INTRODUCTION The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, in partnership with Department of Finance and Administrative Services and the Seattle Fire Department, seeks an artist to develop a permanent, site-integrated or free-standing art project for Fire Station 32 in West Seattle. BACKGROUND Fire Facilities and Emergency Response Levy In 2003, Seattle voters passed the Fire Facilities and Emergency Response Levy. The levy program provides $197 million in levy proceeds and other funding to:

• upgrade, renovate or replace 32 neighborhood fire stations;
• construct a new training facility and build a new Fire Alarm Center;
• establish emergency preparedness facilities and disaster response equipment that includes a modern, seismically safe Emergency Operations Center; emergency community supplies; emergency shelter power generators; and emergency water supply capacity for firefighting in the event the city's fire hydrants are disabled; and
• construct a new, large platform fire boat, rehabilitate and enhance the Chief Seattle fireboat, and construct a new fast attack small fire rescue boat.

Neighborhood Stations As part of the Fire Facilities Levy, the city of Seattle is replacing and relocating five neighborhood fire stations, rebuilding six stations, and renovating 20 stations. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, with the Fleets and Facilities Department and the Seattle Fire Department, has developed an art program to commission artworks that address the intersection of the firefighters and the community and that will form a distinct body of new artworks for the city’s collection. Since the passage of the levy, eight artists have been commissioned to develop artworks for eight different neighborhood fire stations. Over the next two years, three additional artists will be commissioned for upcoming projects. New stations will be built to current seismic standards; the others will undergo seismic retrofits so they have increased capability to withstand earthquakes. All of the stations in the neighborhood station program will be outfitted with systems to decontaminate firefighters and equipment from chemical, biological or other hazardous agents. The city is committed to achieving a LEED Silver rating for all rebuilt and major renovation projects over 5,000 square feet, which is the city’s standard for sustainable design. In keeping with the spirit of the city’s sustainable building policy and goals, sustainable design strategies are being integrated as part of new and remodeled neighborhood fire stations. Fire Station 32 – West Seattle Junction Located in the West Seattle Junction, Fire Station 32 currently houses an engine company, a ladder unit, a medic unit, and a reserve medic unit. The existing station was built in 1966 and is being replaced in order to create adequate space for staff and modern apparatus. The new Fire Station 32 will be built at the existing location, 3715 W. Alaska St. in West Seattle, and the new facility will be the lead station for Battalion VII, which covers all of West Seattle, southwest Seattle and Harbor Island, and the industrial areas lining both sides of the Duwamish River. Fire Station 32 is one of three stations in the city to hold a cache of emergency and medical supplies to ensure that West Seattle has supplies if isolated by an earthquake or other disaster. The anticipated footprint of the new Fire Station 32 building will comprise a significant portion of the property lot. The selected artist will be required to take into consideration the limited ground space on the lot in the design of their artwork, whether site-integrated or free-standing. Schedule Fire Station 32 is currently in the pre-design phase, but schematic design will begin in March. The artist will join the project during this phase in April/May 2013. The design development phase is anticipated to begin in September 2013 and to end in January 2014. Construction is expected to begin fall 2014, with completion in fall 2015.More information about the Fire Facilities and Emergency Response Levy and Fire Station 32 can be found at http://www.seattle.gov/fleetsfacilities/firelevy/.

• For Fire Station 32, click “Neighborhood Fire Stations” and then select “32” from the list on the right side of the page.
• For LEED certification, click “Consultant Information” and then select “Fire Station EcoCharette Reports” at the bottom of the page.

ELIGIBILITY The competition is open to established professional artists living within the Northwest (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska) and California. Artists whose work is well-represented in the city’s collection are eligible to apply, but the artist selection panel will consider artistic diversity of the collection as one factor in the selection process. No students of any level are eligible to apply. SCOPE OF WORK The selected artist will work with the community, firefighters, city staff and the design team to: 1) develop art integrated into the facility that is recognizable as artwork, or 2) create a site-specific, durable, three-dimensional, free-standing artwork. The selected artist will be required to take into consideration the limited ground space on the lot in the design of their artwork, whether site-integrated or free-standing. The artist will be asked to address the work and spirit of the firefighters and the unique character of the surrounding neighborhood. Applying artists will ideally have specific skills in designing, fabricating and installing artwork in one or more of these media:

• metal
• glass
• stone
• concrete
• ceramic
• wood
• light
• surface treatment
• sustainable design
• environmental design

Artists should have the ability to understand architectural plans and an interest in working cooperatively with design professionals, city staff and community members. Artists should have experience working in public process and public settings, and proven ability to fabricate their own work or to work with fabricators and installers. The city is committed to excellence in environmental stewardship and in sustainable building practices. We encourage artists whose work addresses issues of sustainability and “green” design to consider applying for this call. BUDGET The selected artist will receive a commission of $90,000, inclusive of all costs to design, fabricate and install artwork. The artist will first receive a contract for $10,000 to design the artwork. Following design approval, the artist will receive a contract of $80,000 for fabrication and installation of the artwork. APPLICATION DEADLINE 11 p.m., Friday, Feb. 22, 2013 (Pacific Standard Time) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

• Sixteen (16) artwork images. CaFÉTM image format instructions can be found at image prep.
• Letter of interest (not to exceed 2,000 characters)
• Resume
• References
• Other questions as specified

SELECTION CRITERIA Artists will be selected for pre-qualification on the basis of the following criteria:

• strength of past artworks,
• experience working in public settings,
• experience fabricating and installing permanent artwork and
• proven ability to work successfully in a collaborative setting.

The selection panel will also identify artists who have a demonstrated interest in and commitment to sustainability. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs is committed to reflecting the diversity and cultural richness of our city in the selection of artists and artworks. References provided as part of this application will be contacted prior to artist interviews. SELECTION PROCESS The selection process will occur in two phases: 1) a selection panel of arts professionals, client representatives and community members will review all applications and select up to four finalists, 2) the selection panel will meet for a second time to interview finalists/ finalist teams and select one artist to be awarded the project. NOTIFICATION OF RESULTS The artist selected will be notified at the conclusion of interviews and panel deliberations. Please do not call the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs. Applicants will receive notification of the panel’s decision by e-mail. The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs reserves the right not to select any of the applicants. WE’RE HERE TO HELP For questions about the project or the selection process, please contact Marcia Iwasaki at (206) 233-3946 or Marcia.Iwasaki@seattle.gov. Note, Marcia’s office hours are Monday through Thursday and she is not in the office on Fridays. For assistance with the CaFE online application process or image formatting, contact CaFE tech support at (888) 562-7232 or cafe@westaf.org.

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria