The Century Project at the Space Needle

Seattle, Washington

The Century Project at the Space Needle

Seattle, Washington

Design Principal

Alan Maskin

Led by Design Principal Alan Maskin, the Century Project is a renovation of the 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.

On the Observation Level, new seamless floor-to-ceiling glass walls, structural glass barriers, and integral glass benches allow visitors to lean into the city below them. Inside, the new Oculus Stair connects all three top levels with a glass-floored oculus at its base. At the 500-foot level, The Loupe is now the world’s first and only revolving glass floor.

The new design allows visitors to observe the city of Seattle below – as it was always intended to do – and to see the engineering ingenuity of the original structure in new ways. Necessary mechanical, building envelope and structural updates, including seismic retrofitting and accessibility improvements, help preserve the Space Needle’s legacy for the next 50 years of visitors. The project is certified LEED® Gold for Commercial Interiors.

The new design allows visitors to witness the constantly changing city of Seattle below them – as the Space Needle was always intended to do – and see the engineering brilliance of the structure in new ways. Alan Maskin

Team

Design Principal

Alan Maskin
Project Architect

Blair Payson
Architectural Staff

Marlene Chen
Crystal Coleman
Alex Fritz
Hayden Robinson
Nathan Boyd
Interiors

Photographer: Eirik Johnson

Photo: The Space Needle

Awards

2020

AIA Northwest and Pacific Region Design Awards, Merit Award

Engineering News-Record Northwest, Renovation/Restoration Best Project

2019

Seattle 2030 District Vision Awards, Leadership Award

2018

AIA Seattle Honor Awards, Honorable Mention

Publications

2019

“2018 Building of the Year.” Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, 9 Feb. 2019. Web.

Binkley, Clayton and Kristen Strobel. “The Century Project: Bringing Seattle’s Space Needle into the future.” Civil + Structural Engineer, Jan. 2019, 32-34. Print.

Binkley, Clayton and Kristen Strobel. “The Century Project: Bringing Seattle’s Space Needle into the future.” Civil + Structural Engineer, 2 Jan. 2019. Online.

Boorstin, Sharon. “Float High Above a Shiny Boomtown.” Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2019, L3. Print.

Boorstin, Sharon. “Float over the city on a weekend escape to Seattle.” Los Angeles Times Online, 17 Jan. 2019. Web.

Fonk, Izabel. “The Rotating Glass Space Needle by Olson Kundig.” Objekt International, 22 Nov. 2019. Web.

Itzkowitz, Laura. “February Will See Art and Architecture Fans Flocking to These 5 Places.” Architectural Digest, 7 Jan. 2019. Web.

Pacheco, Antonio. “Extreme architecture: The great lengths (and heights) of high design.” The Architect’s Newspaper, 18 Feb. 2019. Web.

Pacheco, Antonio. “Olson Kundig’s Seattle Space Needle restoration shines in new photos.” Archinect, 15 Oct. 2019. Web.

Petrunia, Paul. “Olson Kundig’s Alan Maskin on Icons and Architecture for Children.” Archinect, 30 Apr. 2019. Web.

Shim, Bryan. “Olson Kundig redesigns Seattle’s Space Needle with all glass interiors.” Designboom, 18 Oct. 2019. Web.

“Space Needle Renovation / Olson Kundig.” ArchDaily, 16 Oct. 2019. Web.

“The World’s Most Innovative Companies.” Fast Company, Mar.-Apr. 2019, 40. Print.

“X-Treme Construction.” The Architect’s Newspaper, March 2019, 14-15. Print.

2018

Baskas, Harriet. “Seattle Space Needle Makeover Included Selfie-Friendly Glass Benches.” USA Today, 24 May 2018. Web.

Bennes, Crystal. “A Point Worth Making.” ICON, May 2018, 124-135. Print.

Block, Annie. “Olson Kundig Sharpens Seattle’s Space Needle.” Interior Design, 23 Oct. 2018. Web.

“Case Study: Seattle Space Needle’s Renovated Observation Decks Achieve High Thermal Performance With Technoform Spacers.” Publicnow. 3 De. 2018. Web.

Ciummo, Brenna. “Emerald City: An Inside Look At Seattle’s Revamped Space Needle.” Clipper Vacations Magazine, 12 Sept. 2018. Web.

Elliott, Gwendolyn. “Glass Castle: Inside the Epic Space Needle Remodel.” Seattle Magazine, 25 May 2018. Web.

Elliott, Gwendolyn. “Glass Castle.” Seattle Magazine, June 2018, 23, 26. Print.

Enlow, Clair. “Hilarious overabundance of good work greets AIA awards jury; 13 projects win.” Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce, 7 Nov. 2018, 1, 3, 8. Print.

Fazzare, Elizabeth. “The Seattle Space Needle’s Renovation by Olson Kundig Is Unveiled.” Architectural Digest, 8 Oct. 2018. Web.

Gallaher, Rachel. “21st-Century Token.” Gray Magazine, Dec. 2018/Jan. 2019, 46-51. Print.

Gallaher, Rachel. “Destination: Seattle.” Surface, 13 April 2018. Web.

Gallaher, Rachel. “Seattle.” Surface, Mar./April 2018, 84-93. Print.

Gragg, Randy. “A Space Needle Odyssey.” Architectural Record, Sept. 2018, 46-48, 55. Print.

Hansen, Kristine. “Seattle’s Iconic Space Needle Prepares to Unveil a $100 Million Renovation.” Architectural Digest, 16 May 2018. Web.

“Inside Seattle’s Space Needle After Its $100 Million Makeover.” CBS News Online, 24 May 2018. Web.

Keane, Katharine. “Reimagined Space Needle Debuts Revolving Glass Floor by Olson Kundig.” ARCHITECT, 7 Aug. 2018. Web.

Lee, Jessica. “It’s A Wrap!: Crews Reveal Space Needle’s New-and-Improved Observation Deck.” The Seattle Times, 17 May 2018. Web.

Loos, Ted. “Facts & Stat: Space Needle.” The Wall Street Journal Magazine, May 2018, 36. Print.

Loos, Ted. “What’s News: May 2018.” The Wall Street Journal, 23 Apr. 2018. Web.

Pacheco, Antonio. “Olson Kundig’s Space Needle renovations yield pristine 360-degree views 500 feet up.” The Architect’s Newspaper, 5 Nov. 2018. Web.