Appendices - Growing Vine Street

Appendix A – Constructed Projects
The Growing Vine Street project was designed to be completed incrementally.
Although current property owners may support the project with intensive
landscaping, most of the project’s structures will be constructed as new development
occurs. As it is completed, each new segment will connect with adjacent sections
until, over time, Vine Street becomes an urban watershed supporting a runnel
flowing its entire eight-block length. The runnel, in turn, will support the lush
vegetation through which it flows—and the entire Vine Street garden will nurture
and refresh us all.
Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine
The Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street is
designed in the shape of a hand emerging from
a sleeve. The hand reaches toward the
downspout, which leans from the face of the
81 Vine Building to meet the hand’s index
finger. The Beckoning Cistern’s designer,
environmental artist Buster Simpson,
compares the sculpture to the ceiling of the
Sistine Chapel, with Adam reaching to touch
the hand of God.
This project has received enthusiastic and wide-ranging support, with hundreds
participating in its planning and design. Yet, even a great idea will be forgotten if it
is not implemented. With that in mind, Growing Vine Street planned two projects to
serve as catalysts and keep the vision alive.
The first of these projects is the Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street. The Growing
Vine Street concept calls for large cisterns in each block to collect roof runoff to feed
the runnel. The Beckoning Cistern is the first of these cisterns, a whimsical example
of the possibilities inherent in the concept. The second project, the Cistern Steps, is
a dramatic water feature made possible by the steep slope in that section of Vine
Street.
Symbolic as the sculpture may be, it is also functional. Roof runoff flows from the
downspout to the outstretched index finger and divides, some cascading over the
thumb into the water garden and series of pools, and some flowing into the cistern to
be stored for later use, such as watering the garden.
The sleeve of the Beckoning Cistern is a 10-foot high,
6-foot diameter blue corrugated cylinder constructed of
galvanized aluminum with a green metal hand
emerging from its top. The entire structure is placed
on a tilted concrete slab set in the water garden. The
water garden with its three cascading planters is, in
turn, set in lush native plantings of ferns, shrubs, and
woodland plants. A smaller, companion garden nestles
against the building; the sidewalk passes between the
two.
The Planting Party
for the Beckoning
Cistern
Buster Simpson and
the Completed
Beckoning Cistern
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Cistern Steps
The Growing Vine Street plan calls for a runnel flowing along a heavily vegetated
watercourse for the entire length of Vine Street. Along the eastern portion of the
street, its passage will be a slow, stately meander. That changes, however, at First
Avenue, where Vine Street takes a sudden, two-block dive towards Elliott Bay. The
Cistern Steps is designed to take dramatic advantage of this slope.
Cover for a Fundraising
Brochure Showing Concept
for the Cistern Steps
The Growing Vine Street plan calls for the street to zig-zag on the slope between
First and Elliott Avenues. From First, the street will slant northerly toward the midblock alley and then southerly back toward Western. The pattern will be repeated in
the block between Western Avenue and Elliott, where the Cistern Steps is located.
August 2
August 5
August 16
September 2
September 8
October 1
October 7
October 13
The Cistern Steps consists of a series of three terraced concrete planters tapering
from a wide plaza at the alley to the narrow sidewalk right-of-way at the intersection
of Vine Street and Elliott Avenue. The runnel will flow from planter to planter,
ending in a lovely pool of rough-hewn jade at the foot of the slope. In this segment
of Vine Street, there is no adjacent building to feed the runnel, so water will be
received from the newly constructed Vine Building across the street, which was
designed with a special collection system for roof runoff just to supply the runnel.
Like the Beckoning Cistern, the Cistern Steps has been designed to delight
pedestrians as well as to process and use roof runoff in an ecological manner. The
water gardens of the planters will echo the lush greenery of the adjacent Belltown
P-Patch. Even more color will be added with inlaid tile signage on the plaza walls at
the alley and on the risers of the steps in the sidewalk passing between the P-Patch
and the Cistern Steps. Even the stair railings will be works of art forged by
Belltown’s own Black Dog Forge!
October 18
October 20
October 21, Installation of the Jade Pool
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Construction Sketch of the
Cistern Steps
Appendix B: Environment-Friendly Gardening
Biofiltration
Water Conservation
Sustainable Gardening
One of the major goals of the Growing Vine Street project is to encourage
recognition of water as an integral part of our lives. With this recognition comes an
acknowledgement of responsibility. Squandering or misusing this precious resource
will seriously damage all of us—and our descendants.
