Vol. 4, Issue 2

August 2005

Note:

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President's Message

Much has gone on since our last issue of Architect’s Articles. Many of us attended the Northwest and Pacific Regional Conference in Seattle the first week of August. AIA Seattle, Conference chair Rena Klein AIA, and AIA Seattle President Peter Greaves AIA are to be commended for putting on a truly worthwhile event. It was three-plus days full of informative and inspirational seminars, good networking, and fun parties. If you didn’t go, you really missed out. Next year’s conference is in Hong Kong, our most distant outpost for the Region, so start saving your pennies (dimes, dollars) now.

Many of the seminars talked about collaboration, with our fellow architects, with consultants and with clients. Collaboration has been at the forefront this year with AIA Washington. Working closely with our strategic partners at Architects and Engineers Legislative Council (AELC), Washington Construction Industry Council (WCIC), and with members of the Legislature (as well as with all of our dedicated members) definitely enabled us to further our legislative agenda to promote good and responsible design and to protect the viability of our profession. Perhaps our biggest (and most visible) success was the signing of the Green Buildings bill, but we had many other successes as well. If you wonder what AIA Washington Council is all about, click on 2005 Legislative Accomplishments on our web site (www.aiawa.org). We have been continuing our collaborative efforts this summer by working with the interior design community to craft a title act that we can support when they next submit a bill to the legislature.

More and more often in our shrinking world we must rely upon others to supply vital parts of the total project. It is incumbent upon all of us, in our role as design and project leaders, to be the ones to initiate the collaborative effort which will produce the results we strive for: great architecture, designed to meet the needs and budgets of our clients, while adding to and improving the fabric of our everyday environment.

Lois Wardell, AIA
President
AIA/Washington Council

State Implements High Performance Buildings Law

The Washington Department of General Administration (GA) is busily preparing to implement the new Washington High Performance Public Buildings law (Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 5509). The new law requires that all state funded buildings be designed and built to the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver accreditation standards. Schools may be built either to LEED Silver or the Washington Sustainable School Design Protocol.

LEED Quality Assurance Plan

GA has drafted a “LEED Quality Assurance Plan” for use by agencies when starting a new project. This plan will walk agencies through the different phases of construction from pre-design through construction to annual building performance reports. The plan also includes draft report forms for agencies to use in five key steps of the development process.

In the Pre-Design or Schematic phase, the architect and the agency’s representative will make the first determination if the project is required to use the new design standards. The law exempts smaller construction projects (under 5,000 square feet), non-occupied buildings, hospitals, laboratory research facilities and buildings for which there is no applicable LEED standard.

GA is developing a checklist and submittal form to assist architects and agency representatives in this process. GA is also working on a form that will be used by architects throughout a project to report on their progress in achieving the LEED Silver standard.

High Performance Buildings Advisory Committee Meets

ESSB 5509 also created the High Performance Building Advisory Committee to assist GA in implementing the new law. The committee is composed of agency representatives who are responsible for design/construction, architects, contractors and others involved in the building development process. The AIA Washington Council is represented on the committee by Marc Jenefsky, AIA, with Donald King Architects.

The committee reviewed the Seattle LEED program and the Energy Life Cycle Cost Analysis program administered by GA. The committee then formed subgroups to brainstorm ideas on what education and training will need to be developed to assist agencies, architects and others involved in the building process to better understand and implement the new law. Finally, the committee discussed ways to develop feedback and evaluation processes to improve the process and the way new information is gathered and utilized.

OSPI Moving Forward on New Standards

Not only does ESSB 5509 apply to traditional state construction, it also applies to school projects that receive state funding. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction will administer the Washington Sustainable School Design Protocol. In development for several years, the protocol is an alternative to the LEED standard for schools.

The School Facilities Advisory Board (SFAB) serves as the high performance buildings advisory committee for OSPI. The AIA/WA is represented on the SFAB by Vaughn Lein, AIA, (western WA representative), and Art Nordling, AIA (eastern WA representative). The alternates are Brian Carter, AIA and Brian Johnson, AIA.

For more information on the Department of General Administration’s implementation of ESSB 5509 visit: http://www.ga.wa.gov/EAS/green/index.html. You can also contact Stuart Simpson, Facilities Senior Planner/Green Building Advisor, at (360) 902-7262 or e-mail simpso@ga.wa.gov.

