Life

Katie Hall Says Goodbye to PIVOT

Over the past 15 years, Principal Katie Hall has supplied us with endless inspiration, laughter, collaboration, and incomparable architectural design. But as circumstances in life keep moving and evolving, her time at PIVOT is sadly coming to an end.

As empty-nesters, Katie and her partner are beginning a new chapter in life outside of the Eugene-Springfield area. Her last day at PIVOT will be March 29th.

“Katie makes everything around here better,” said Principal John Stapleton. “She’s been part of the PIVOT family for quite a while. We’re going to miss her but know she’ll continue to do great things. She’s pretty groovy.”

Katie has been active in the community serving in various roles including president of the southwestern Oregon chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the organization’s Northwest & Pacific Region section. She has been a member of several City of Eugene committees and panels and has been involved with the Eugene and Springfield area chambers of commerce including serving on the Local Government Advisory Committee (LGAC).

“PIVOT will be a part of me wherever I go,” Katie said. “The humble approach to design, emphasis on excellent client service, and people-centric firm helped shape me as an architect. I’m grateful for everything I gained and learned from PIVOT. Most importantly, I’m so grateful for the relationships I was able to foster by being an active part of the community.”

Katie’s humor, positive energy, and endless supply of quality chocolate are some of the things we’ll miss most. That and her inspired Halloween costumes! Thank you, Katie. PIVOT is a better place because of you and we can’t wait to see what your next chapter of life brings.

While Kari Turner’s retirement is happening around the same time as Katie’s departure, it is purely a coincidence.

Wow

“Camas Ridge is Awesome!”

As we designed the Camas Ridge Community School, we brainstormed how we could give students a hands-on experience of building the school.

When we landed on the idea of creating a LEGO model of Camas, we weren’t sure how to go about actually doing that so we turned to some of our innovative partners.

PIVOT commissioned a small team of local students and project managers at Connected Lane County—a non-profit that prepares youth for the future by providing hands-on experiences, career-connected learning, and support services—to design the initial model.

Using software that allows you to design sets with virtually any LEGO piece ever made, the students figured out how to use the software and design the initial model. Then we passed it on to local LEGO experts at Bricks and Minifigs to streamline the design and order the 3,500 pieces it takes to build the model.

Over the summer, we fine-tuned the instructions and did a test build of the model to make sure it actually works. The finished model is more than 4 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 1 foot tall.

We take a lot of pride in Camas Ridge Community School and hope the experience of building the LEGO set will give students an idea of some of the things that go into designing a facility like this school—and maybe inspire some future architects!

The Lego model will be on display at the Camas Ridge Open House on Thursday, October 24 from 6-7:30 p.m.

News

Camas Ridge Open House: 10.24

PIVOT is helping Eugene School District 4J and Camas Ridge Community School plan the open house on Thursday, October 24 from 6-7:30 p.m.

PIVOT is working with the school to provide student-led tours a large-scale Lego model of Camas Ridge, and more. Check back for more info in the coming days.

More info on 4J’s website.

Insight

2024 PIVOT Fellowship Presentation on 10.10


PIVOT Architecture invites you to this year’s fellowship presentation when most recent Fellow Abby Brown presents her final project.

Abby studied intentional community models as they relate to current housing and loneliness crises, especially for individuals working to transition out of houselessness. Intentional communities are groups of people who choose to live collaboratively and strive to create a lifestyle that reflects their shared values. She studied the social and built environment at Everyone Village, a local transitional housing program where residents not only have access to housing and essential facilities but also benefit from a strong network of social support. The project seeks to understand how intentional community approaches to transitional housing design have been effectively socially supportive for formerly unhoused individuals within the village.

The PIVOT Fellowship is a means of fostering original thought about issues outside the daily routine of our firm’s thought process. Each summer, students entering their final year at the UO are selected to work on an independent project of their choosing and are incorporated into PIVOT project teams.

Join us at the PIVOT office, Thursday, October 10 from at 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Learn more about the PIVOT Fellowship.