Station Space at King Street Station

Seattle, Washington

Historic Preservation Meets High-Performance Design
for Youth Arts

Station Space at King Street Station transformed a previously underutilized shell within Seattle’s historic 1906 landmark into a dynamic creative hub for five youth-centered arts organizations. The tenant improvement project includes performance venues, recording studios, classrooms, meeting rooms, and office space, all designed to support community-led cultural programming. Developed in partnership with the Cultural Space Agency and the City of Seattle, the project ensures long-term affordability through a 60-year lease and brings essential arts infrastructure to a central, transit-accessible location. The architecture honors the building’s historic structure while introducing warm, modern interiors that foster collaboration, learning, and creative expression.

Ecotope provided full mechanical and plumbing design services, applying its Design for Off™ approach to deliver right-sized, low-energy systems tailored to the space’s variable occupancy. Heating and cooling are provided through water-source VRF heat pumps connected to a pre-existing ground loop system. High-efficiency dedicated outdoor air systems (DOAS) with energy recovery ensure 100% outside air ventilation, modulated by CO₂-based demand control to match real-time use. MERV 13 filtration supports healthy indoor air quality, while all-electric systems and envelope improvements help achieve a near-zero carbon target with a modeled EUI of 20 kBtu/SF/year. This award-winning retrofit demonstrates that even within the constraints of historic preservation, high-performance building systems can be seamlessly and affordably integrated.

Learn more about the project here:

• Station Space Opens at King Street Station. Art Beat, 2023
• Station Space. AIA WA, 2024