William J. Bain Jr. FAIA

AIA Seattle Medal 1997, AIA Seattle President 1969
In presenting the nomination of William J. Bain FAIA (1930-2019) for the AIA Seattle Medal to the AIA Seattle Board of Directors, Honors Nominating Committee Chair Ed Weinstein FAIA noted:

"Bill Bain has shaped one of the nation's largest architecture firms around design excellence and commitment to community.  Fellow professionals and civic leaders rely upon Bill's dedicated community activism, his integrity, and his devotion to design quality.  His record of community service in and beyond his native Seattle, rarely if ever matched, exemplifies a lifelong, passionate, and thorough devotion to cultural and civic well-being.

"NBBJ projects led by Bill Bain over three decades – from Seafirst Tower to Two Union Square and the renovation of landmarks including the Olympic Hotel and the Paramount Theatre – have enriched the city's urban character and become 'owned' by its citizens.  His honorable personal and professional attributes have played a substantial role in the creation of NBBJ's extensive and important local, regional, national, and international portfolio, and the firm's reputation for making places that contribute delight and value to the urban experience.

"Community service includes extensive activities as a member of the Board of the Corporate Council for the Arts and the Seattle Symphony, where he served as Board President; the Urban Land Institute, Pacific Real Estate Institute; and Lambda Alpha, an honorary professional land economics society; as a member of the Economic Development Council for Seattle and King County and on the Seattle Rotary's Board of Directors and the Rotary Service Foundation Board; and perhaps most notably among many additional contributions, his long and ongoing involvement in the Downtown Seattle Association and his leadership as Chairman of the Board in 1991-92.

"By word, deed, and example, he has nurtured talent and leadership in the hundreds of design professionals who have worked at NBBJ over his years there, and many others who know him through extensive professional activities.  A major player in the profession, he served as President of AIA Seattle in 1969 and of AIA Washington Council in 1974, and as CoChair of the 1994 Commission that oversaw the year-long observation of the 100th Anniversary of AIA in Seattle and Washington.

"Design professionals and business colleagues of every stripe seek his counsel, invariably wise and magnanimously given. For many people across the community – business and elected leaders and neighborhood activists, architecture students and young professionals, peer colleagues and captains of industry – Bill Bain represents their picture of an architect."

References:
*HistoryLink: William J. Bain Jr.
*June 2018:  Engineering News Record Northwest Legacy Award

Other notes:
* Bill Bain's father, William Bain Sr., a founder of NBBJ profiled in Shaping Seattle Architecture: A Historical Guide to the Architects, held the first architect license (#1) issued by the State of Washington, and served as AIA Seattle President 1943-45.

Remarks by Bill Bain on receiving the Medal at the Honors Gala, held at Seattle Asian Art Musuem:
"Receiving this recognition is a very humbling experience.  It makes me step back and realize just how fortunate I am to live in this community at this time, and to practice with such an outstanding group of architects as you in the Seattle Chapter. It is a privilege I don't take lightly.

"This is clearly the greatest of evenings for me. I'm surrounded by my colleagues and friends from many firms as well as my closest colleagues and friends from NBBJ, and of course, my family including Nancy, our three sons and my brother Bob.

"It is good to see Ron Altoon again.  We were both at the ULI meeting in St. Louis a few weeks ago where he gave an outstanding luncheon address.  I especially liked your part about free registration for AIA conventions.  With that platform, you are going to be an excellent President for The American Institute of Architects.

"It is also good to see our four distinguished new Fellows, to see our distinguished Honorary Member John Skilling here tonight, and to welcome our new AIA Seattle Honorary Members, Virginia Anderson and Nancy Davidson.  I have been a not-so-secret admirer of Ginny for many years as I have watched her work with the City and the DSA, establish SHRG, and now run the Seattle Center.  You are civic treasure and you would make a great Mayor if you would ever consider it.

"And Nancy, Sunset was the first magazine to publish anything of mine after I got out of the service.  Of course, it was only a picture of a folding ironing board in a home I remodeled, but it was fun getting letters and phone calls from readers who wanted a copy of that detail.

"The Seattle Times and Pat Foote, kudos to you for the incredible work through the years introducing millions of readers to good design in our area.  Now with Mark Hinshaw's articles, we really have a knowledgeable architectural critic.

"These are good times, globally, nationally and especially in the Northwest and Seattle.  Hopefully we learned a few things from the building boom of the '80's, and we can do things better this time.  As they learned in Boston, it doesn't last forever.  In other words, this is the time and this is the place.

"So we have to ask ourselves, 'Is there anything we can do to take advantage of this special moment in time?'  Well, first we could always try to do even better work.  A really good piece of work by one firm actually benefits all firms.  Outstanding projects increase everyone's respect for architects and the profession.   For instance, there have been a number of recent projects that I think have clearly benefited our entire Chapter including the two national Honor Award winners: Medina Guest House and Bellevue Regional Library; and other recent work that makes us all proud, including the Banner Building, Piers 69 and 66, REI, Frye Art Museum, St. Ignatius Chapel.  I've spent time visiting and learning from all of these projects, and I believe that while they have done wonderful things for their own clients and architects, they have also given potential clients of all firms more confidence in seeking and taking the advice of an architect.

"Second, we could try to support each others' firms even more.  When you get right down to it, we are all on the same big team, trying to do the best job for our built environment.  If we can support each other in the process, everyone will benefit.  As we compete hard for work, we could also collaborate more on practice issues and share ways of doing things better.  Tony Callison and I used to have lunch every few months even though we competed head-to-head many times.  On our last lunch together, he said, "Bill, you need to join the Seattle Golf Club."  I said, "That doesn't make sense, Tony, I've never played golf in my life."  He said, "That doesn't matter, just hang around the locker room and you are sure to get one or two jobs."  That's the way Tony was. Later, after we won the contract for the Mariners ballpark against some powerful out of town firms, Rick Meyer and the Callison firm sent over several cases of champagne for the "Home Team."  That's great support.

"When Omer Mithun died suddenly, it caught the firm by surprise, and I got a call soon thereafter asking about ways to the handle the transition.  After helping all I could, I asked our business manager if he would go over and spend some time with them working out ways to manage things.  It's great for me to see them thriving today and to know that we provided a little support when they needed it.

"Third, we could try to do even more for our community.  Since the founding of Seattle, lots of decisions have been made that have affected Seattle's physical environment.  Many of these were good, but some were not.  There are many more decisions that are either before us now or coming up soon including, the Library location, the Government Center, downtown zoning and the football stadium.  Architects could be even more involved.

"There is probably no profession better trained or more uniquely qualified to work with and advise our civic leaders.  Sorting out complex situations and organizing solutions while working with large numbers and a wide variety of people is something that architects do well.  With their high ideals and visionary skills, architects are a natural choice for more responsibility regarding these decisions.

"AIA Seattle, with its outstanding leadership and with Marga's skillful, steady hand, represents an incredibly talented resource for this community that should not go to waste.

"For tonight, I have to thank all of you one more time and tell you again how touched and grateful I am for this recognition from you, my friends and colleagues."