Contract - January/February 2015 - 88

interiors awards

historic restoration
King Street Station

Client
City of seattle
department of
transportation

Location
seattle

ZGF Architects

A
The quiet
attention to
craft and material
with this project
is especially
refreshing. It's
a meticulous
rebirth that
provides complex
modernization
without sacrificing
historic accuracy
and refinement.
This renovation
skillfully reaffirms
the importance
of the landmark
structure while
integrating
modern
infrastructure.
jury

By Brian Libby
Photography by
Benjamin Benschneider
and Doug Scott
88

lthough Seattle's King Street Station was
completed in 1906-in an era of grandly
ambitious railway stations-and was designed
by the architect of New York's Grand Central Station
with a clock tower resembling Venice's famed
Campanile di San Marco, Amtrak passengers passing
through in recent decades would have been hardpressed to find much to stop and marvel at.
"A lot of the detail and texture and historic
character had been stripped," recalls Tim Williams,
principal at ZGF Architects, the firm behind the $55
million renovation. During a mid-20th century renovation,
intricate ceiling plasterwork was masked by a dropped
ceiling and fluorescent lighting. Marble columns and
mosaic tile floors had also been covered, the glazed
terra-cotta roof had been replaced with asphalt shingles,
and an outdoor plaza was being used as an employee
parking lot. And that's saying nothing of the leaky roof.
"Deferred maintenance is the gentle term," Williams adds.
King Street Station continued to operate through the
years, though, as its prominence as a civic structure faded.
In March 2008, the City of Seattle purchased the landmark
building from Burlington Northern Railway Company for
$10. In 2010, ZGF began working with the City of Seattle
Department of Transportation to restore the station.
ZGF's challenges included returning King Street
Station's original Beaux-Arts glamour, as well as
upgrading its structure so that the unreinforced
masonry building could withstand future earthquakes.
However, the solutions to these challenges were
sometimes at odds with one another. "The structural
solution was a unique and not-optimal solution: We had
to drag forces so we could preserve spaces without
adding sheer walls and columns," Williams explains.
"It took a lot of gymnastics to make that happen, but
thankfully the brick masonry was in good shape."
Indeed, some 1,500 tons of steel were added to the
station's structure, including the 12-story clock tower and
perimeter walls, and the construction crews needed to
proceed without destroying the existing terrazzo floors
and other wall finishes. "They were very creative about
how they installed the steel," says Trevina Wang, King
Street Station project manager for the Seattle
contractdesign.com 	

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Contract - January/February 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Contract - January/February 2015

