Brelsford to Receive Honorary Degree

PULLMAN, Wash. — K. Duane Brelsford, a prominent real estate developer in Eastern Washington, will receive an honorary bachelor’s degree in construction management from the Washington State University School of Architecture and Construction Management.

The event will take place during the school’s commencement program on Saturday, May 6 at 1 p.m., in the R.R. Jones Theater at Daggy Hall on the Pullman campus.

Brelsford, president of Corporate Pointe Developers, grew up in Pullman and attended WSU. He was advised by Professor Donald Poe and came close to receiving a construction management degree. However, he had a small problem with taking the correct classes and found it was more beneficial to have a humanities degree, which he received in 1981.

“Brelsford has served the construction industry well, and he has also contributed positively to the growth of the Pullman community,’’ said Max Kirk, assistant director for Construction Management in the School of Architecture and Construction Management. “I believe that Don Poe would have been pleased to see Duane receive this degree.’’

After graduation, Brelsford moved to Los Angeles, where he worked in commercial development until 1989. He then moved to Issaquah, Washington, to work for Embassy Suites, working in the construction of large-scale commercial projects and hotels. He returned to Pullman in 1998, where he has led projects in commercial, single and multi-family residential, and retail development. 

Among Brelsford’s projects are Corporate Pointe, a 20,000-square-foot office building; the Aspen Village, Pine Ridge and Maple Valley apartments; and the Emerald Pointe subdivision. He also headed up Pullman’s Town Centre project, a 27,000 square-foot office and retail complex; and Moscow’s University Pointe, which totals 25,000 square-feet of office and retail space. Brelsford also successfully brought the Village Centre Cinemas, an 1,100-seat eight-plex theater, to Pullman. Some of his other projects include Providence Court, Bridgeway Centre, Emerald Downs, the Lewiston 12-plex movie theatre and the Spokane 14-plex movie theatre.