COMMUNITY Archives - Mayer Reed

Kathy Fry Joins AFO Board of Directors

The Architecture Foundation of Oregon (AFO) has appointed Mayer/Reed Principal Kathy Fry to its board of directors. Known for programs such as Architects in Schools, fellowships and design-related events, AFO educates and inspires Oregonians from all walks of life to engage with design of the built environment.

“I’m thrilled to join the board and collaborate with local professionals in support of the AFO mission,” said Kathy. “This is a crucial time to partner with the community, highlighting the impact of design on our future while recognizing the essential role designers play in the health of our cities and state.”

Kathy is a leader in the field of experiential graphic design. She has served on the board of directors and as president of the Society for Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD) and currently serves on TriMet’s Public Art Advisory Committee.

Kathy joins five new members on the 30-person board.

Small Budget, Big Impact

It was a great night celebrating landscape architecture with our peers at ASLA Oregon’s 2024 Design Awards soirée on September 27. We were inspired by the professional and student achievements and incredible projects happening around the region.

During the event, Mayer/Reed was honored with a Green Ribbon Merit Award for our pro bono work on the Gorge Accessibility Project for Friends of the Columbia Gorge. The Green Ribbon for Biodiversity and Climate Action recognizes projects that demonstrate notable strides toward shared biodiversity and climate goals and set an example for what our profession can achieve in areas of carbon drawdown, climate resiliency, ecosystem services and community empowerment.

The project, conceptual designs for two accessible recreation sites in the Columbia River Gorge at Cape Horn and Catherine Creek, establishes a vision and develops materials for grants and fundraising. We are proud to be recognized for this important work and are grateful for the opportunity to work with a client and partners that value the goals of inclusivity and climate action. We look forward to seeing the concepts take shape.

Congratulations to all the firms, designers and projects celebrated at the soirée!

New Paths to Graduation at hayu alqi uyxat

A heartfelt ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 21 celebrated the opening of Portland Public Schools’ (PPS) new hayu alqi uyxat building — “many future paths” in the Chinook Wawa language. Designed by Bassetti Architects with landscape architecture by Mayer/Reed, the new building is home to PPS’s previously dispersed Multiple Pathways to Graduation programs and serves some of the district’s most vulnerable high school students.

Influenced by trauma-informed best practices, the new home of Alliance High School, DART/Kuumba School, Teen Parent Services and Childcare, and the Reconnection Services and Center is non-institutional in character, emphasizing a connection to nature inside and out. Outdoor spaces offer opportunities for collaborative learning, solo study, sensory breaks and play. Beneath large oak trees, a gathering circle embedded with the representation of a medicine wheel is a special focal point.

At the opening event, students and school leaders expressed words of hope and praise for their new learning community. The hayu alqi uyxat building is part of the PPS School Improvement Bond Program and is anticipating LEED Gold certification.

Celebrating a Modernized Benson Polytechnic High School

Community members and local dignitaries joined students, staff and project team members in celebrating the official reopening of a modernized Benson Polytechnic High School. The September 14 ribbon cutting marked a new era of innovation for Portland Public Schools’ 1916 career and technical education (CTE) campus.

The modernization, led by Bassetti Architects, balances historic preservation with expansion, increasing space for state-of-the-art, hands-on learning. Mayer/Reed’s site design respects the campus’s classic symmetry while introducing universal accessibility and adding student-centered outdoor spaces throughout.

Visitors to the grand opening event toured the building and explored new and redesigned outdoor spaces including the main entry landscape, a new central courtyard adjacent to the student commons and the multi-functional CTE courtyard with outdoor workspaces for construction, applied geometry, manufacturing and automotive workshops.

Benson is the sixth high school to be modernized or rebuilt through the PPS School Improvement Bond program—all with landscape architecture by Mayer/Reed.