Check out this new major sculpture park project in downtown Seattle. The Seattle Art Museum purchased a 9-acre waterfront brownfield site 8 years ago when it was in the final stages of environmental cleanup and the neighborhood still pretty rough. The park has a unique architectural design (Weiss/Manfredi Architects) that surrounds and overpasses a major roadway and railroad track, exhibits almost 30 critically acclaimed sculptors (I'm a Richard Serra fan), and offers free entrance for all. The park is a new cultural asset particularly for the thousands of residents who have populated the immediate area in the last 8 years.

The project is almost as much about environmental conservation and urban planning as it is about art for a city that is growing by app. 6000 people per year. (Think about Calgary growing by 25,000 people per year!) The museum (in partnership with Fish and Wildlife Services) hired engineers and aquatic scientists to include in the structural design a restored habitat for migrating salmon. The entire project was moved ahead much faster through the joint financing of a 12 story office tower onsite, housing museum gallery spaces in the first 4 floors and commercial offices on the other 8, allowing the museum the option of taking over the entire building eventually.

It’s interesting if you look at Calgary with this lens of opportunity. We are, after all, a city with a vibrant and fast-growing arts sector, a booming economy, extensive emphasis on environmental conservation, numerous brownfield sites, and unique design challenges (including a railroad track that cuts through the inner city and a major route that divides the west and east quadrants).