Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Celebrates Groundbreaking for New Headquarters

Campus will anchor the Seattle Center and feature innovative "green" design

SEATTLE, July 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Melinda Gates, along with Seattle
Mayor Greg Nickels and more than 500 guests, will mark the groundbreaking this
morning for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's new headquarters. The new
headquarters -- located at 500 Fifth Ave N across from Seattle's Space Needle
-- will feature environmentally-responsible design and a state-of-the-art
visitor center. The campus will serve as headquarters for the foundation's
work to reduce inequities in the United States and around the world.

"The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is proud to call Seattle home, and we are
pleased to build our global headquarters in this extraordinary city," said
Gates Foundation co-chair Melinda Gates. "Our new campus will be an important
base for our work with our partners in Seattle and worldwide."

The new campus is scheduled to open in late 2010. Last year the foundation
granted more than $2 billion through its three main giving areas -- Global
Health, Global Development, and its United States Program. In Washington state
alone, the foundation, to date, has granted nearly $1 billion to organizations
that help the state's most vulnerable children and families. Its new campus
will allow the foundation to grow and collaborate in ways which will expand
its work here and abroad. The visitor center is scheduled to open in 2011.

Designed by global architecture firm NBBJ, the $500 million campus will be
built by Sellen Construction. It features an open, airy office environment
that will foster a collaborative working environment. In keeping with
Seattle's citywide sustainable building commitment, the project aims to
achieve LEED Gold certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design) by incorporating a number of "green" design elements.

"The Gates Foundation's new campus will embody two Seattle ideals --
environmental stewardship and creating healthy communities for all," said
Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels. "The campus will be a great addition to the
Seattle Center, and to our city."

Construction of one of the new headquarters' greenest elements -- the 1.5 acre
living roof of a parking garage owned and operated by Seattle Center -- is
already complete. The largest of its kind in Seattle, the roof's plantings
will provide a natural habitat for birds and will eventually be sustained
through rainwater. In addition, extensive green spaces with sustainable
landscaping will knit the campus with its neighborhood and further reduce the
facility's eco-footprint.

The Gates Foundation's new headquarters will also include a 15,000 square foot
visitor center where the general public can learn more about the
organization's work to reduce inequities in the Pacific Northwest and around
the world. Designed by Ralph Appelbaum & Associates, the visitor center will
provide guests with an in-depth look at the issues the foundation champions,
providing them with opportunities to learn how they can get involved in
solving problems globally and in local communities.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In
developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them
the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United
States, it seeks to ensure that all people -- especially those with the fewest
resources -- have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school
and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Patty Stonesifer and
co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates
and Warren Buffett.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation New Campus Fact Sheet

-- A groundbreaking ceremony for the new campus was held on July 22, 2008.

-- The 900,000-square-foot campus is comprised of two six-story office
buildings, an entrance pavilion, a convening center, and a visitor center. The
height of the office buildings is 85 feet; the size of the property is 12
acres.

-- The campus is expected to be completed at the end of 2010.

-- The foundation is targeting LEED (LEED = Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design) gold certification for the campus. Some of the
sustainable elements include:
-- An underfloor air distribution system for ventilation which
conserves energy and facilitates future space modifications.
-- A rainwater collection and storage system providing most of the
water for non-potable uses, including irrigation, water features
and toilets.
-- Living roof areas which serve a number of purposes, including
rainwater filtration, microclimate cooling and building insulation.
-- Air cooled chillers and thermal energy storage which conserve
water and capitalize on lower off peak air temperatures.

-- Parking for foundation employees will be located under the campus and in
the adjacent Seattle Center 5th Ave N Garage.

-- A 15,000-square-foot visitor center will be part of the new campus. Open to
the public, the center will shed light on the inequities the foundation
focuses on, and inspire people to get engaged in solving problems globally and
in their own communities. Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA) is designing the
visitor experience. The largest interpretive museum design firm in the world,
RAA designed the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., and most
recently the Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas.

-- The cost of new campus is $500 million.

-- Campus amenities include artwork and seating along 5th Avenue North between
Harrison Street and Mercer Avenue.

SOURCE Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Press Contact, +1-206-709-3400,
media@gatesfoundation.org