Environmental Works is excited to announce that the talented Barker Landscape Architects (BLA) team joined EW on January 1, 2019. BLA has partnered with EW on dozens of projects over the past 20 years, and shares EW’s commitment to community engagement and responsive, inclusive design. Some of our current collaborations include the Edmonds Waterfront Center and Waterfront Redevelopment, East Whatcom Regional Resource Center Building #2, Mercer Slough Blueberry Farm Retail Building and Heritage Trail Extension, Everett Safe Streets Supportive Housing, and a new affordable family housing development in Omak.
Founder John Barker launched BLA in 1990, after several years as a park planner with the City of Bellevue. His career in the public sector strengthened his commitment to open space projects, expansive accessibility, and the meaningful involvement of end users in the design process. These principles have guided BLA in the design and creation of dozens of beautiful outdoor spaces, from community gardens, to waterfront parks, to playgrounds, to environmental education areas, to trail systems. A sampling of their projects includes the Carkeek Park Playground in Seattle (featuring an iconic salmon slide), Mukilteo Lighthouse Park, Kirkland’s Heritage Park, Sail River Heights in Neah Bay, multiple parks along the Edmonds Waterfront, Seattle’s Bradner Gardens, and Bellevue’s Mercer Slough Nature Park.
As John reflected on the next chapter for his practice, he realized that longtime partner Environmental Works would be an ideal home for his colleagues and projects. Recognizing the value that enhanced in-house services would provide our clients and the collaborative community spirit that BLA brings to the design process, EW enthusiastically agreed. BLA’s Nic Morin, Peter Cromwell, and Rebecca Christy have now joined us at Fire Station 7, and John will continue to be engaged as an emeritus member of the team. We look forward to closely collaborating with this creative, responsive, and thoughtful crew in fully integrating gardens, outdoor gathering spaces, and all the site features that contribute to the beauty, functionality, and sustainability of our nonprofit clients’ projects.