University YMCA Wins National Award

The newly constructed University YMCA has won the National Award of Excellence in Educational Facilities from the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) at their annual cer­emony in Denver this year.

The award is in its 20th year; the DBIA recognizes projects around the nation that demonstrate the best prac­tices in several design-based categories.

Opened in December of 2014 the University Y—located on 1710 Market Street—has been a staple to the UWT experience. With new office space, equipment, locker rooms, weight and cardio rooms, and an NCAA-size bas­ketball court, the $19,827,000 and 70,238 square foot facility is something UWT can be proud to call their own.

The building has been awarded the local Tacoma-based Ghilarducci Award, presented by the Tacoma- Pierce County Chamber’s 2015 New Tacoma Awards. The award is won annually by businesses, organizations, and individuals who are a part of the revitalization of downtown Tacoma. The Ghilarducci Award recognizes suc­cessful new development, renovation, or beautification of buildings in the downtown sector.

In July, the University Y won a Na­tional Award of Merit in Educational Facilities, which was followed by the National Award of Excellence.

The project was taken on by Mortenson Construction, a Pacific Northwest based company, and Mc­Granahan Architects. Construction was estimated to take 22 months, but it was finished in 18—four months earlier than projected by the design-build team.

Sustainability, along with work procedures and accident counts are some things that matter in being a contender for the DBIA National Award of Excellence. For example, dur­ing the 18-month construction period, Mortenson Construction and Mc­Granahan Architects did not report one on-the-job injury in approximate­ly 48,000 working hours.

According to a report by The Sub Times earlier this year (about the Uni­versity Y receiving the National Award of Merit in Educational Facilities), DBIA CEO Lisa Washington was quoted saying “To win a National Design-Build Project/Team Award, projects must not only achieve budget and schedule goals, but also demon­strate advanced and innovative ap­plication of design-build best prac­tices. This year’s winning projects exemplify extraordinary teaming performance.”