For more information on the OSPI’s Sustainable School Design Protocol visit: http://www.k12.wa.us/SchFacilities/SustainableSchools.aspx.

AIA Holds National Summit on Building Performance and Standards

On July 24-26, the American Institute of Architects hosted a national summit on building performance and standards in Washington, DC. The purpose of the summit was to help the AIA develop new policies on improving building performance and sustainability.

The summit also brought together the AIA Building Standards Policy Task Force. The purpose of the task force is to determine what the next evolution is in sustainable design and which standards will best serve the public's interest by resulting in better buildings.

AIA Washington Council Executive Director Stan Bowman is a member of the Task Force. Also serving on the task force are AIA Northwest + Pacific Region Director Clark Llewellyn, AIA, (of Montana) and former Region Director John Baker, AIA, (of Portland).

AIA Executive Vice President/Chief Executive Officer Norman Koonce summed up the purpose of the Task Force and Summit, “Just as we need clear, consistent building codes, we need clear, consistent standards for building green as well,” Koonce said. “That is crucial if we are going to be able to effectively advocate for government green building incentives.”

“The mission of the Summit is…for the AIA to take a leadership role in efforts to dramatically increase the number of ‘green buildings’ across the nation.”

“The Summit is only the beginning of a long-range process to advocate green building legislation at both the federal and state levels,” continued Koonce. “We begin this process with an open mind.”

During the three days of meetings there were presentations from representatives of all facets of the building standards process, including: the US Green Building Council (developer of LEED) , the Green Building Initiative (developer of Green Globes), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the National Institute for Building Sciences (NIBS), the International Code Council and others.

One very enlightening presentation was from Edward Mazria, AIA, on the impacts that buildings and related development have on the world’s environment and climate. His research finds that buildings are responsible for about 48 percent of United States’ and global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and consume nearly two-thirds of the electricity produced in the US.

To put those numbers in perspective, Mazria’s research shows that all of the “SUVs, minivans and light-duty trucks in this country accounts for only 6.5 percent of the total U.S. energy consumed each year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.” We see major initiatives in the states and in Congress to reduce emissions from vehicles while they are essentially silent on the impact of buildings.

The bottom line is that we learned that architects have contributed to environmental degradation through the design of buildings and specification of products. While the official results and recommendations from the Summit will not be released until September, it is safe to report that the AIA is going to commit to taking a lead role in reversing the negative environmental impacts resulting from building design, construction and operations. Architects are uniquely positioned to lead a new sustainable buildings practice.

For more information on the summit, including Task Force Members and panelists, read the June 23, 2005, edition of AIA The Angle: http://www.aia.org/nwsltr_angle.cfm?pagename=angle_nwsltr_20050623&archive=1.

Look for more information on this subject in the upcoming months.

AIA/WA Offers Training on High Performance Public Buildings Law

O ne of the biggest victories for the AIA Washington Council in recent memory was the passage of the High Performance Public Buildings Act this year.

This new law requires that all state funded buildings be designed, constructed and operated to the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Ratings standard. for schools, they may choose between LEED Silver and the new Washington Sustainable School Design

Protocol.

The law puts architects squarely in the driver’s seat for accomplishing these new standards. With increased responsibility for achieving higher building performance goals, architects must be able to understand the intricacies of the new law and how to implement LEED on public projects.

AIA/WA’s Sustainable Design Resource Group is offering its expertise on the new law and practical experience in implementing high performance building standards on public projects to all AIA members. At a recent education session for AIA Southwest Washington, AIA/WA Sustainable Design Resource Group Chair Fulton “Tony” Gale, AIA, and AIA/WA Executive Director Stan Bowman overviewed the new law and shared some best practices for implementing LEED on public projects.

Not only was Tony integrally involved in developing the new law, he served as the City of Seattle’s chief architect during its development and implementation of similar standards in the city. Stan was the lead lobbyist on the bill during the legislative session.

A recent article in the Construction Specifier (July 2005) focused on the challenges facing architects when implementing LEED on public projects. The biggest challenge is not the meeting of the new design standards, rather the article claims, it is ensuring that the standards are implemented by contractors under the low bid system used by state and local governments for construction services.

