ZymoGenetics' Steam Plant Facility: A Brief History
ZymoGenetics is located in the historic City Light Steam Plant building on Seattle's Lake Union. Built in 1914 to address a burgeoning city's increasing demands for electricity, the Steam Plant generated power for Seattle for the next seven decades.
In September 1987, after 70 years of service, the Steam Plant was decommissioned. The following year, both the Steam Plant and the adjacent Hydro House were designated Historical Landmarks by Seattle's Landmarks Preservation Board. In 1993, ZymoGenetics purchased both of the buildings and began a year-long, $25 million dollar transformation. Once technological wonders of the industrial age, the buildings rose again as a cutting-edge research facility in the era of biotechnology. Following guidelines set forth by the Landmarks Preservation Board, the exteriors of the buildings retain their original character and architectural features, including six replicas of the original seven smokestacks. The grandeur of the Steam Plant with its smoke stacks rising in the sky makes the building a readily recognized landmark in Seattle.
The restored smokestacks and the industrial
profile of the Steam Plant's faade belie
the innovative, award-winning remodel of
its interior spaces. The modernist design
and resident collection of thought-provoking
artwork by contemporary Northwest artists
lend an artistic aesthetic to the lives
of the scientifically creative populace
of ZymoGenetics.
The most recent addition to the ZymoGenetics campus is the Earl Davie Building, across the street from the Steam Plant and Hydro House. Constructed in 1998, the Earl Davie Building at once captures the essence of the adjacent historic buildings while complementing them in an award-winning modern architectural interpretation.
In addition to the redevelopment of the buildings themselves, the lakeside on which the ZymoGenetics campus resides has been revitalized to provide amenities shared by employees and local community members alike. Included is a 350-foot floating dock from which kayaks and rowing shells may be launched and bald eagles observed soaring over the lake. A public deli is located in the adjacent Hydro House, which is available to the local community as a public meeting space.
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