Walsh Bishop..Meet Your New Building!
Last Friday was a gorgeous summer day and one in which Walsh Bishop employee/owners were formally introduced to our new building. The afternoon started out with tours of the building from top to bottom, and was followed by a family picnic at Boom Island. Many people were amazed at the incredible architectural details found in this old building that interestingly, started out as a candy factory. In fact, on the roof of the building is a large vat in which you can still detect the scent of molasses! Meanwhile, the building renovation continues at full-steam with alot of recent demolition and importantly, a decision regarding the type of elevator that will be installed.
Finally, this week Walsh Bishop launched an internal “Name Your Building” Contest. The name should speak not only to the building, it’s history and neighborhood, but also to Walsh Bishop and our own identity. Importantly, it should resonate with other tenants and tell a story. Watch this website for a formal name announcement in September!
A Month of Practice Building
May was a busy month for Walsh Bishop’s LEAP Task Team! At Walsh Bishop, LEAP stands for “Leaders in Environmental Awareness and Protection.” The LEAP Task Team raises sustainability awareness, educates and provides a framework for sustainable design and operational decisions. In May, the LEAP Task Team presented Walsh Bishop’s mid-year sustainability report and created master specifications for indoor air quality (IAQ) management, environmental procedures and requirements for products. In addition, after identifying the industry need for improved logistics and management, the LEAP Task Team developed three tools that will streamline Walsh Bishop’s internal sustainable design process and provide additional value to our clients.The first tool is the Cost of LEED Matrix which identifies historic costs associated with each LEED credit. This document was produced from renowned sources, as well as from input by leading local contractors. It will be a valuable tool for guiding the Owner to feasible LEED points; and will be a great companion document to energy modeling and life cycle reports that are produced to identify payback. The second tool is the Project Management Checklist for LEED. The checklist is based on the services described in AIA Contract Document B214 Standard Form of Architect’s Services - LEED Certification. Using this document will aid in accurate budgeting, staffing, project expectation and production during each phase of the project. Lastly, the LEAP Task Team created the Checklist of Reference Standards for LEED, which will simplify the scope and technical responsibilities required by LEED projects.These innovative tools further enhance our commitment to, and experience with, sustainable design practices.
Take Me Out To The Ballgame!
Despite temperatures in the low 40’s and a hint of snowflakes, the Walsh Bishop softball team was warmed up and rarin’ to play at our first softball game of the 2008 season last Monday.
Walsh Bishop has sponsored a softball team in the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board’s Architect League for more than seven years. Playing every Monday at the Lake Nokomis ball fields is a great way for us to enjoy working together as a team in a fun and relaxed environment, as well as to share some friendly competition with our rival architectural firms. Did I mention that Walsh Bishop was undefeated last season? We also started this season with a win last week and although I sense a repeat of last year’s stunning season, only time will tell!
Play ball!
Walsh Bishop Cleans Up!
On Saturday April 19, Walsh Bishop participated in the Minneapolis Earth Day Watershed Clean up at Lake Nokomis. Our group met early in the morning, clad in blue in support of Architect 2030’s No Coal Initiative; signed up, got our gloves and yellow bags and set out to clean up the park. Walking along the waterfront and along the beach the trash was plentiful. We picked up empty bottles, twist ties, cigarette butts and other various items.
One fitting, yet unexpected, benefit of doing the clean up was being treated to some excellent birding. We saw a variety of species that included Black-Crested Night Herons, Great Blue Herons, Terns, Gulls, Mallards, numerous diving duck species, and a Minnesota favorite - common Loons (who serenaded us all morning.) We also received many thanks from park users and were photographed by both the news media and the Minneapolis Park Board.
After our clean up efforts, those who braved the cold were treated to an all-organic bar-b-que sponsored by the WBA LEAP Task Team. The menu consisted of bratwurst, Kettle Chips and delicious homemade treats. And no, we did not use coal - it was a propane grill! A special congratulations to Paul Hand for picking up the most trash in our group! He received the winning prize basket consisting of a tire gauge, energy efficient light bulbs, and a DVD of CNN’s Planet in Peril.
See you in 2009!
ESOP Conference Energized and Educated
At Walsh Bishop, we think we’re pretty special for a variety of reasons, one of which is that on January 1, 2008 we became a 100% employee owned company.
Studies consistently show that companies that combine employee ownership with participation perform better than they did prior to implementing their ESOP and better than other similar companies without an ESOP. To encourge and foster this culture of ownership, an ESOP Committee has been appointed at Walsh Bishop. The committee’s first step is educating themselves on the implications, legalities, and possibilities of being an ESOP because like everyone at Walsh Bishop, they are new to the ESOP world.
Last week, three members of the ESOP Committee, Tina Brown, Andrea Samuelson and Joe Wagner, travelled to Chicago to attend the annual conference held by the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO). This conference was designed to provide learning and networking opportunities for ESOP companies and completely energized the three about the possibilities for Walsh Bishop. “We need to educate our ESOP Committee so that we, in turn, can educate everyone else” Joe said. “We are in the process of setting this commitee up in manner that will best serve our fellow employee-owners and foster a culture of ownership and leadership at all levels of Walsh Bishop.”
Attending events such as the national conference is just one of the many ways our ESOP Committee can connect with other ESOP companies and learn more about what it really means to be an ESOP company.
