Co-developers Home Forward and the Urban League of Portland recently celebrated the opening of the first of several planned apartment buildings established specifically to address houselessness in the Black community. Located in North Portland, the Hattie Redmond provides permanent supportive housing for people with disabilities who request culturally specific services. With 60 studio apartments, the building will provide residents with focused and intensive services for a population over-represented in houselessness, yet underserved. The unique residential development is named for Hattie Redmond who was a suffragist and civil rights leader in Oregon. The building’s trauma-informed, culturally specific design aims to create a stress-free environment to help residents regain dignity and hope. As designers of the Hattie Redmond’s signage and wayfinding on SERA Architects’ team, Mayer/Reed is proud to have been a part of this important addition to our city.
A long-awaited recreation and aquatics center is one step closer to fruition for residents of Lake Oswego. Mayer/Reed joined City leaders, community members and design and construction team representatives to celebrate the start of construction at the March 15 groundbreaking event.
The site affords space for a stormwater treatment pond surrounded by a small meadow and native plants to enhance use by wildlife. Rendering by Scott Edwards Architecture.
Set to open in summer 2024, the Lake Oswego Recreation and Aquatics Center will offer strong indoor/outdoor connections within the park-like public golf course setting. Mayer/Reed and Scott Edwards Architecture worked together to design a nature-inspired community asset that incorporates indoor aquatic and recreation amenities with several outdoor social spaces. Art and gardens will welcome visitors in the entry forecourt and four distinct plaza and courtyard spaces will allow activities to extend outside of the building.
With terraced seating, the main plaza accommodates performances and other public activities. An adjacent remodeled event facility features a reception courtyard with views of the golf course. Rendering by Scott Edwards Architecture.
Triplett Wellman is leading the construction of the $46 million project.
Sara Van Dyke, SEGD joined our visual communications team as a senior experiential graphic designer with a background in branded environments and wayfinding. Her current projects include Prometheus Real Estate Group properties, Port of Vancouver Terminal 1 Tenant Sign Standards and the Deschutes Public Library wayfinding system (Bend, OR).
Taylor Bowden, ASLA is a landscape designer with a focus on equitable outdoor spaces. Her current work includes the Beaverton Parks Framework Plan (Beaverton, OR), Frog Pond Primary School (Wilsonville, OR) and the Street Plaza Program (Portland, OR). Active in the design community, Taylor serves as Vice President of Chapter Services for Oregon ASLA.
Mayer/Reed welcomes IT specialist, Charlie Watts as an indispensable member of the studio. Recently relocated from Minnesota, Charlie is a collaborative and proactive problem solver who works to ensure our firm’s excellence in technology and digital security.
As President of the Society for Experiental Graphic Design (SEGD), Mayer/Reed principal, Kathy Fry, reflects on the organization’s 50th anniversary in her letter originally published on the SEGD website.
Dear SEGD Community,
I’m honored to serve my second and final term as SEGD President in our 50th year as an organization! I invite you to join us this year in “looking both ways” to recognize the evolution of SEGD – we’ll mark the 50th anniversary by joyously celebrating the present moment by equal parts honoring the legacy of the profession and looking forward to all that is to come.
When I meet members, I love to ask how they found their way to a career in experience design. This often prompts a story of discovery with a few twists and turns that was driven by a curiosity and an impression left by an experience design project they encountered. I, myself, grew up taking family vacations in an RV, visiting national parks. We stopped at countless viewpoints and visitor centers, devouring every interpretive panel to gain some understanding of the beautiful place we were visiting. I fell in love with park identity signs, but my first wayfinding love was on the ski slopes when I learned that green circle, blue square, black diamond coded every trail — giving me the information I needed to navigate. What are the experiences and projects that made an early impression on you? How have they changed over the years? How might these experiences evolve in the future?
IN CELEBRATION OF “LOOKING BOTH WAYS” FOR SEGD’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY, KATHY RECALLS TWO MEMORABLE NATIONAL PARK VISITS: AS A CHILD AND WITH HER CHILDREN. BOTH EXPERIENCES WERE MARKED BY THE ENDURING DESIGN OF ICONIC PARK SIGNS.
When I started my career, I looked to SEGD to understand the breadth and history of my field, something that was not easily found in college courses at the time. SEGD helped me see a career path, gave me access to education specific to what I was doing, and I slowly built a network of friends facing the same challenges and joys. Our organization has incredible influence on the next generation of designers, and I believe we have an obligation to foster a field that strives for design excellence and socially responsible practices. I serve on the board and my firm, Mayer/Reed is committed to donating to SEGD because we believe in the value of service and giving back. I hope you connect with us during this milestone year and commit to the future of experience design. There are many ways to be involved!
I am thrilled to support SEGD CEO, Cybelle Jones and SEGD staff in these endeavors. This will be my last year as President of the Board of Directors and serving on the executive team with Traci Sym of Plus & Greater Than (Vice President), Mike McCarthy from DCL (Treasurer) and Anna Crider of Entro (Past President). In addition to returning board members, this year we welcome Darlene van Uden serving as Chapter Chair Liaison to the board, and new board members Genell Hoechstetter, Kirsten Southwell, and Masha Pyshkina.
I am looking forward to connecting with you all this year and celebrating our SEGD community’s 50th milestone in Washington D.C. August 24-26, 2023!
