Tax-deductible donations!
We are now a 501(c)(3) charity. Check with your employer about matching donations, and visit GuideStar to check our tax-exempt status.
New: Drainage plan required
IRG must develop a master drainage plan because its 3-warehouse Greenline Business Park would create more than 50 acres of impervious surface.
This is the first time in the city of Federal Way's history that the provision has been triggered, city officials said. The study could take 1-2 years.
Read more: Projects page
A Project primer
New to the cause? Start here:
Warehouse A: 225,950 square; 600+ trees lost to construction.
Warehouse B: 217,300 square feet, 800+ trees lost to construction.
Greenline Business Park: 3 warehouses totaling 1.1 million square feet; hundreds of trees lost to construction.
The trails: No guarantee that trails will remain or be open to the public.
The traffic: More than 800 semi-trucks, nearly 4,600 passenger vehicles frequenting the campus every day.
NEW: Warehouse A is closer
The city soon will issue a SEPA (environmental) determination on Warehouse A. SEPA has a 14-day comment period; a land-use permit decision will come at the end of the SEPA comment period.
The city's decisions become final unless appeals are filed within 14 days.
More info: Projects page; city's FTP site.
"We will save the forested lakeshore and trails of the former Weyerhaeuser Campus in Federal Way."
-- Dow Constantine, King County Executive, announcing his 2018 Land Conservation Initiative to save 65,000 acres of forests, farmlands, shorelines and trails
Save Weyerhaeuser Campus is working to ensure that the new owners develop the 430-acre campus in a manner that protects its unique natural features, preserves its open spaces and maintains its character as required by the 1994 annexation ordinance and concomitant agreement. Our mission is:
- Protecting the west shoreline of North Lake, the rhododendron garden and the bonsai collection.
- Preserving wildlife habitat and crucial watershed land -- the forests and meadows of the campus -- as well as its trails and public access to them.
- Maintaining the character of the campus through high-quality development that blends with the environment and brings living-wage jobs to the community.
$750k received for conservation effort!
The state Capital Budget, passed in January, included $250,000 for Weyerhaeuser open space conservation. Then, the state's supplemental budget passed later in the session added $500,000 to that! The money will be used by land-conservation nonprofit Forterra in its efforts to negotiate purchase of portions of the campus.
Read more about on the Conservation page.
Campus named to state preservation group's 'Most Endangered Places' list
The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation has named the former Weyerhaeuser Corporate Campus to its 2017 Most Endangered Places list. Read our nomination of the campus. The Trust made special presentation at the June 6 Federal Way City Council meeting.
This is the Trust’s 25th year of bringing awareness to buildings, sites and historic places around the state that are threatened by development or neglect. Of 150 properties the Trust has named to its list during that time, 100 have been saved. This means that SWC has gained another significant partner in efforts to preserve, protect and retain the unique character of the campus.
The announcement was made May 20 at the Trust's "Vintage Washington" event, featuring a video that includes rare audio interviews with George Weyerhaeuser and the renowned landscape architect Peter Walker, whose design integrated the headquarters building with its environment. Also interviewed were Save Weyerhaeuser Campus President Lori Sechrist and board member Debra Hansen.
QUOTABLE:
"... if you see another building as you look up the valley or look down the lake, it does real harm to the initial building." -- Peter Walker, campus landscape architect
"I would hope the new uses would be not totally incompatible with the quality of that which is already there." -- George Weyerhaeuser
“Due to its exceptional historic and architectural significance, particular care must be taken with any new development. New buildings must be sensitive to the original design philosophy of the campus, which emphasized integration with the landscape and environmental sensitivity.” --The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation
----- UPDATES -----
IRG application calls for 3 more warehouses -- more than 1 million square feet -- on north end of the campus. Visit our Projects page.
See forested land lost if IRG warehouses are approved. Visit the Maps page
We're on Instagram! Follow us: saveweyerhaeusercampus
Visit our Meetings page to watch citizen testimony at council meetings.
Get contact info for elected officials here.
TAKE ACTION!
- Urge the City Council to keep industrial development off the campus, preserve the west shoreline of North Lake for public use and protect the Rhododendron and Bonsai gardens.
- Attend a City Council meeting: usually the first and third Tuesdays of each month at 7 p.m. at City Hall. Sign up to speak. Even your presence can speak volumes.
- Educate yourself on this site and read application documents on the city site.
- Help pay for traffic, wetland, architectural and legal experts: Donate now
- Add your voice to the conversation on Facebook.
- Contact us: savethecampus@gmail.com, 253-237-4432
"When the change is for all time, and involves a unique physical asset, I think we have to weigh it very, very carefully to see what price we are going to have to pay for economic progress."
George Weyerhaeuser, in a 1969 Sports Illustrated interview
Historic campus is worth saving
See what regional preservation organizations are telling the city.
Demand appropriate development
Why is the city allowing industrial uses on a corporate campus?
Trees traded for warehouses
Site plan proposes 3 warehouses near the Technology Center
Watch citizen comment about the campus at City Council meetings.
Watch more citizen comments from 2016-17 council meetings.