This Spring, editors at The Seattle Times advised AIA Seattle staff and the Open House Committee that the Times would no longer feature homes open for public tour, in the accustomed format of the Seattle Times/AIA Open House articles appearing in the Home-Real Estate section, and invited committee representatives and staff to discuss ways to revise the program. The discussion continues, and we don't have details of a new program to announce. However, to respond to questions from AIA Members and other followers of the program, the Committee invited our Times colleagues to answer to these questions, to help followers of the program - public and professional alike - to understand the basis for making changes in the program.

AIA Seattle Home of the Month Committee Chair Pak S. Koong AIA invites all interested AIA Seattle Members to join the Committee, which meets the first Tuesday noon of each month, as work proceeds on a revised program. Concurrently, a group spearheaded by Laura Kraft AIA with others has begun to consider alternatives for a Home Tour program, probably involving a new media partnership. Please contact Laura Kraft or AIA Seattle Program Director Peter Sackett if you'd like to take part in conceiving and putting the wheels under such a program.

Q: What factors contributed chiefly to the decision by The Seattle Times to make a change in the program known most recently as The Seattle Times/AIA Open House?
A: The Seattle Times is committed to maintaining the highest journalistic standards. To ensure the quality and integrity of content in The Seattle Times, we have an ongoing "ethics review." It's an evolutionary process. As part of this process, editors looked at the AIA program and raised concerns that requiring selected houses to be opened to the public greatly limited participation in the program, excluding the majority of homes that might otherwise qualify for entry. In addition, editors were concerned that the open houses had become much too focused on marketing the services of architects which was never the intent of the program and is not an appropriate use for news content in The Seattle Times.

Q: Will The Seattle Times/AIA Home of the Year program continue and, if so, what form might it take?
A: The Seattle Times has every desire to continue to collaborate with AIA Seattle on an event that features a Home of the Year. The form this program will take will flow out of our discussions with AIA on the entire program and will reflect changes that address the concerns we have raised. Since The Times and AIA are still in the process of determining what the new program will look like, we can't say at this point exactly what the Home of the Year event will look like.

Q: In the years since its 1954 inception, The Seattle Times/AIA program has attracted many thousands of visitors to have a direct experience of architect-designed new construction and remodels. What elements of the program have Times management, editorial staff, and readers found most valuable? Most challenging?
A: In supporting this program, The Seattle Times has sought to inform our readers about the best in residential design. The value to our readers is in the opportunity to see examples of innovation in design and materials that they can both celebrate and learn from. The issues we have raised of access to the competition and purpose of the open houses have been the challenges.

Q: Might some kind of partnership with AIA Seattle and the design community support The Times in presenting information about residential and community design, as well as other aspects of the role of architecture in the cultural, civic, and economic life of the Northwest? If so, in what ways might we work together?
A: The Seattle Times is interested in serving general readers through our coverage of residential architecture. Continuing our partnership with AIA Seattle, working with the Committee to create a redesigned program and providing coverage independent of the program all serve to feature the role of architecture in our community. Members of the design community are encouraged to keep us informed of important designs and related activities.