Last month, guests were served the first round of tapas and signature cocktails at AC Hotels’ newest property, in downtown Portland, Oregon. Originating in Spain, the brand by Marriott is aimed at travelers seeking a modern, European twist to their trips – even if their travels are stateside. Blending laid-back comfort with visual excitement, the AC Hotel Portland […]
In September of 2016, The Center for Public Interest Design reached out to their network of designers and activists to participate in the POD Initiative, to design and build a modestly sized home for someone without one. We previously wrote about that here. Since then, the POD Initiative and the City have been in talks […]
SERA Architects, a Portland, Oregon-based leader in sustainable architecture and urban placemaking, has launched the Institute for Civic Ecology as an initiative supporting our commitment to helping communities and organizations nationally and internationally implement and manage resilience initiatives. Conceived in partnership with local business associations, non-profits, governments, developers, religious organizations and institutions, and spanning rural, […]
This month, Principal Don Eggleston made it official: he’s retiring! After 45 years leading the firm, Don will start 2017 off with a renewed focus on family, while still working as a consultant on architectural projects around Portland. News Release: SERA Principal Don Eggleston Announces Retirement (PDF) Last week, we toasted to Don. His vision, emphasis on […]
UPDATE: See photos of the completed project on our Facebook page. Fourteen locally-designed and built “sleeping pods” intended to address homelessness — including one by SERA staff — will be on exhibit in early December. SERA’s PAD, or Portable Adaptive Dwelling, is one of 14 submissions for the Partners on Dwelling (POD) Initiative, intended to ensure […]
SERA signed an agreement with Bonneville Environmental Fund to offset 450 metric tons of carbon emissions through Redwood conservation and waste heat energy projects. That number represents just over 100% of SERA’s 2015 footprint, including everything from air travel and employee commuting to office energy use and even the embedded energy in office supplies like […]
UPDATE: For photos of the event, visit our Facebook page. On Friday, September 16, SERA staff will launch a temporary lounge outside of the nonprofit p:ear for this year’s Park(ing) Day. A standard 8-foot-by-20-foot parking spot on NW Flanders at 6th will be transformed from asphalt into a folding topography of seating, plants and grassy groundcover for […]
Last week, in our latest session of DIG-IT (that’s Design Interest Group – Integrated Thursdays), we had a grand time discussing and trying our hand at model making! Today’s design professionals increasingly learn and work digitally. Computer modeling, rendering, and design are great for certain activities and generating data. But design isn’t always enhanced with a […]
Transparency is hot right now. And for good reason. Exciting new developments like the mindful MATERIALS Collaborative, which provide access to transparency information across a variety of manufacturers and products, are continuing to foster discussions between manufacturers and the design community. During this year’s Hospitality Design Expo, Alison Bane and I presented on Transparency as […]
I recently attended a Living Future Conference workshop in Seattle where we explored the Danish concept of Hygge. To the Danish, Hygge (pronounced ‘Hue-gah’) can mean many things, including a calming environment, comfort, warmth, friends, home and nourishment. We were first introduced to this concept by leaving the busy behind – our bags, phones and […]