Our members meetings offer the opportunity to learn about programs and projects of interest taking place in our community and through the auspices of Historic Seattle. These events are held at sites of historic or architectural interest, and a short quarterly business meeting precedes the program. Members meetings are free and we welcome members and non-members alike!
Meet at Bothell’s new City Hall, designed by Miller Hull Partnership, and hear about the Bothell renaissance and the adaptive reuse of an important cultural icon, Anderson School, into a new McMenamins hotel complex. Speakers include David Boyd, City of Bothell (COB) Senior Planner and Davina Duerr, Deputy Mayor. Joining them will be Tim Hills, Kerry Beeaker, and Emlyn Bruns, staff of McMenamins’ History Department. They will speak to the role that history plays in this, and other projects, and conduct tours of the McMenamins campus. Stay afterward for drinks and/or dinner at one of their bars (including a Tiki-themed one!) and restaurants.
Drivers headed north along Lake Washington pass the billboard pronouncing “Bothell – For a Day or a Lifetime.” This early civic boosterism has become reality due to recent planning and urban design initiatives by city government, a string of successful public/private redevelopments, and the commitment of local businesses and community support after a fire along its historic Main Street in 2016.
One of the most significant successes has been the adaptive reuse of the 1931 Bothell Junior High (later named after the school’s first Principal, Wilbert A. “Andy” Anderson). The Art Deco school, which sits on a five-acre parcel in the heart of Bothell, includes a gymnasium, wood shop, and pool. These buildings sat vacant for a number of years before McMenamins purchased the property for a boutique hotel. Working with City of Bothell, Landmarks Preservation Board, Artifacts Consulting, Ankrom Moisan Architects, school alumnae, and local history organizations, they transformed the complex into hotel rooms, a movie theater, restaurants, bars, event space, shops, and community rooms that have attracted both visitors and local residents.
Complimentary parking in City Hall Garage.
Photo: Anderson School, City of Bothell
Online registration is closed; however, admission at the door is free and open to the public. Donations accepted.