Elisa Ahn, AIA
Alan Scott, FAIA
Co-Chairs, AIA Oregon HQ Task Force

AIA Oregon HQ Task Force: Pivoting Beyond Bricks and Mortar

Throughout 2023, the HQ Task Force embarked on a mission to not just find a new address, but to reimagine our presence in Oregon. We started with questions: What do members want from the chapter? How can we meet your needs, recognizing the ways in which we live, work, and interact are changing? What financial realities do we face?

As we delved into the hearts and minds of our diverse membership, a nuanced picture emerged – one that caused the Task Force to question our initial assumption that the answer to our challenges lay in a new HQ space or spaces. We realized that, in addition to being financially restrictive, a traditional brick-and-mortar investment was not what most members wanted. Instead, you told us that investing in physical spaces could mean getting stuck: with big recurring costs, in locations that would leave some people out, and in spaces that may quickly become architecturally dated.

This brought us to a paradigm shift. After deeply listening, we moved away from our limited exploration of physical space and toward a broad reconsideration of AIA Oregon’s relationship with people and places.

The result is a set of recommendations adopted by the Board of Directors last week. Our top recommendation was that the chapter should not pursue ownership or long-term leases of spaces, for now. From there, we pivoted into what the chapter should do, introducing specific actions and initiatives to strengthen and serve Oregon’s architecture community.

Our recommendations include:

Hiring additional AIA Oregon staff to support sections and grow member engagement
Investing in new, statewide programs – and providing clarity and resources for anyone involved in planning events
Reimagining the structure of section steering committees to provide more support to volunteers, nurture leaders, and encourage broader participation
Boosting advocacy and civic involvement at the board level and beyond
Developing a mini grant program to support architectural initiatives in Oregon communities
Reimagining our Allied Professional membership, with an eye toward building stronger bonds throughout the A/E/C community

As co-chairs of the AIA Oregon HQ Task Force, we believe this bold step away from the traditional HQ model represents a defining moment in our history. It's a decision guided by unwavering member focus, financial prudence, and a vision for a future where every architect across Oregon feels connected, supported, and empowered to thrive.

We are deeply grateful to the Task Force members who volunteered their time and effort to create this new vision, and to everyone who showed up to help us define our new opportunities together. We look forward to seeing these ideas come to life – and to experiencing the impact of a strengthened foundation and a community-led vision for our chapter.

Elisa Ahn and Alan Scott
Co-chairs, AIA Oregon HQ Task Force

You can go to our Creating a New HQ webpage to learn more.