The Growing Vine Street project conserves water as well as cleans it. Why use
Seattle’s precious potable water to irrigate landscaping while at the same time
dumping gallons and gallons of storm runoff into the sewer system?
Biofiltration and water conservation are the two environment-friendly gardening
features Growing Vine Street has built into its plan. However, there are many other
smart gardening practices that will be used to make Vine Street’s landscaping more
sustainable.
Therefore, one of the project’s themes is the cleansing of storm water runoff through
biofiltration. As stated earlier in Growing Vine Street Revisited 2004, biofiltration is
the process of exposing polluted water to sunlight, soil, and vegetation to
biologically alter and absorb pollutants, thereby improving water quality. On Vine
Street, as the streamlet flows through the vegetated runnel, different plants will work
in various ways to purify the water. Please see the “Vegetation: Biofilter Plantings”
section for a list of suggested plants to be used for this purpose.
Cleaning runoff, though, is just one way that biofiltration will help improve the water
quality of Puget Sound. Vine Street’s biofiltered storm water will bypass Seattle’s
combined sewer system. Under current procedures, storm water channeled into the
sewers sometimes overloads the system, resulting in untreated water overflowing
into Elliott Bay—not to mention basements! Projects such as Growing Vine Street
that lessen demands on the sewer system lessen this danger.
Growing Vine Street is experimenting with a better solution. The Growing Vine
Street plan calls for large cisterns to be constructed in each block to collect roof
runoff. Although much of the water they collect will, of course, be channeled into
the runnel, each cistern will be equipped
with a spigot for irrigating the landscaped
areas. At each cistern, posted signs will
warn that the water is not potable.
Although Growing Vine Street is
experimenting with large cisterns on a
grand scale, “rain barrel” gardening—
using barrels instead of cisterns—is an
environment-friendly, cost-effective
practice that has been used by generations
of Northwest gardeners. Because it helps
reduce demands on both the area’s water
supply and treatment system, King
County has developed a website
explaining the benefits of this
conservation measure and how gardeners can set up their own system. See
http://dnr.metrokc.gov/wlr/PI/rainarrels.htm for more information on this subject.
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One of the most important is the selection of plants to be used along the runnel.
Native plants—being already adapted to our climate—often require less care. In an
environment such as the runnel, however, they must also be able to withstand
inundation as well as occasional dry periods. A major function of the Growing Vine
Street project is serving as an experimental laboratory to help determine which plant
materials are suitable for this purpose.
Composting, mulching to promote healthy soil, employing proper watering
techniques, and choosing the right plants for the location all promote sustainable
gardening. Examples of these and many other techniques are being demonstrated
year-round in the Belltown P-Patch, adjacent to the Cistern Steps. Also, King
County has prepared Natural Yard Care, a pamphlet describing many of these smart
gardening practices, which can be found at http://dnr.metrokc.gov/swd/ResRecy/
composting/naturalyardbooklet.asp
Appendix C: Awards, Publications, Presentations, and Funding
Awards
Ahwahnee Award, 1999; Orion Afield, Working for Nature and Community.
Morrison, Chris; “Green Dreams,” Seattle Magazine, November 1998.
Funding
Seattle Design Commission Commendation, Spring 2003
Oakrock, Barbara; “The Street Becomes a Stage: New Roles for Roads. Streets near
many new urban projects are being defined with a complexity that recalls theatrical
set design.”, Seattle Daly Journal of Commerce, April 18, 2002; Growing Vine
Street is one of three featured projects.
Publications
Rose, Cynthia; “Jell-O Building Shaky,” The Seattle Times, December 18, 1996.
Bennett, Sam; “An Idea Grows on Vine Street,” Daily Journal of Commerce,
July 10, 2000.
Russell, John; “Will Water Flow Down Vine Street?”, Downtown Source,
February 9-15, 1998.
Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs Grant ($40,000)
Cameron, Mindy; “An Election Winner Already: Seattle’s Neighborhoods,” Seattle
Times, October 12, 1997; editorial speaking enthusiastically about Belltown and
Growing Vine Street.
“Tales of Transformation,” Orion Afield, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 6-7.
Seattle Public Utilities One Percent for the Fund
Waddell, Greg; “Growing Vine Street,” Arcade, September 1998.
Contributions from the Neighborhood ($20,000)
Williams, Scott; “Belltown Comes of Age,” including “The Urban Place of Choice,”
“The Greening of Belltown,” and “Art: Linking Belltown to the Northwest,” insert
in Washington CEO Magazine, June 2003.
Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street
Daily, Laura; “Carolyn Geise,” Natural Home, September/October 2003, p. 120.
