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Month: September 2022

Don Hanson’s Retirement: A Lasting Legacy in Landscape, Planning and Design

Posted on by OTAK Team

Community impact, quality design, and a lasting legacy—all of these are phrases that describe the work of Don Hanson, senior advisor of our planning and landscape architecture division, who has announced his well-deserved retirement. It’s a bittersweet day at Otak, however, we are taking this opportunity to reflect on and commend Don’s work throughout his illustrious career.

A Certified Expert

For the past 37 years at Otak, Don has become a lauded expert in residential, mixed-use commercial, and industrial development work. He also has extensive project experience with public parks/recreation, open space, and streetscape improvements. Greater still, Don served as chairman of the Portland Planning and Sustainability Commission and was a member of the commission for 10 years, setting development and land use policies for the entire Portland Metro Area.

To say Don’s career has been impactful would be an understatement.  Though it’s hard to pick just one of the many projects he’s worked on, we’re zooming in on a few key projects that highlight Don’s legacy both at Otak and in our greater community:

The Project Breakdown

Center Commons—Portland, OR

  • Don’s Role: Serving as the Principal Planner, this project involved the preparation of a master plan and highly detailed site design, as well as a land use approval process coupled with public involvement.
  • Project Highlights
    • This work is regarded by TriMet, the Portland Development Commission, and the neighborhood as a model for transit-oriented development and in-fill development in Portland’s station area districts.
    • The project includes 314 units of housing at both market and affordable rates, housing for seniors, as well as for-sale townhomes. Retail space, a daycare center, and management offices are also provided.
    • The focal point for Center Commons is a “woonerf” space that congregates cars, pedestrians, a playground, a bosque of trees, parking, drop-off zones, and generous sidewalks that provide shortcuts to transit. The development is located adjacent to the 60th and Glisan station of the MAX LRT line.
Aerial view of Columbia Knoll

Columbia Knoll—Portland, OR

  • Don’s Role: As the Principal Planner/Landscape Architect for this project, Columbia Knoll is a mixed-income redevelopment project located on the ten-acre historic Shriners Hospital site in northeast Portland.
  • Project Highlights
    • The redevelopment includes affordable senior independent and congregate housing, as well as affordable family housing, a day-care facility, a community center, and market rate-for-sale townhomes.
    • The 334 housing units are configured in two, three, and four-story structures that are carefully sited to preserve mature existing trees and the historic Shriners front lawn on Sandy Boulevard.
    • The project required detailed coordination with the state Housing Office, the Portland Development Commission, the Historic Landmarks Commission, and an extensive public outreach program with five neighborhood associations. We also worked closely with the NE coalition of neighborhoods throughout the process.
Aerial View of Villebois streetscape

Villebois—Wilsonville, OR

  • Don’s Role: Serving as both Principal and Master Planner, this project is in the countryside west of Wilsonville.
  • Project Highlights
    • Villebois is a spectacular 480-acre site where residential neighborhoods include forests, open spaces, ponds, walking trails, and magnificent vistas. Working in close coordination with the master planner and the City of Wilsonville, Don oversaw the design of a cohesive street and site network that encompasses 135 acres of single-family residences, parks, and open spaces, while preserving the natural features of the site.
    • Individual projects within Villebois include residential subdivision developments, engineering of public roads and private alleys, utility infrastructure design, water quality and detention ponds, and enhancement and creation of wetlands. Final design elements include greenways, trails, neighborhood and regional parks, a future community swim center, and entry monuments.

Involvement and Affiliations

Not only has Don’s skill set had an indelible impact on Otak’s project work, his involvement and community affiliations outside of work set him apart as a luminary in the field and his extensive resume reflects that. Some of the groups Don was a part of, and even led, include:

  • Portland Planning and Sustainability Commission, Past Chair and Former Member
  • Urban Land Institute (ULI)
  • Former Development Review Advisory Committee: City of Portland
  • Former Citizen Advisory Committee Member reviewing the Title 34 Land Development Ordinance: Portland, Oregon
  • Former Stakeholder Advisory Group Member for Vision 2000: Portland, Oregon
  • Committee Member reviewing the Urban Renewal Districts Status: Portland, Oregon
  • Former Downtown Design Review Board Member: Vancouver, WA

Passing the Torch

With a dedicated planning & landscape architecture team now led by staff like our own David Sacamano, Business Unit Leader for our Oregon and Southwest Washington Planning and Landscape Architecture team, Otak will continue to deliver on dynamic projects in Don’s spirit and bring not only our whole selves, but also our expertise to projects in the future. It’s a practice that Don ensured was integral to Otak’s success, and it will continue to be so in our future operations.

