By Morf Morford, Tacoma Daily Index
Tacoma’s history, if not landscape, is dense with visionary ideas – some even come to fruition.
Point Ruston is one of those. UWT in downtown Tacoma is another.
Tacoma, especially the downtown section, is packed with remnants of dreams and visions of the future anchored in the realities – if not physical materials of the past.
These buildings were the manifestation of some (literal) ground-breaking builders, makers and entrepreneurs of Tacoma.
Brick and stone monuments to a set of ideas and passions literally define our urban core.
Some have lost their showdown with history and are gone forever, but many others remain.
Get ready for another one.
But, in more ways than could be counted, this project is very different from any that have come before.
We have become accustomed to look-alike, if not outright ugly and forbidding sets of walls across our city centers.
To put it mildly, we don’t need any more of those.
We need welcoming spaces that encourage us to gather and create – and perhaps even appreciate what we have in front of us – our views, our history and, of course, our ever-elusive destiny.
This latest large project has that in mind as it addresses the principles of the Living Building Challenge. (livingbuilding.kendedafund.org/living-building-challenge-petals/)
The Living Building Challenge is few steps (or light years) beyond the LEED certification qualifications. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is the most widely used green building rating system. (leed.usgbc.org)
Living Buildings are based on seven key and interdependent principles (petals), each one exemplified, and elegantly pursued in this Tacoma project.
The first is the place petal.
Location and connection – to nature and to others – is central to identity and engagement.
The second is the water petal.
Besides being on Tacoma’s historic waterfront, these lofts will host a rainwater collection/retention/distribution system that will be both efficient and, like a natural system, nearly invisible as it stores our rainfall and uses it for landscaping and more.
The third petal is energy.
The goal here is for Living Buildings to generate 5 percent more energy than they use. You can see more about this aspect of Living Buildings here: livingbuilding.kendedafund.org/energy-petal-2/.
The fourth petal is based on health and happiness.
Healthy spaces have immediate access to nature, natural daylight and the optimal mix of privacy and places for gathering.
The fifth petal is materials.
Besides being attractive and durable, building materials have an impact far beyond the apparent.
Buildings, and their production, should be non-toxic, ecologically restorative, and transparent.
Unlike the near-standard 40 years life span of many condominiums, these buildings should be productive and useful for centuries – not a few decades.
The sixth petal is equity. Healthy and enduring spaces should be available to all. The space should be welcoming and accessible.
And last, but far from least, the final petal is beauty. Too many cities and urban neighborhoods are defined by ugly and sterile, if not intimidating physical walls and obstructions. A building that belongs, and contributes to humans belonging there is one that facilitates connection to place, climate, culture and community.
Each one of those “petals” re-enforces and strengthens the others.
All of this is taking place on Tacoma’s water front on the aptly named Dock Street.
I’ll leave the question of whether it is a dock used as a street or a street used as a dock to the urban designers and historians among us, but keep your eyes on the neighborhood between 11th and 19th on Dock Street.
It’s the place where icons of the past and visions of the future converge. You can see more details on the project here – https://shiplofts.com/.