Daily, Laura; “Natural Home Earth Mover: Carolyn Geise Thinks the City of Seattle
Could Use a Good Dictionary,” Natural Home Magazine, September/October 2003.
Presentations
Enlow, Clair; “Growing Vine Street Takes Root at 81 Vine,” Seattle Daily Journal of
Commerce, September 5, 2001.
Carolyn Geise has made so many presentations about the Growing Vine Street
project that she cannot remember them all. They started with a presentation at the
National Urban Forestry Conference, American Forests, in the fall of 1998. A more
recent presentation, entitled “Infrastructure as Art,” was given at the National
Conference of Grant Makers in the Arts - The Edge Tour in October 2003.
“Fighting for the Soul of Belltown.”
Geise, Carolyn; “The Making of a Neighborhood,” Arcade, summer 1997.
Geise, Carolyn, FAIA; “Watching Vine Street Grow.”
“Growing Vine Street 1997,” Center City Mosaic, A Summary of Plans, Gaps, and
Outcomes Since 1985, December 18, 2000; a publication by City Design,
Department of Design, Construction & Land Use.
Hayden, Bray and Lowe, Justin; “Provacateur: A Conversation with Buster
Simpson,” Column 5, Journal of Architecture, University of Washington, vol. XVI,
2002.
King County Grant ($20,000)
King County WaterWorks Grant ($5,000)
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Matching Fund ($60,000)
81 Vine Home Owners Association
81 Vine LLC ($50,000)
Diers, Jim; “Neighborhood Power: Building Community the Seattle Way,”
published by University of Washington Press, December 2004.
Enlow, Clair; “A Watershed Moment on a Belltown Street,” Seattle Daily Journal of
Commerce, February 19, 2003.
Growing Vine Street Concept
Committee of 33 ($7,500)
John Diers was the Director of Seattle’s Department of Neighborhoods during much
Growing Vine Street’s planning process. He, too, has made numerous presentations
on the project, including ones in Paris, France; Havana, Cuba; Victoria, B.C.; and
Tokyo, Kyoto, and Kobe, Japan. Needless to say, Jim has also presented the
Growing Vine Street story to numerous classes and organizations in Washington and
in other American cities, such as Glendale, Chicago, Cleveland, and Cincinnati.
Other presentations have been made by Buster Simpson, the artist and designer for
the Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street, and by Tom Hinkley, professor at the
University of Washington, on the subject of sustainable design in the city.
Geise Architects ($14,500)
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Small and Simple Grant ($10,000)
Seattle Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs ($81,000)
Seattle Public Utilities One Percent for Arts Fund
Contributions from the Neighborhood ($5,000)
Cistern Steps at the Belltown P-Patch
Committee of 33 ($11,500)
Geise Architects ($14,000)
Intracorp ($30,000)
King County WaterWorks Grant ($50,000)
Holt, Gordy; “Vine Street Not Yet What It May Be Cracked Up to Be,” Seattle Post
Intelligencer, February 2, 1998.
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Matching Fund ($111,500)
Seattle Department of Neighborhoods Opportunity Grant ($200,000)
Lucas, Eric; “Rebuilding Belltown,” Seattle Magazine, October 1997
Seattle Neighborhood Street Fund 2002 ($25,000)
Messina, John L.; “Growing Vine Street: An Ambitious Effort to Transform a
Belltown Street,” Downtown Source, January 1997.