Take a closer look at how we celebrated Don’s legacy as an Otakian in this digital booklet and join us in bidding a fond farewell to Don as he begins this well-deserved new chapter.

Thank you, Don—you’ve made Otak a better place.

Take a quick peek at Don’s career below:

Staff Spotlight: Adreanna Broussard’s Path of Identity, Disruption and Pushing Boundaries in Professional Engineering

Posted on by OTAK Team

Otak takes pride in highlighting new members of our team who remind us of our core values. Meet Adreanna Broussard, project controls analyst with TWG, and the subject of today’s staff spotlight.

Craving Disruption

Adreanna Broussard knew from an early point in her career she wanted to play an active role in the built environment. A voracious learner, she had early dreams of getting into architectural engineering, however the University of Texas at San Antonio, her alma mater, did not offer that degree. Faced with uncertainty about her next steps, she leaned on her family for guidance.

“I craved the disruption that civil [engineering] provides. It’s a comfortability with being uncomfortable that has made me a better professional and better able tackle challenges within a constantly changing industry.”

Adreanna Broussard

With her father an electrical engineer and her mother a nurse, the values of hard work and determination saw her take an interest in civil engineering. Adreanna identified the value of the field as part of the same world, where she could make an impact on how communities are built and experienced. She was drawn to the dynamic factors of the profession. In her words, “I craved the disruption that civil [engineering] provides. It’s a comfortability with being uncomfortable that has made me a better professional and better able tackle challenges within a constantly changing industry.”

What is a Professional Engineer (PE)?

A PE, or Professional Engineer certification, signifies that one is recognized by the state as an owner of their work and an expert in the field. Adreanna says a PE opens the doors of the engineering world, enabling those who earn it to work independently, as a consultant, or as an integral member of different firms helping guide projects along. Upon gaining the certification, she will be able to officially sign and stamp official documents as the PIC, and further elevate her aspirations of becoming a luminary in the industry.

Applied Learning

Adreanna credits her hands-on work in civil engineering after completing her degree for making her the well-rounded professional she is today. With an understanding of how projects work on the ground level, she’s able to make quick decisions and see the big picture. As a current project controls analyst, she’s responsible for scheduling, monitoring cost, and managing a wide scope of factors that come with reporting on a project’s lifecycle. However, like a true Otakian, she seeks to continuously improve and grow her skillset. She’s currently doing this by studying for her PE exam, with plans to take the test in November.

Practicing Preparation

When asked about her approach to preparing for the exam, Adreanna emphasizes while studying is important, it goes deeper than textbooks, and she draws on her experience from the totality of her career. She’s seen firsthand and worked with the people who bring design plans to life, and her early opportunities allowed her to wear many different hats, gaining experience with every aspect of the design-build process from paperwork to planning.

Like her, the test is practical. A believer in the power of education and like a true engineer, she loves to learn and take things apart, understanding the science and the art behind building a structure. There’s also an ethical component to the exam, which aligns deeply with her belief in equitable placemaking and community building. Unafraid to bury herself in a practice test or book, Adreanna’s tenacity gives her confidence and motivation to keep studying, to keep working, and keep being the best she can be.

Identity and Aspiration

While looking to elevate herself within the industry, she is also mindful of the space she inhabits within it. It’s no secret the AEC industry, especially in positions of leadership, lacks a diversity and depth of perspective from female leaders as well as leaders of color. She acknowledges this reality, yet views it as an opportunity to rise to the occasion. For this, she relies on experience she’s gained outside of work as a Division I NCAA basketball referee. A similarly male-dominated world, she is well-versed in making her voice heard, her decisions final, and her respect earned not just from her identity, but her experience as a professional. Being a referee taught her how to be accountable, how to carry herself with a professional demeanor, and how to navigate complex and high-stakes situations. She says she draws on this experience almost every day. Adreanna wants to be that leader that breaks the ceiling, and knows what she brings to the table.

Adreanna’s Role Within Otak

To say Broussard’s experience is valuable would be an understatement. She knows her value, and was seeking an employer who understood it too. Dave Hawkins, principal at TWG, knew this and brought Adreanna on without hesitation. When asked about her experience since coming under the Otak umbrella, she emphasizes her appreciation for our community of people, our culture, and our network to which she now has access. Otak is proud to have someone like Broussard among our ranks, and her value, especially from us, will only grow as she grows.

When asked what she would tell potential engineers looking to advance their careers, her advice is to be patient, go at your own pace, and be aware that not all journeys are linear. Every experience is unique, and Broussard emphasizes that her journey, while different, only makes her a stronger professional and a better person.

We’re excited to see her career grow at Otak. Well done Adreanna!