The Fort Ward Youth Advisory Committee, which is spearheading the effort to restore the old Fort Ward Bakery and convert it into a community center, got some good news this week. Bainbridge Island project management firm OTWB Inc. announced it will donate in-kind services valued at $10,000 to the Fort Ward Community Hall project.
Teens Eric Appleberry, Aila Ikuse, Mark Dettman, and Kate Merifield and their adult mentor Sarah Lee have already registered the building on National and State Historic Registries, raised over $11,000, commissioned the pro bono help of architect Don Ashton to draw up plans, and applied for a Rotary Youth Grant to fund signage. The Fort Ward Community Hall project is a joint undertaking of the Fort Ward neighborhood, Kitsap County Sewer District No. 7, and the Bainbridge Island Metro Park & Recreation District.
OTWB’s project portfolio includes the Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle, the IslandWood education center on Bainbridge, the Northwest African American Museum, projects for Seattle University and a seismic upgrade to the King County Courthouse.
Every year, OTWB donates a percentage of gross proceeds to in-kind services on a project of benefit to the community. The effort to restore the historic Fort Ward bakery building as a neighborhood hall fit the bill.
Tina Gilbert, principal in OTWB, explained: “We really like local youth projects, projects with island-wide impact, and seeing young people leading and learning about civic involvement. We decided this was a good place to donate our resources.”
The in-kind services donation is the first for the building restoration effort, which formally launched with fundraising and outreach in December. The donation brings the project’s to-date cash and in-kind pledge total to approximately $21,000, toward an estimated project cost of $300,000.
Ikuse, who is the president of the FWYAC, said, “We’re really grateful to have OTWB take on management of the community hall project. We hope this is the first of many in-kind contributions of services, material, and labor to make our project a reality.”
The bakery was constructed in 1910 to serve troops stationed at the Coast Artillery Corps. During World War II, the building was converted into a power station for a secret radio code-breaking effort.
Community members hope to restore the building for classes, meetings and other civic functions. It would be the first neighborhood hall at the south end of the island.
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