Seattle Neighborhood Street Fund 2003 ($25,000)
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Appendix D: Acknowledgements
Beckoning Cistern at 81 Vine Street
Growing Vine Street Concept
Design Team
City of Seattle
Technical Review
Peggy Gaynor, Gaynor Landscape Architects
Department of Construction and Land Use
Bob Anderson, PLS, W&H Pacific
Geise Architects
Department of Neighborhoods
Gary L. Wiggins, PE, W&H Pacific
Theodore Hammer, Structural Engineer
Department of Transportation
Brad Bastin, PE, W&H Pacific
Buster Simpson, Public Artist
Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs
SvR Design Company
Seattle Design Commission
Swenson Say Faget, Structural Engineering
Sponsoring Businesses
Neighborhood Organizations
El Gaucho
Geise Architects
Intercorp
81Vine LLC
Construction
Denny Hill Association
Kruse Brothers Company, General Contractors
Denny Regrade Community Council
Teuful Landscape Installation
Friends of Belltown P-Patch
Alpha Graphics
Housel Photo
Fabrication Specialties
Friends of P-Patch
Archteck
International Kitchens
Balfour Place
Macrina Bakery
Other Agencies and Organizations
Baylis Brand Wagner Architects
Millionairs Club
Cistern Steps at the Belltown P-Patch
Supporting Businesses
Crime Prevention Council
Design Team
Bethel Temple
NBBJ
King County
Don Carlson, Carlson Architects
Carpenter Hall
Oening Company
Port of Seattle
Classic Lines
Polygon Financial
Coho Real Estate
Ponderosa Players
Continental Plaza
Razz M'Tazz, Inc. II Downtown
Cottage Press
Regrade Dispatch
Demolition Man
Seattle Art Supply
Denny Regrade BIA
Shallots Asian Bistro
Denny Regrade Business Associates
Skyway Luggage
Driscoll Architects
Stuart Silk Architects
Egberts
The 81 Vine Building
Peggy Gaynor, Gaynor Landscape Architects
Buster Simpson, Public Artist
Design Team
Sparling, Electrical
Don Carlson FAIA, Carlson Architects
SvR Design Company
Peggy Gaynor, Gaynor Landscape Architects
Greg Waddell, Carlson Architects
Marni Heffron, Heffron Transportation
Buster Simpson, Public Artist
Construction
Aidan Stretch, Sustainable Development Group
___________________________
Greg Waddell, Carlson Architects
Construction Oversight
Funding Research
Ewing & Clark
Two Bells Tavern
Carolyn Geise
William Nims, W&H Pacific
Hadley Holding Company
Western Vine Carribbean Cafe
Harbor Properties
William Traver Gallery
Hensel Design Studio
Windermere Realty
Barbara Oakrock
Hewitt Isley Architects
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Growing Vine Street Steering Committee
Event Participants
Carolyn Geise, Chair
Lloyd Adaust
Delane Heaton
Todd Nordling
Dale W. Blindheim
Seline Albee
Turner Helton
Rebecca Oasterwyk
Don Carlson
Sandi Anderson
Lisa Hendricks
Martin A. Paup
Catherine Chaney
Robert Aronson
Jeff Herman
Christopher Peragine
Henry B. Ciccone (Ciderman)
Robert Ball
David Hewitt
Sandy Pernitz
Gregory Coomer
Kari Bohi
Kenneth Himma
Cindy Pock
David Craven
Spencer Brady
Dana Jaasaud
Louie Raffloer
Jennifer Donnette
Kevin Bunch
Mell Jackson
Lisa Renoe
Kurt Dunphy
Glenda Cassutt
Bill Jobe
Koryn Rolstad
Claudia Scholz Ebling
Linda Ciotti
Jim Jonassen
Betsy Rowley
Janis Ford
Kevin Colby
Stuart Keeler
Allyn Ruth
Peggy Gaynor
Bruce Cowan
Craig Kolbitz
Mary Alice Shea
Joseph Turner Helton
Tom Crisalli
Skip Kotkins
Norka Shedlock
Tina Hendricks
Shane Dewalt
Elaine La Tourelle
Joshua Skolnik
Sandi Hogben
Juiliette Engle
Mandy Langloas
Brent Standlee
Susan Risner Hurley
Clair Enlow
Todd Lawson
Julie Stedman
Bea Kumasaka
Paup Enterprises
Karin Link
Diane Sugimura
Glenn MacGilvra
Daniel Fortine
Lisa Luppino
Barbara Swift
Dave Marberg
Paul Fuesel
Jack Mackie
Judy Tucker
Gerald McGinnis
Rolan Bert Garner
Carl and Michelle Mahaney
Penny Vielma
Barbara Oakrock
Jim Gartrell
Renie Malik
Marcia Wagoner
Robert Rubin
Allison Gates
Evan Mather
Shauna Walgren
Eulah Sheffield
Helen Glynn
Joyce Maux
Susan Wessman
Barbara Sheldon
Barbara Goldstein
Tim Mitchell
Shirley Westfall
Buster Simpson
Lynnette Goodman
Aaron Mollick
Randy Wilcox
Julie K. Stedman
Linda Graczyk
Jane Mooney
Professor Daniel Winterbottom
Aidan Stretch
Tom Graff
Joseph Moses
Sandra Woods
Tom von Schraderi
Philip Grega
Virginia Mugfard
Gitte Zweig
Peter J. Voorhees
Claire Gruenewoldt
John Nagy
Greg Waddell
Monica Harris
Kenichi Nakano
Maura Woodwlll
Wilber Hathaway
Don Nelson
Myke Woodwell
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