Check out the latest construction updates from the Ice Age Floods Playground at Riverfront Park. Crews are working toward the finish line, with the opening right around the corner. This footage shows the play equipment, splash pad test, and the completed basketball court and wheels park. We can’t wait for Spokane’s residents to enjoy this playground. Bernardo Wills Architects provided playground design, landscape architecture and architecture services for this project.
We are proud to join Daines Capital‘s Spring Time Give Back in a baby wipe drive for Family Promise of Spokane. This organization is focused on ending family homelessness in Spokane County by connecting houseless families with those in their own neighborhood, increasing support networks, and re-enforcing the skills needed to maintain housing. They serve over 1,100 family members each year as the only wraparound program for homeless families in Eastern Washington. Daines Capital shares our mission of making our community better, thank you for including us!
Here’s the link to their website to learn more and donate:
Donate
#WorksiteWednesday Last week, we had the privilege of showing a new client, the Spokane Valley Fire Department, some past projects similar to their upcoming design. We toured the Lincoln County Shop and Maintenance Facility in Davenport, WA, and the Avista Utilities Fleet Maintenance Building on their Mission campus in Spokane. Revisiting past projects and discussing the outcomes with the folks that use them every day allows us to learn and grow as designers while creating even better facilities for future clients.
As we celebrate our Zags this week, we would like to highlight one of our favorite projects at Gonzaga University. The central design objective of the John J. Hemmingson Center project was to create a signature building to serve as a focal “place of gathering and learning” for both the on-campus and off-campus Gonzaga community. The 167,726 square-foot, four-level facility is located on the eastern edge of campus and includes multi-level, multi-venue dining, a pub, an 800-person, multi-purpose gathering place, various retail areas, student clubs, and University programs, and a 200-person auditorium/theater. The Center is a major hub for socializing, dining, academics, and services for the Gonzaga community. #GoZags
Dell Hatch, ASLA, Landscape Architect and Principal at Bernardo Wills Architects, is currently leading a hand-drawing and sketching workshop for some of his colleagues at Bernardo Wills. He is a talented and accomplished illustrator, and his sessions are fostering an environment of artistry and mentorship. In this excerpt, Dell walks us through his process of adding people to his illustrations. In short, keep it simple.
As March comes to a close, we would like to honor our colleagues that celebrated their Bernardo Wills Architects anniversaries in the first quarter. Without our teammates, we wouldn’t be able to make our communities better. Cheers to you!
#ThrowbackThursday to one of our favorite corporate landscape architecture projects in Chubbuck, Idaho for Idaho Central Credit Union. The Bernardo Wills landscape architecture team worked with Lombard Conrad Architects in Boise, Idaho to make the ICCU master plan and corporate campus a reality. The plan included entry sequence, parking, future building locations, corporate amenities such as the Data Center Building, and a central courtyard plaza and landscape. The courtyard plaza became is an essential centerpiece for the development and consists of a substantial water feature designed to showcase local geology with a fountain/pool, representative of 1000 Springs near Hagerman, Idaho. The design included a garden-esque style greenspace at the entry and corporate amenities such as an outdoor kitchen, trellis, putting green multi-use sports court, and gathering spaces. Who wants to hit the putting green after work? Count us in!
Dell Hatch, ASLA, Landscape Architect and Principal at Bernardo Wills Architects, is currently leading a hand-drawing and sketching workshop for some of his colleagues at Bernardo Wills. He is a talented and accomplished illustrator, and his sessions are fostering an environment of artistry and mentorship. In this timelapse, you can see Dell set up a two-point perspective architectural sketch with entourage – trees, shrubbery, and people.
#ThrowbackThursday to March 2019, when we celebrated the Grand Opening of WSECU’s new Spokane Valley branch on Sprague. We love the result of this renovation and look forward to future projects with WSECU.
As we come up on the anniversary of sending our staff to work from home, we are grateful for the resilience and flexibility of our colleagues. To our tech support ensuring everyone had the necessary equipment, to our Teams chats bringing us smiles and laughs at home, to our HR pro fielding our questions in a year of unknowns. When we gathered together for the first time on Zoom last year, we didn’t know what the year would look like, but we are now hopeful that our region is moving in the right direction. Stay strong, Spokane, and we’ll see you soon.