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Groundbreaking for Urban Waters on April 15th -- Exit 133 blog, April 8, 2009
We just received word that work is about to begin on the Center for Urban Waters and you’re invited to the groundbreaking.
Urban Waters moves forward -- Tacoma Weekly, January 22, 2009
By a 5-3 vote on Jan. 20, Tacoma City Council approved a financing package for Urban Waters, a facility that will house the city’s Environmental Services Division, researchers with University of Washington-Tacoma and staff from Puget Sound Partnership, a state agency working to find solutions to problems facing Puget Sound.
Foss water lab almost ready for bidding -- The News Tribune, September 2, 2008
Tacoma city officials hope to break ground on the $40 million Urban Waters building in early 2009 and open doors in April 2010, but that rides on the results of a competitve bidding process this fall. The 50,000-square-foot building will sit on the east bank of the Thea Foss Waterway. . . It's faced delays in the past year as designers struggled to match the city's environmental goals to its budget.
Council impressed with latest Urban Waters design -- Tacoma Weekly, August 7, 2008
Urban Waters has been among the highest priorities for Tacoma City Council over the past few years. The structure . . . will house the city's Environmental Services Department, researchers from the University of Washington Tacoma and staff from Puget Sound Partnership. . . Urban Waters has also posed challenges, as city officials want it to be on the cutting edge of the "green" building trend while keeping its price tag from getting too large.
Green building worth extra cost -- The News Tribune, February 10, 2008
(Insight article by Dale A. Anderson & Les Gerstmann). . . The News Tribune's editorial board has expressed concern that the goal of a LEED Platinum rating for the City of Tacoma's Urban Waters building will raise its cost "into the stratosphere." . . . As representatives of the Tacoma-Olympia Branch of the Green Building Council, we are concerned that readers are left with a false impression that the cost to achieve a Platinum rating is inherently high.
Noted chemist will help guide UWT Urban Waters project -- The News Tribune, January 27, 2008
The University of Washington Tacoma's newest go-to guy has arrived. He is professor Joel Baker, hired brain, or scientific director, of Urban Waters, future think tank and centerpiece of UW Tacoma's planned Center for Urban Waters, a $40 million Foss Waterway project.
A prudent second look at 'platinum' laboratory -- The News Tribune, January 16, 2008
Tacoma City Councilman Jake Fey raises a good question about the city's planned Urban Waters laboratory: Will the cost of the lab's "platinum" design make it harder to sell any kind of environmentally conscious building to the public in the future? (TNT editorial)
Tacoma City Council reviews $40 million-plus waterfront laboratory proposal -- The News Tribune, January 15, 2008
An independent firm will review the cost of Tacoma's planned Urban Waters laboratory following a request last month from Councilwoman Julie Anderson. The firm, which is expected to be on board by the end of February, will review the cost of the project -- now more than $40 million -- and look for ways to save money, according to information given to council members last week.
UPS profs predict moderate economic growth -- Tacoma Weekly, December 20, 2007
The local economy will continue to experience steady, healthy growth in 2008, according to the foremost experts on the subject. . . . Bruce Mann and Douglas Goodman, economics professors at the University of Puget Sound, delivered their Pierce County Economic Index during the annual Horizons breakfast Dec. 13. . . . They predict a healthy future for the technology and research sectors. . . . Mann pointed to planning for Urban Waters, a marine research facility that will be occupied by staff from the City of Tacoma's Environmental Services Division and University of Washington Tacoma. "Blood is flowing into the high end of the economy," he observed.
A platinum statement at a platinum price -- The News Tribune, December 16, 2007
How green is green enough? That's the question the Tacoma City Council ought to be asking before building a very expensive new home on the Foss Waterway for Urban Waters and the city's environmental services. The cost of the project, not counting financing, is $32.5 million. The building will have 56,000 square feet. That divides into a truly staggering $580 per square foot. (TNT editorial)
Scope of Thea Foss lab project expands -- The News Tribune, December 3, 2007
The price tag for Tacoma's planned Urban Waters laboratory has more than doubled since last spring's estimates, going from $18 million to more than $40 million. The building is bigger than originally planned, which partly explains the increase. The latest plans call for a three-story, 56,000-square-foot waterfront lab and office building on the east side of the Thea Foss Waterway. Earlier plans envisioned a two-story, 40,000-square-foot structure.
Council hears green vision for Urban Waters -- Tacoma Weekly, November 29, 2007
Tacoma City Council members seemed impressed, for the most part, on how things are shaping for the city's Urban Waters project. City staff and business partners on the project praised the environmental benefits and high-tech design of the marine research facility, which will be built on the east side of the Thea Foss Waterway, during its Nov. 27 study session.
Influence helped Tacoma get Sound cleanup agency -- The News Tribune, October 5, 2007
For a while, it looked as if Olympia would house the main offices of the Puget Sound Partnership, the new state agency charged with cleaning up Puget Sound. Some thought it should be Seattle. But Tacoma prevaled, in part because of plenty of "advocating," as Gov. Chris Gregoire put it ...
Another partnership for Puget Sound -- The News Tribune, October 5, 2007
Urban Waters and Puget Sound Partnership: No matchmaker could have made a better match. Gov. Chris Gregoire performed the nuptials Wednesday when she announced that the “partnership” – a new state agency charged with cleaning up Puget Sound – would move into Urban Waters, an applied science institute to be created on the east side of Thea Foss Waterway. It’s an excellent congruence of purpose.
News Releases
-- Nov. 5, 2009
The Center for Urban Waters, in collaboration with the Puget Sound Partnership and the UW College of the Environment, announced the launch of a new initiative, the Puget Sound Institute. The institute will bring together scientists, engineers and policymakers working on the restoration and protection of Puget Sound and provide expert advice based on the best-available science.
Artist Robert M. Horner has been chosen to create artwork for the Center for Urban Waters, a 51,250-square-foot marine research facility on the east side of the Thea Foss Waterway in Tacoma.
Tacoma celebrates groundbreaking of Center for Urban Waters April 15 -- April 8, 2009
The vision of a marine science research center in Tacoma will take a giant step toward reality when the groundbreaking of the Center for Urban Waters is celebrated Wednesday, April 15, at 10 a.m. The public event will be held on the street adjacent to the building site at 326 E. D St., on the east side of the Thea Foss Waterway.
City Seeking Artist to Commission Work for Center for Urban Waters -- Nov. 24, 2008
Artists and/or artist teams from the states of Washington, Oregon and California are invited to submit qualifications for a $150,000 commission for the Center for Urban Waters. The application deadline is Jan. 15, 2009.
Faculty Member Hired for Port of Tacoma Chair -- UW Tacoma News Release - July 26, 2007
The University of Washington Tacoma has hired Dr. Joel Baker, a leading researcher of water pollution in marine environments, as the first holder of the Port of Tacoma Chair. Pending approval of the UW Board of Regents, Baker starts Jan. 1, 2008.
Lorig Newsletters - Archives
Lorig Associates LLC, the company developing the Center for Urban Waters, is producing a newsletter to provide brief updates on the project and the development process. This newsletter is distributed to the City's Environmental Services employees who will be moving to the new facility and others interested in the project.
The December 2009 issue is posted on the main Center for Urban Waters page.
Older issues of the newsletter are posted here.
June 2009
February 2009
September 2008
January 2008
October 2007