The Century Project for the Space Needle
Seattle, Washington
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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 targeting LEED® Gold for Commercial Interiors certification.
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
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Design Principal
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Project Architect
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Architectural Staff
Marlene Chen
Crystal Coleman
Alex Fritz
Julia Khorsand
Hayden Robinson
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Interiors
Photo: The Space Needle
Photo: The Space Needle
Photo: The Space Needle
Publications
2018
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.
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.
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.
“Inside Seattle’s Space Needle After Its $100 Million Makeover.” CBS News Online, 24 May 2018. Web.
Loos, Ted. “Facts & Stat: Space Needle.” The Wall Street Journal Magazine, May 2018, 36. Print.
Riddle, Eric. “The Space Needle: Remaking an Icon.” KING 5, 5 Oct. 2018. Web.
Scott, Alec. “Sky-high in Seattle.” Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2018, L6. Print.
“Seattle’s Space Needle Gets $100 Million-Plus Makeover.” MSN Money, 24 May 2018. Web.
“Seattle’s Space Needle Gets Upgraded.” CBS News Online, 28 May 2018. Web.
“Sharpening the needle.” Interior Design, Oct. 2018, 34. Print.
Shook, Lindsey. “The Emerald City.” California Home & Design, 1 Oct. 2018, 100, 102. Print.
“Space Needle.” The Jet Set, 18 Oct. 2018. Web.
“Top of the Glass.” The Architect’s Newspaper, Oct./Nov. 2018, 10. Print.
Waite, Andrew. “The Space Needle’s New Look.” Alaska Beyond Magazine, May 2018, S21. Print.
“What’s News: May 2018.” The Wall Street Journal, 23 April 2018. Web.
2017
Leasca, Stacey. “Seattle’s Space Needle Is Getting a New Look.” Smithsonian.com, 27 June 2017. Web.
Leasca, Stacey. “Seattle’s Space Needle Is Getting a New Look.” Travel + Leisure, 21 June 2017. Web.
“Olson Kundig set to overhaul Seattle Space Needle.” Dezeen, 19 June 2017. Web.
“Olson Kundig to Renovate Seattle Space Needle.” Architectural Record, July 2017, 35. Print.
Popera, Ashleigh. “Space Needle’s Renovation Project Begins.” ARCHITECT, 2 Oct. 2017. Web.
