In the shadow of Mt. Rainier, the pristine Nisqually River still travels on its path through the endless prairie. And on a summer day you can still see the great haze rise above Yelm Prairie and hear the ancient Nisqually whisper "s-s-s-shelm...." The listless call of the wild upon the grasses became our point of divergence for the design of this cinema.
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It is this call of the grasses, which lured our client to invest in the revitalization of her hometown after amassing wealth in the timber industry. This cinema is the first of many civic ammenities planned for the Yelm Town Center.

















PROJECT: prairie park cinema
CLIENT: yelm prairie development
LOCATION: yelm, washington
BUDGET: $86 / sq.ft.
SIZE: 25,428 sq.ft., 8 screens [+4 expansion phase]
TEAM: wph architecture inc.: fredrick h. zal, greg good
kpff consulting engineers, interface engineering
DATE: 2000
PHOTOGRAPHY: gene faulkner
AWARDS: excellence in masonry design, masonry institute of washington, 2001