King County wants big ideas with little footprint for forest camping structures

Winning design will get $4,500; public will get great overnight ‘green’ lodging

With more than 26,000 acres of parks and open space featuring trails, tall trees and cool streams – all less than an hour’s drive from downtown Seattle – King County Parks offers a convenient escape from the daily grind.

Now King County Parks wants to provide its visitors with a unique way to extend that escape to overnight by installing comfortable and environmentally responsible sleeping structures – and they are looking for some creative help in designing such a structure.

King County Parks and the King County Solid Waste Division’s GreenTools Program have partnered to create a competition to design an overnight structure using a surplus cargo container that can be staged at appropriate sites in King County Parks’ open space areas.

“We are looking for designs that integrate the principles of conservation, sustainability, public recreation, aesthetics and forest stewardship,” said King County Parks Director Kevin Brown. “This is intended to be a fun and creative contest that will provide us with a practical design that overnight parks users will enjoy.”

The winning design will receive a $4,500 award. Contest details and rules are at http://www.kingcounty.gov/recreation/parks/partners/littlefootprint.aspx.

The challenge is to create a design that creates a comfortable and durable sleeping area from a 20-foot-long steel cargo container, and that takes into account the rugged forested parts of King County where it would be placed. King County Parks has identified multiple sites for potential installation of the winning design and will finalize the site once the winning design has been chosen.

All architects, designers, hobbyists, students, builders and generally creative people are encouraged to apply. There is no fee to apply and the competition closes Aug. 22.

A panel of judges will be convened by King County to rate the submitted proposals, with the winner announced at the Built Green Conference on Sept. 14. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2012, and site installation is expected to occur in summer 2012.

The GreenTools Program is designed to help all King County stakeholders green their built environment while addressing critical environmental issues, such as global warming, critical habitat restoration and solid waste reduction.

In 2008, King County passed the Green Building and Sustainable Development Ordinance that requires capital projects to meet either LEED standards or integrate cost-effective sustainable development practices into infrastructure projects.

# # #

King County Parks - Your Big Backyard - offers more than 200 parks and 26,000 acres of parks and natural lands, including such regional treasures as Marymoor Park and Cougar Mountain Regional Wildland Park, 175 miles of regional trails and a world-class aquatic center. By cultivating strong relationships with non-profit, corporate and community partners, King County Parks enhances park amenities while reducing costs. Learn more at http://www.kingcounty.gov/parks/.

Related information

Little Footprint Big Forest

King County Parks