Contents
Editorial
Industry News
Columnist: Moving Practice Beyond Analog
Product Focus: A Family Affair
Product Briefs: Flooring, Seating, Textiles, and Wallcoverings
Designer of the Year
Legend Award
Annual Interiors Awards
Adaptive Reuse
Education
Entertainment
Healthcare
Historic Restoration
Hotel
Office: Large
Office: Small
Public/Civic
Restaurant
Retail
Sports
Student
Designers Select: Lighting
Sources
Ad Index
Installation: A Journey Through Austria Depicted on Screens
Contract - January/February 2015 - Intro
Contract - January/February 2015 - Cover1
Contract - January/February 2015 - Cover2
Contract - January/February 2015 - 1
Contract - January/February 2015 - 2
Contract - January/February 2015 - 3
Contract - January/February 2015 - Contents
Contract - January/February 2015 - 5
Contract - January/February 2015 - 6
Contract - January/February 2015 - 7
Contract - January/February 2015 - 8
Contract - January/February 2015 - 9
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Contract - January/February 2015 - 11
Contract - January/February 2015 - 12
Contract - January/February 2015 - 13
Contract - January/February 2015 - 14
Contract - January/February 2015 - 15
Contract - January/February 2015 - 16
Contract - January/February 2015 - 17
Contract - January/February 2015 - Editorial
Contract - January/February 2015 - 19
Contract - January/February 2015 - 20
Contract - January/February 2015 - 21
Contract - January/February 2015 - Industry News
Contract - January/February 2015 - 23
Contract - January/February 2015 - 24
Contract - January/February 2015 - 25
Contract - January/February 2015 - 26
Contract - January/February 2015 - 27
Contract - January/February 2015 - Columnist: Moving Practice Beyond Analog
Contract - January/February 2015 - 29
Contract - January/February 2015 - 30
Contract - January/February 2015 - 31
Contract - January/February 2015 - Product Focus: A Family Affair
Contract - January/February 2015 - 33
Contract - January/February 2015 - Product Briefs: Flooring, Seating, Textiles, and Wallcoverings
Contract - January/February 2015 - 35
Contract - January/February 2015 - 36
Contract - January/February 2015 - 37
Contract - January/February 2015 - 38
Contract - January/February 2015 - 39
Contract - January/February 2015 - Designer of the Year
Contract - January/February 2015 - 41
Contract - January/February 2015 - 42
Contract - January/February 2015 - 43
Contract - January/February 2015 - 44
Contract - January/February 2015 - 45
Contract - January/February 2015 - 46
Contract - January/February 2015 - 47
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Contract - January/February 2015 - 49
Contract - January/February 2015 - 50
Contract - January/February 2015 - 51
Contract - January/February 2015 - 52
Contract - January/February 2015 - 53
Contract - January/February 2015 - Legend Award
Contract - January/February 2015 - 55
Contract - January/February 2015 - 56
Contract - January/February 2015 - 57
Contract - January/February 2015 - 58
Contract - January/February 2015 - 59
Contract - January/February 2015 - 60
Contract - January/February 2015 - 61
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Contract - January/February 2015 - 65
Contract - January/February 2015 - 66
Contract - January/February 2015 - 67
Contract - January/February 2015 - 68
Contract - January/February 2015 - 69
Contract - January/February 2015 - Annual Interiors Awards
Contract - January/February 2015 - 71
Contract - January/February 2015 - Adaptive Reuse
Contract - January/February 2015 - 73
Contract - January/February 2015 - 74
Contract - January/February 2015 - 75
Contract - January/February 2015 - Education
Contract - January/February 2015 - 77
Contract - January/February 2015 - 78
Contract - January/February 2015 - 79
Contract - January/February 2015 - Entertainment
Contract - January/February 2015 - 81
Contract - January/February 2015 - 82
Contract - January/February 2015 - 83
Contract - January/February 2015 - Healthcare
Contract - January/February 2015 - 85
Contract - January/February 2015 - 86
Contract - January/February 2015 - 87
Contract - January/February 2015 - Historic Restoration
Contract - January/February 2015 - 89
Contract - January/February 2015 - 90
Contract - January/February 2015 - 91
Contract - January/February 2015 - Hotel
Contract - January/February 2015 - 93
Contract - January/February 2015 - 94
Contract - January/February 2015 - 95
Contract - January/February 2015 - Office: Large
Contract - January/February 2015 - 97
Contract - January/February 2015 - 98
Contract - January/February 2015 - 99
Contract - January/February 2015 - Office: Small
Contract - January/February 2015 - 101
Contract - January/February 2015 - 102
Contract - January/February 2015 - 103
Contract - January/February 2015 - Public/Civic
Contract - January/February 2015 - 105
Contract - January/February 2015 - 106
Contract - January/February 2015 - 107
Contract - January/February 2015 - Restaurant
Contract - January/February 2015 - 109
Contract - January/February 2015 - 110
Contract - January/February 2015 - 111
Contract - January/February 2015 - Retail
Contract - January/February 2015 - 113
Contract - January/February 2015 - 114
Contract - January/February 2015 - 115
Contract - January/February 2015 - Sports
Contract - January/February 2015 - 117
Contract - January/February 2015 - 118
Contract - January/February 2015 - 119
Contract - January/February 2015 - Student
Contract - January/February 2015 - 121
Contract - January/February 2015 - 122
Contract - January/February 2015 - 123
Contract - January/February 2015 - Designers Select: Lighting
Contract - January/February 2015 - 125
Contract - January/February 2015 - 126
Contract - January/February 2015 - 127
Contract - January/February 2015 - Sources
Contract - January/February 2015 - 129
Contract - January/February 2015 - 130
Contract - January/February 2015 - 131
Contract - January/February 2015 - 132
Contract - January/February 2015 - 133
Contract - January/February 2015 - 134
Contract - January/February 2015 - Ad Index
Contract - January/February 2015 - Installation: A Journey Through Austria Depicted on Screens
Contract - January/February 2015 - Cover3
Contract - January/February 2015 - Cover4
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