The 2017 PIVOT Fellowship

For the inaugural PIVOT Fellowship, UO MARCH student Clay Neal undertook an in-depth examination of the “Missing Middle” housing situation in Eugene. As the population in area is projected to see significant growth in the coming decades, finding solutions to housing that will preserve the quality of life here is imperative.

The Missing Middle is thought of as multi-unit or small-scale housing situated in a close setting to the urban core that sits within neighborhoods of single-family homes and provide easy access to urban living.

With Mayor Lucy Vinis and other City of Eugene representatives in attendance, Clay presented his project to an audience at PIVOT’s office in October 2017. He found that there is a dearth affordable housing in areas of Eugene with easy access to transit or in walkable and bikeable areas.

Clay examined three properties that have potential to fit the Missing Middle model by roughly designing structures for the sites and adding up approximate costs and weighing other factors to see how viable they might be. He found that the main barriers of developing a successful Missing Middle in Eugene are financial, regulatory, and the community’s perception.

Clay determined that in order to improve the Missing Middle situation, Eugene must consider changing zoning code elements, provide incentives for small and efficient housing, and encourage community conversations to become more accepting of more dense neighborhoods.

To see Clay’s project, click here.

The PIVOT Fellowship is intended as a means of fostering original thought about issues outside the daily routine or obvious future trajectory of the thought process of our firm. For future fellows, PIVOT Architecture will select one applicant partially based on the nature of their project proposal as well as other factors. The fellowship is open to University of Oregon BARCH, BIARCH, MARCH, and MIARCH students for the summer preceding their final year of study.

For more information or to apply for the position, click here.