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project of the month -02.12 -hooked on phonics:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n pronunciations vary for non-locals, but for those living in and around northwest washington state, puyallup<\/span><\/em> <\/span><\/em>is a city located south of seattle.\u00a0 or southeast of tacoma, if you prefer.\u00a0 (don’t worry, locals will tell you which one, if any,\u00a0is correct).\u00a0 either way, our hearing is going due to too much rock and roll in our youth at the tacoma dome,\u00a0 so we are have trouble nailing it down.\u00a0 no worries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n the name comes from the native american puyallup tribe.\u00a0 \u201cpuyallup\u201d means the generous people.\u00a0 <\/span><\/em>we can see that.\u00a0 nice people, nice city and nice architectural sensibilities.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n take the puyallup city hall, for instance.\u00a0 designed by the mighty mithun firm on the great alaskan way <\/span><\/em>in nearby seattle, this building absolutely sings with massing and materiality.\u00a0 we say \u201cmighty\u201d for a reason.\u00a0 mithun architects provided the architectural, interior design, and landscaping services for this private-public stunner.\u00a0 (http:\/\/mithun.com\/projects\/project_detail\/puyallup_city_hall_block\/<\/a><\/a>)<\/span><\/p>\n the team at mithun has\u00a0managed to <\/span>join the public and private realms with a\u00a0project that accommodates shops on the main street front and a public plaza +\u00a0courtyard + landscape to be enjoyed by all.\u00a0 moreover, the mixing of a material pallet that includes concrete, brick, glass,\u00a0wood, plants, lights and zinc,\u00a0could have been a disaster in less skilled hands.\u00a0 mithun makes it happen with an ease that doesn’t shout for or demand attention.\u00a0 instead, it\u00a0has a\u00a0subtle and sweet finesse that sneaks up on you.\u00a0 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The only thing we’re concerned about is that drivers passing this building too fast will suddenly slam on their breaks and cause accidents! (\u201cwhoa!\u00a0 what was that?\u201d)\u00a0<\/span><\/em> closer inspection (of the zinc first, of course) reveals zinc panel sizes intentionally rendered so that the reveals line up with the mullions.\u00a0 sounds easy.\u00a0 hard to do once paper meets the reality of construction.\u00a0 by the way, the zinc was expertly installed by locals:\u00a0 architectural sheet metal of puyallup.\u00a0 (www.architecturalsheetmetal.com<\/a><\/a>) <\/span><\/p>\n we believe that the installers’ local pride, combined with their craftsmanship, speaks for itself.\u00a0 but, because this is a blog, we will mention that the vertical interlocking wall panels were drawn in such a way that they\u00a0create texture as they\u00a0draw the eye to the sky.\u00a0the vertical columns above the brick massing at the street front intensify this effort.\u00a0wrapping the zinc around to the nearby fascia brings the eye back to the other elements, including the glass and the wood soffit.\u00a0the brick base box anchors the ensemble to the lively street. <\/span><\/p>\n everywhere you turn, the materiality of this building plays out like a small symphony.\u00a0 quiet and confident \u2014 not like great grandma cranking out show tunes on her 1970s hi-fi at\u00a0full volume in the room down the hall.\u00a0 no, this building is more like a drive along the ocean\u00a0on a sunday afternoon, or a windswept field on an open prairie.\u00a0 calm with an element of the uncontrolled.\u00a0 and yet, somehow, it is\u00a0being controlled.\u00a0 generous <\/span><\/em>in it’s own way.<\/span><\/em>\u00a0 enough said.<\/span><\/p>\n we hope you go by this project.\u00a0get off i-5 for a few moments and take a look.\u00a0 if you dig architecture, you’ll be glad that you did.\u00a0 on the way, you can practice non-local variations of the name: \u201cpju-AWL-ep\u201d \u2026 \u201cpew-owl-up\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0\u2026\u201dpew-awl-ap\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0\u201dhello? hooked on phonics?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n enjoy -vm <\/span><\/p>\n photos by gilbertson photography.\u00a0 (www.gilbertsonphotography.com<\/a><\/a>) <\/span><\/p>\n