Grow Smart Awards 2010

Treasure Valley Community College

Green Building Award

Treasure Valley Community College (TVCC) Caldwell campus is developed and designed to be the inaugural project for the City of Caldwell’s Framework Master Plan. The anticipated LEED Gold facility consists of 39,000 square feet of classrooms, testing center, video classroom center, lecture hall, administrative offices, student activities offices, faculty offices, chemistry and biology labs, bookstore, and a retail coffee/deli shop.

The mission of TVCC is a comprehensive community college providing quality educational opportunities and cultural enhancement in a financially responsible manner. The TVCC project develops and supports activities and facilities for the civic, cultural, social, and recreational interest of the students and the community. The building’s main entrance faces the Indian Creek pathway and 6th Avenue, the pedestrian heart of downtown Caldwell. A bus stop is located on the same block and an additional bus route is being added. there are bike racks and the train station is less than two blocks north for future access to regional rapid transit. This project will help downtown businesses increase their foot traffic flow and instill an academic and youthful spirit into downtown.

The Jefferson

Residential Award

The Jefferson is one of downtown Boise’s newest residential buildings, with 40 condominiums on six floors and secure underground parking and storage. It is located within walking distance of the shopping, dining and cultural activities that make downtown Boise one of the West’s most livable cities. The exceptional design and construction quality, with a range of floor plans that fit the active urban lifestyle, are created with an environmentally responsible approach to the project. A variety of transportation choices are available due to the three block walking distance to downtown Boise and St. Luke’s Hospital and location adjacent to Valley Ride bus routes. The mix of residential, parking and storage in the Jefferson and the varied land uses surrounding the building, provide a good balance for the tenants.This project was made possible through collaborative efforts between the ownership team, Boise City Planning and Development Services, and Capital City Development Corporation to create a zone that would allow a mixed use residential project adjacent to the downtown core.

In order to preserve the natural beauty of the city, the project was constructed on a vacant parcel of ground that had been converted to a gravel surface parking lot, immediately adjacent to the downtown core and existing open spaces. The density, and mix of uses supports the goal to strengthen and direct development towards the existing community. The density and aesthetics fit perfectly with the surrounding urban core. The project capitalizes on the existing utilities adjacent the site to achieve compact building patterns and efficient infrastructure design and use.

Downtown Donnelly Revitalization

Small Community Award

The city of Donnelly has, over the past two years, embarked on a strategic effort to revitalize their downtown by improving pedestrian safety and access, creating public green space, completing beautification projects, and building community involvement. The process to revitalize downtown was designed for participation. Seven public meetings were held with average attendance near 20, a good size for a community of 138.

In 2009 and 2010, the city of Donnelly has contracted with Sage Community Resources to create a monthly city newsletter in an effort to keep the residents better informed about city projects and to encourage broader participation. The process led to a partnership with Valley County Pathways to further the vision of a county-wide system of accessible bike and pedestrian trails, including along the railway, now abandoned, that founded Donnelly. Funding and public access has been secured by Valley County Pathways for stream restoration work, creating an outdoor environmental education classroom, and building a public walking path along Boulder Creek adjacent to the Donnelly Elementary School and within two blocks of downtown.

Framework Master Plan

Public Planning & Policy Award

With the celebrated re-opening of Indian Creek and the renewed enthusiasm in the development of the downtown core area, the city of Caldwell wanted a cohesive framework master plan for responsible and planned development of a twelve city block are of the downtown core. The framework master plan provides clear and concise information to the community, agencies and developers to achieve the city of Caldwell’s development goals and objectives, and highlight opportunities available in developing a sustainable, cohesive, and well organized downtown core area.

The Plan is committed to the redevelopment and preservation of downtown Caldwell and use of the existing infrastructure. Fundamental to the framework are pedestrian friendly and safe streetscape policies and designs with sidewalk extensions, shorter crossings, and contained parking. Mixed use zoning is another fundamental component. The Master Plan is the culmination of years of encouraging community and stakeholder collaboration. Starting in 2002 with the daylighting of Indian Creek as it flows through the city center to the catalyzing Treasure Valley Community College project, the City has engaged stakeholders at the federal, state, city, and local level. Developing downtown in a sustainable and environmentally responsible manner allows people to live in healthy communities and farmland to remain close to the communities they serve.

Charles Hummel

As an architect, Charles Hummel shaped the face of Boise by designing projects such as the U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building, Boise State University Library and Student Union Building, and consulting on Downtown Boise’s mixed-use street renewal and the Grove Plaza. Charles was instrumental in renovating St. John’s Cathedral and in saving the Egyptian Theater, the old Ada County Courthouse, and the O’Farrell Cabin. Charles attended Boise Junior College and holds architecture degrees from Catholic University and Columbia University.

He has served on many arts and civic organization boards and shared his expertise in planning, historic preservation, and architecture. He has given back to our community through leadership on both Boise city and Ada County’s Planning and Zoning Commissions, St. Alphonsus Hospital Board of Directors, Downtown Boise Rotary Club, the Boise Art Museum, and the Boise Philharmonic. Charles served as the first board president of Idaho Smart Growth, a post he held for eight years.

He is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in recognition of his civic work. Charles is routinely called upon to help interpret our past and plan our future, such as by assisting Arthur Hart in the compilation of “Historic Boise” (1979); advising on traffic, Foothills Open Space, and the centennial of Julia Davis Park; and contributing to Idaho Public Television and the Idaho Capitol Commission for the reopening celebrations part of 2010 of the Idaho Statehouse early in 2010. Charles recently co-authored “Quinessential Boise; an Architectural Journey” with Tim Woodward.

Charles married Calista Ward of Boise in 1951 and they live happily in the house he designed in 1956. They are blessed with four children and three grandchildren.