Recently Seattle-based Runberg Architecture Group took home three Grand Awards at the 2016 Pacific Coast Builders Conference Gold Nugget Awards, all for Seattle designs: Astro Apartments, Odin Apartments and Block 11.

"The rapid growth that Seattle is experiencing is healthy, creating vitality and diversity," Runberg principal Brian Runberg tells us. "But the growth also requires that design teams be sensitive to preserving neighborhood characteristics and identity. These urban areas have unique characteristics to be embraced and honored—not eroded—and that represents a fundamental step toward thoughtful redevelopment."

When a design team steps into a new area, Brian adds, careful attention must be paid to the many nuances that make that neighborhood a special place. "Putting the right foot forward in a new development is a common responsibility to preserve character, while accommodating the needs of future generations.”

For example, Astro Apartments (above), near Seattle Center, site of the 1962 World’s Fair and its Googie architecture, embraces the space-age futurism aesthetic. Mid-century concepts guided design decisions at every scale, Brian says, including the overall building form, cantilevering cornices, the butterfly roof at the penthouse, façade modulation, signage and furnishings.