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Some people agree that cleaning is not a priority.
“The architecture is stunning,” Lynn McPherson said. “Dirty or not, it’s gorgeous.”
“As long as it’s structurally sound, I think that stuff is kind of overlooked,” Patrick Williams said.
McPherson and Williams are visitors to the area, participating in a border-to-border walk from Vancouver, B.C., to Tijuana, Mexico, to raise awareness and support for the homeless.
“To clean all the buildings on campus would be about a $5 million cost,” said Steve Valandra, communications director and public records officer for the Department of General Administration. “With the state’s budget situation, certain priorities are set. Cleaning the exterior of the buildings is down on the list.”
While the five-year cleaning schedule is mostly based on aesthetics, the organic buildup can eventually wear down the structure, Valandra said.
“If you don’t clean the buildings, certain things will build up that can do long-term damage if left untreated.” Valandra said. “Some of the stone can get damaged by the elements and whatever develops on the stone to eat away at it.”
As the organic material wears away the stone, Valandra said, the concerns become “water intrusion potentially leading to structural and interior damage and indoor air-quality issues, as well as deterioration of the sandstone.”
The Legislative Building was last cleaned in 2004 during a greater renovation and retrofitting of the building following the Nisqually earthquake.
Pioneer Masonry Restoration has performed the cleaning several times, including in 2004. Company president Mike Field said it would take a long time before the organic growth would endanger the structure, but he does believe it is an important icon that should be kept clean.
“I realize in tough times you don’t want to focus on the aesthetic things,” Field said. “I think on the Legislative Building itself, it should be a pretty high priority because it is such a monumental building and such a beautiful building.”
General Administration will request money for exterior cleaning in the next budget cycle, but the amount has not been determined, Valandra said.
“You can tell by looking at the Legislative Building that it doesn’t look as clean as it has in the past, but we don’t have any great concerns at this point,” Valandra said. “The state has other priorities to pay for right now.”
McPherson believes that’s the way it should be.
“There are other things that should take priority,” McPherson said. “I think most people are more interested in what’s going on inside the building than what’s on the outside.”