The article summarizes the problem “Many contractors are neither familiar with green products nor proficient in determining the recycled content of specific building materials.” It continues, “…subcontractors often have even less exposure to [LEED] Division 1 requirements.”

Thus, there will be specific and unique challenges to implementing LEED and similar requirements in public construction situations. The responsibility will be on the project architect to assist the client agency in working through these challenges and in working with contractors to ensure their bids are LEED compliant.

The AIA/WA wants to help our members better understand the new law and share real world strategies to best implement the standards. Stan Bowman and members of the AIA/WA Sustainable Design Resource group are available to speak at local AIA component meetings and other local meetings of architects. The typical program is about 2 hours, but it can be tailored to shorter time frames or provide more detailed information in a longer session.

If you are interested in hosting an education session, please contact Stan Bowman, Executive Director, at bowman@aiawa.org or 360.953.6012.

For more information on the new law visit: http://www.aiawa.org.

Update on the Washington State Energy Code

By Tim Nogler, Managing Director, Washington State Building Code Council,
Special to Washington Architect Articles

n 1985, the state legislature authorized the Washington State Building Code Council to adopt an energy code. The Council developed a unique state written energy code to meet the legislative mandate. On July 1, 2005, the latest amendments to the 2003 edition of the State Energy Code went into effect.

In January of this year, the Council directed the Energy Code technical advisory group (TAG) to study the feasibility of adopting the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). The IECC is published by the same model code organization, the International Code Council, which publishes the building, residential, mechanical and fire codes in effect in the state. A new edition of the IECC will be published early next year. The TAG review will include changes published in the new edition.

The Council decision on the IECC will occur in 2006. The TAG will conduct the study, the Council will review the findings, a formal proposal will be published, and a public hearing will be held. The public hearing will occur in the fall of 2006. If adopted, the new edition of the energy code would take effect on July 1, 2007.

The Council has fifteen members appointed by the Governor. John Cochran, AIA, Callison Architecture, represents AIA Washington Council on the Building Code Council. John is the Chair of the Building, Fire and Plumbing Committee, and a member of the Executive Committee of the Council.

For more information on this and other state building codes visit: http://www.sbcc.wa.gov/.

Editorial Note: The American Institute of Architects has reviewed available energy codes and has endorsed the International Energy Conservation Code for adoption by government entities. The IECC is one of an integrated set of codes published by the International Code Council. The IECC and other endorsed ICC codes meet AIA’s Public Policy Position Statement that, “The AIA supports regulation by a single set of comprehensive, coordinated, and contemporary codes and standards, which establish fundamentally sound threshold values of health, safety and the protection of the public welfare throughout the United States.

AIA/WA Endorses Initiative 330: Medical Liability Reform

The last edition of Washington Architect Articles included an exclusive update on tort reform efforts in our state by Dana Childers, Executive Director of the Liability Reform Coalition. The article discussed competing initiatives that will be on the November ballot: Initiative 330 and Initiative 336.

Initiative 330 was proposed by the medical profession to address problems such as declining access to health care, the very high liability insurance costs and rising medical insurance costs in Washington State. After I-330 was announced, the trial lawyers put forward I-336 as a competing initiative.

The AIA Washington Council has reviewed both initiatives for their impact on architecture businesses and their employees. After a careful review, the AIA/WA Board of Directors voted to support I-330 and to oppose I-336.

I-330 proposes moderate, reasonable reforms to the states tort and liability laws. Architecture firms have expressed strong concern about the ever rising costs of health care. Annual, double-digit increases in health insurance premiums have made it more difficult to provide competitive benefit plans to employees.

Despite passing comprehensive tort reform through the state Senate in 2003 and 2004, the House of Representatives has failed to even bring the issue up for a vote. Thus, the AIA/WA has concluded that it is time to put these issues directly to the voters to decide. I-330 includes responsible reforms aimed a protecting consumers while also preventing frivolous medical lawsuits.

AIA Member Benefits / Acordia

In an effort to provide the best medical insurance plans to AIA members and their firms, AIA/WA has partnered with Accordia to provide health insurance plans. Accordia had negotiated very competively priced plans with Group Health Insurance (which are available to firms with 1 or more employees) and Kitsap Physician services (which are available to firms with 2 or more employees). If you are frustrated with the cost of health insurance at your firm, please contact Accordia to discuss your options with Group Health and KPS health insurance plans.

