402 Tacoma Avenue S., Suite 200 TACOMA, WA 98402 PHONE (253) 627-4853 FAX (253) 627-2253
FRIDAY, MAY 3, 2013
Vol. CXXIV, No. 86
OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE CITY OF TACOMA Devoted to the Courts, Real Estate, Finance, Industrial Activities, and Publication of Legal Notices
Published Since 1890
Visit our Web site at www.tacomadailyindex.com
INSIDE:
LEGAL NOTICES BANKRUPTCIES LIENS ORDERS FEDERAL COURT AUDITORS OFFICE NEW BUSINESSES editor@tacomadailyindex.com
County Council committee to consider historic McMillin Bridge nomination Posted online Thurs., May 2 Article and Photo By Todd Matthews, Editor A Pierce County Council committee is scheduled to meet next week to discuss a proposed ordinance to place the 79-year-old McMillin Bridge on the county's register of historic places. The concrete bridge, which is listed on the National Register of Historic places and owned by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), has a long history in Pierce County. Built in 1934, the bridge is part of State Route 162 that connects Orting to Sumner. WSDOT officials have said the bridge is functionally obsolete and a new bridge needs to be built. WSDOT plans to build a new, $2.6 million bridge just east of the McMillin Bridge then tear down the historic bridge. Historic preservationists throughout Washington State and beyond argue the bridge is historically significant because it was designed by Homer M. Hadley, whose work contributed to bridges spanning rivers, lakes and creeks throughout Washington State. Hadley pushed for the state to build a floating concrete bridge across Lake Washington. Today, the westbound span of the Interstate 90 floating bridge
is officially named the Homer M. Hadley Memorial Bridge. The McMillin Bridge's inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places is only an honorary designation with little regulatory bearing other than what is known as "Section 106" of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. In the case of the McMillin Bridge, Section 106 requires that a federal agency consult with a range of stakeholders to determine if demolishing the bridge will have any adverse effects. Because the McMillin Bridge crosses a body of water, the Puyallup River, the lead federal agency in this case is the United States Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE). In the end, it's the Corps that will get to decide whether to issue the permit allow-
Tacoma Art Museum celebrates a decade downtown May 4
Posted online Weds., May 1 File Photo By Todd Matthews, Editor Tacoma Art Museum officials have announced a celebration will be held this weekend to mark the 10th anniversary of its headquarters building downtown. "Architect Antoine Predock saw in Tacoma's misty, muted light a great opportunity to design a building that almost disappears into its surroundings, much like how Mount Rainier fades depending on the light and weather," said museum spokesperson Lisa Terry. "The building's stainless steel skin pays homage to
its industrial, port city surroundings as its silver patina glistens in the Northwest's watery light." The museum, which is located at 1701 Pacific Avenue, will host a Birthday Spring Festival on Sat., May 4 between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. The family-oriented celebration will feature a variety of activities to choose from, including a magician, live music, and hands-on art activities. Museum admission and all festival events will be free of charge for Saturday's celebration. More information is available online at TacomaArtMuseum.org.
ing the new bridge to be built and the old bridge to come down. The ACOE is expected to make a decision later this year. In February, Pierce County's Landmarks and Historic Preservation Commission approved a nomination prepared by the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation to place the bridge on the county's register of historic places. The nomination was then forwarded to Pierce County Council's Rules and Operations Committee. A final decision to add the bridge to the county register will need to be made by the full Pierce County Council. The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation notes the bridge is an example of "engineering in its most creative, artistic expression. That is to say, the McMillin Bridge is a work of art representing engineering at its finest." "In terms of putting it on the local register, it's not as much about saving it as it is about acknowledging, again, the significance of this bridge to not just the state, not just regionally, but to the county as an important historic element of the county," Washington Trust for Historic Preservation Field Director Chris Moore told the Tacoma Daily Index in February. "The bridge not being on it is really an omission up to this point. "On the regulatory side, local ordinances are the ones that have regulatory purview, regulatory teeth, if you will," added Moore. "One hope is that by having it listed [on the Pierce County register], its future treatment will go through a process that requires full consideration of it as a historic artifact, as a historic resource. The national register confers no protections whatsoever like that. But listed locally, it ensures there will at least be a process whereby consideration must be given for its future use." Pierce County Council's Rules and Operations Committee is scheduled to discuss the proposed ordinance to place the McMillin Bridge on the county's register of historic places during its meeting on Mon., May 6 at 10 a.m. in the County-City Building, located at 930 Tacoma Avenue South, Room 1045, in Tacoma.