Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation News

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Celebrates Groundbreaking for New Headquarters

Campus will anchor the Seattle Center and feature innovative "green" design

SEATTLE, July 22 PRNewswire-USNewswire — Melinda Gates, along with Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and more than 500 guests, will mark the groundbreaking this morning for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's new headquarters. The new headquarters — located at 500 Fifth Ave N across from Seattle's Space Needle — will feature environmentally-responsible design and a state-of-the-art visitor center. The campus will serve as headquarters for the foundation's work to reduce inequities in the United States and around the world.

"The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is proud to call Seattle home, and we are pleased to build our global headquarters in this extraordinary city," said Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda Gates. "Our new campus will be an important base for our work with our partners in Seattle and worldwide."

The new campus is scheduled to open in late 2010. Last year the foundation granted more than $2 billion through its three main giving areas — Global Health, Global Development, and its United States Program. In Washington state alone, the foundation, to date, has granted nearly $1 billion to organizations that help the state's most vulnerable children and families. Its new campus will allow the foundation to grow and collaborate in ways which will expand its work here and abroad. The visitor center is scheduled to open in 2011.

Designed by global architecture firm NBBJ, the $500 million campus will be built by Sellen Construction. It features an open, airy office environment that will foster a collaborative working environment. In keeping with Seattle's citywide sustainable building commitment, the project aims to achieve LEED Gold certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) by incorporating a number of "green" design elements.

"The Gates Foundation's new campus will embody two Seattle ideals — environmental stewardship and creating healthy communities for all," said Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels. "The campus will be a great addition to the Seattle Center, and to our city."

Construction of one of the new headquarters' greenest elements — the 1.5 acre living roof of a parking garage owned and operated by Seattle Center — is already complete. The largest of its kind in Seattle, the roof's plantings will provide a natural habitat for birds and will eventually be sustained through rainwater. In addition, extensive green spaces with sustainable landscaping will knit the campus with its neighborhood and further reduce the facility's eco-footprint.

The Gates Foundation's new headquarters will also include a 15,000 square foot visitor center where the general public can learn more about the organization's work to reduce inequities in the Pacific Northwest and around the world. Designed by Ralph Appelbaum & Associates, the visitor center will provide guests with an in-depth look at the issues the foundation champions, providing them with opportunities to learn how they can get involved in solving problems globally and in local communities.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people — especially those with the fewest resources — have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Patty Stonesifer and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation New Campus Fact Sheet

— A groundbreaking ceremony for the new campus was held on July 22, 2008.

— The 900,000-square-foot campus is comprised of two six-story office buildings, an entrance pavilion, a convening center, and a visitor center. The height of the office buildings is 85 feet; the size of the property is 12 acres.

— The campus is expected to be completed at the end of 2010.

— The foundation is targeting LEED (LEED = Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) gold certification for the campus. Some of the sustainable elements include:

— An underfloor air distribution system for ventilation which conserves energy and facilitates future space modifications. — A rainwater collection and storage system providing most of the water for non-potable uses, including irrigation, water features and toilets. — Living roof areas which serve a number of purposes, including rainwater filtration, microclimate cooling and building insulation. — Air cooled chillers and thermal energy storage which conserve water and capitalize on lower off peak air temperatures.

— Parking for foundation employees will be located under the campus and in the adjacent Seattle Center 5th Ave N Garage.

— A 15,000-square-foot visitor center will be part of the new campus. Open to the public, the center will shed light on the inequities the foundation focuses on, and inspire people to get engaged in solving problems globally and in their own communities. Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA) is designing the visitor experience. The largest interpretive museum design firm in the world, RAA designed the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and most recently the Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas.

— The cost of new campus is $500 million.

— Campus amenities include artwork and seating along 5th Avenue North between Harrison Street and Mercer Avenue.

SOURCE Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

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