AIA’s account representative is Brandon Boynton at brandon_boynton@acordia.com or (206) 701-5686. Please visit their website at http://www.accordia.com for further information. Contact information is also on the AIA/WA’s website at http://www.aiawa.org.

For instance, the initiative promotes quicker settlements by allowing physicians and patients to enter into voluntary arbitration agreements and by strengthening the mediation process.

Every day more evidence surfaces as to the adverse effect of today’s medical liability system. According to a report in the July 13 online issue of the Annals of Emergency Medicine, fear of malpractice lawsuits drives doctors to order unnecessary tests and hospitalizations. This, of course, drives up medical costs, resulting in higher insurance premiums.

The problem has become so bad in Washington State that basic access to health services has been jeopardized. Ten percent of Americans—in other words, millions of U.S. citizens—have lost the services of a physician to relocation or retirement due to high medical malpractice insurance rates, according to results of a July 6, 2005, poll commissioned by The Doctors Company.

I-336, on the other hand, is an attempt by the trial lawyers to further solidify their hold on the tort system in our state. They have handsomely profited from our states very liberal tort laws and by furthering lawsuits of questionable merit. I-336 will not address key reforms needed to address the cost drivers and problems in the current system.

AIA/WA believes that passage of I-330 will not only preserve our access to health care, but also will maintain Washington’s business competitiveness with other states. AIA/WA encourages our members and every business owner and employee in Washington State to support I-330 in November.

For more information on I-330 please visit: http://www.yesoni330.org.

AIA Northwest + Pacific Region Conference a Big Success

The AIA Northwest + Pacific Region Annual Conference was held last week in Seattle. The “Knowledge by Design” conference was centered on case studies of projects.

The conference is an annual event designed to promote the sharing of knowledge and highlight architecture in the Region. AIA Seattle was the 2005 host and the conference was chaired by Rena Klein, AIA.

AIA Member Benefits / Long-Term Care Insurance offered by Gjurasic/Story Group, LLC

By Ken Story & Luke Gjurasic

As Americans live longer and more of us face the potential of needing to pay for our own care outside of the hospital, many are exploring the options available through a Long Term Care insurance policy.

What is Long Term Care Insurance?

Simply put, a Long Term Care (LTC) insurance policy pays for your care, outside of a hospital, resulting from a serious disability or illness. Exactly when it will pay, how much it will pay, who it will pay and where it will pay are important distinctions which separate one policy from another.

LTC insurance is a relatively new form of insurance. The first policy was written less than 40 years ago, but since that time we have seen a literal explosion in terms of the need for the care, the cost of care and the availability of quality insurance policies.

Initially designed to provide nursing home care only, now LTC policies offer the option of nursing home care, home health care and a number of "alternate" forms of care, including assisted living and residential care facilities. Policies that provide the full range of coverage are referred to as "comprehensive" or "integrated" policies. They typically provide coverage anywhere in the United States while a few extend worldwide.

Call Toll-Free 888-614-2273

The region is composed of AIA components in the following jurisdictions: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska, Hawaii, Guam/Micronesia and Hong Kong.

Jim Suehiro, AIA, Elected Region Director

At the 2005 Northwest + Pacific Region Annual Business Meeting, Jim Suehiro, AIA, of NBBJ in Seattle, was unanimously elected to serve as the 2006-2008 AIA Northwest + Pacific Region Director. Jim will succeed Norman Strong, FAIA, of the Miller-Hull Partnership, as region director. Norman, however, will continue to serve on the national Board as a Vice-President for 2006-2007. Clark Llewellyn, AIA, Director of the School of Architecture at the University of Montana, is the region’s other director for 2005-2007. Jim was an AIA/WA Board member for 1997-1999.

Region Medal of Honor Awarded

The AIA Northwest + Pacific Region Medal of Honor is the highest award that the region gives to an architect for distinguished service to the profession.

The 2006 Medal was awarded to Martin Crennen FAIA, of Montana. Previous award winners include James L. Harris, FAIA, of Tacoma, Don Lutes, FAIA, of Springfield, Oregon, and L. Jane Hastings, FAIA, of Seattle.

Case Study Prizes Awarded

Central to the theme “Knowledge by Design” was the Knowledge by Design Case Study Prize. The many applicants were narrowed down to six finalists who presented at the conference. The final award winners were:

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