 09.15.2018 — On Saturday, September 15th, MKA staff, family, and friends came together at Magnuson Park in Seattle for our yearly Community Service project. This year MKA partnered with the Children’s Garden at the park to complete several projects enhancing the space. MKA designed and built one adult and two child-sized picnic tables (both with wheelchair accessible ends), two secure tool bins, two sets of three nesting benches, a custom-built outdoor sink, as well as, completing a full day of gardening work! Although the weather threatened rain and sprinkled a bit at times, the team was able to complete all the projects planned. This is the 5th year of MKA’s Community Service project, serving five community partners. Engineers Kelsey Price and Jennifer Diggs led the project and breakout Team Leaders put in hours of design and pre-planning for the event. The Children’s Garden Team expressed the utmost gratitude, which is undoubtedly the biggest mark of success! #MKAServiceDay #MKAwesome » 2018 MKA Community Service Day |
 08.28.2018 — As another summer comes to a close, so does another successful Food Frenzy event in Seattle! Food Frenzy is a fun competition between local Seattle businesses to raise money to support Food Lifeline, an organization dedicated to ending hunger in Western Washington. MKA goes head-to-head against other firms in the A/E/C industry raising money for this worthy cause. For two weeks in July, our staff participated in creative activities and events, including bake sales, a wine raffle and tasting, tickets auctioned off for a homecooked summer barbeque, an in-office “art walk,” and more. MKA upped the competitive spirit within the office with a jeopardy game night, arcade tournament, and cornhole match, pinning colleague against colleague for some extracurricular excitement! This year MKA raised a total of $8,745, and since every dollar contributes four complete meals to families in need, that’s 34,980 meals! We look forward to surpassing this total again next year as we all work together to fight hunger in our communities! In an effort to further give back and keep the spirit of Food Frenzy alive year round, MKA employees are now participating in a volunteer night every last Tuesday of each month. Staff members volunteer to sort and repack donated and rescued food that will be distributed to over 300 food banks, meal programs, and shelters throughout Western Washington. To find out more about Food Lifeline or to donate, click here. Thank you to all who participated in Food Frenzy 2018! » Food Frenzy 2018 Recap |
 08.18.2018 — MKA celebrated summer in style at our annual MKA Summer Event. This year staff and their families enjoyed a day at the Seattle Sounders Soccer match. It was a beautiful day and also a lucky day for the Sounders vs. the LA Galaxy. The final score... Sounders 5, Galaxy 0. » MKA Summer Event at the Sounders |
 06.07.2018 — MKA is proud to announce our Senior Associate and Associate promotions — as these individuals continue to raise the bar and heighten industry expertise at MKA. SENIOR ASSOCIATES left to right (group): Tyler Ranf, Ph.D., P.E., S.E. — Aviation and Vibration Technical Specialist Janet Ranf, P.E., S.E., LEED AP — Cultural Building Specialist and MKA Continuing Ed Leader Danny Currit, P.E., S.E. — High-Rise and Steel Technical Specialist Amy Haaland, P.E., S.E. — Hospitality and Residential Specialist top center: Matt Streid, S.E. — High-Rise Office Specialist ASSOCIATES: bottom center: Josh Mouras, P.E., S.E. left to right (group): Greg Rogers, P.E., S.E., LEED AP » 2018 Senior Associates and Associates Promotions |
 04.09.2018 — On Monday, April 9th, we celebrated the retirement of our friend and colleague, Drew Gangnes. Drew’s family, clients, and MKA staff past and present were on hand to celebrate the occasion. Ron Klemencic and Matt Jones presented Drew with a gift — a donation to the Peace Corps in his name. The Peace Corps is near and dear to Drew’s heart and played a big role to the start to his civil engineering career. We also enjoyed the most amazing "Green Roof" cake! Congratulations Drew! We are excited to see what the next chapter holds for you! » Drew Gangnes Retirement Celebration |
 02.05.2018 — MKA is proud to announce Senior Principal and Principal promotions for 2018. Rob Chmielowski, P.E., S.E. — Design Leader for the Office Building Specialist Group, Rob has designed offices worldwide including towers up to 90 stories and multiple-block developments up to 3.8 million square feet. Rob recently led the successful completion of 150 North Riverside in Chicago, a multiple-award-winning 750-foot-tall office tower balancing on a 39-foot-wide base due to its constrained building site. Matt Jones, P.E., LEED AP BD+C — Design Leader for the Civil Engineering Group, Matt brings a broad perspective to his designs. His focus has been on the development of public spaces achieving highly sustainable outcomes incorporating innovative stormwater intervention. Matt is an active member of the William J. Worthen Foundation Water Reuse Guide Working Group that recently launched the Onsite Non-Potable Water Reuse Practice Guide. MKA has also elevated four individuals to Principal: Robert Baxter, P.E., S.E. – Robert is the leader of MKA’s Advanced Geometry Technical Specialist Team. Leif Johnson, P.E., S.E., LEED AP – Leif is the leader of MKA’s Wood and Sustainability Technical Specialist Teams. Ian McFarlane, P.E., S.E. – Ian is the leader of MKA’s Foundations and Concrete Technical Specialist Teams. Brian Morgen, Ph.D., P.E., S.E., LEED AP – Brian is the leader of MKA’s Performance-Based Seismic Design Technical Specialist Team. » 2018 Sr. Principal and Principal Promotions |
