a growing city against the ancient Pacific Northwest geography introduced a new experience of the unstable edge of the Pacific Rim. Congratulations and gratitude to the entire project team!”

More information about The Century Project and the other 2022 Architecture award recipients is available via Architect Magazine.

The Century Project at the Space Needle, Seattle, Washington, USA

Design Principal: Alan Maskin
Project Architect: Blair Payson, AIA, LEED® AP
Architectural Staff: Marlene Chen, AIA, LEED® AP, Crystal Coleman, LEED® AP, Alex Fritz, Julia Khorsand, Hayden Robinson and Nathan Boyd
Interior Design: Naomi Mason, IIDA, LEED® AP
Interior Design Staff: Laina Navarro
Development Manager: Seneca Group
Owner’s Representative: Battle Management Consulting
General Contractor: Hoffman Construction
Structural Engineer and Mechanical, Electrical and Plumbing Engineer of Record: Arup
Seismic Improvements Structural Engineer: Magnusson Klemencic Associates
Mechanical and Plumbing Design Assist Subconsultant: Holaday-Parks, Inc.
Electrical Assist Subconsultant: Holmes
Glazing Consultant: Front, Inc.
Lighting Design: Niteo
Building Envelope Consultant: RDH
Restaurant and Café Furniture and Finishes Designer: Tihany Design
Restaurant, Café and Kitchen Architect of Record: McVey Oakley
Turntable Engineer: Fives Lund Engineering
Acoustical Engineer: BRC
Accessibility Consultant: Karen Braitmayer
Code Consultant: T.A. Kinsman Consulting
Fire Protection Consultant: Eric Tuazon
LEED Consultant: O’Brien360
Vertical Transportation: FS2, Inc.
ADA Stair Design and Fabrication: Sesame Access
Architectural Decorative Glass: Pulp Studio
AV Design-Build Integrator: Avidex Industries
Commissioning Agent: Engineering Economics
Crane: Omega Morgan
Elevator Design-Build Installer: Otis Elevator Company
Environmental: Pacific Rim
Façade Access Consultant: Greg Mayer
Fall Protection: Pro-Bel
Fire Protection: Smith Fire Systems
Flooring and Tile: Rubenstein
Food Service Equipment: Bargreen Ellingson
Glass Fabrication: Thiele Glass
Glass Installation Robot Design and Fabrication: Breedt Production Tooling & Design
Glass Installation: Herzog Glass
Historic Preservation: BOLA
IT/AV/Security Strategist: Novare
Land Use Attorney: McCullough Hill
Metal Panel Installation: McKinstry
Painting: Purcell Painting
Performance Testing: Intertek
Scaffolding Design and Installation: Safway Group
Security Design-Build Installer: Aronson Security Group
Security Programming: Concentric Advisors
Seismic Geotechnical Engineer: Hart Crowser
Specialty Contracting: Performance Contracting Group
Specifications Consultant: Cite/Specific
Steel Fabrication and Installation: Apex Steel
Testing and Inspections: Mayes Testing
Wind Consultant: RWDI