Nonprofit & Public Sector Architecture across Lane County
Arbor South Architecture partners with nonprofits and government agencies across Eugene, Springfield, and the Willamette Valley on new buildings and adaptive reuse projects that meet each organization's goals and stretch every dollar.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, and this work is central to the firm's identity. In recent years we have provided architectural services to Looking Glass Community Services, the Relief Nursery, SquareOne Villages, Hosea Youth Services, and the Thurston Life Foundation's Joyce A. Langeliers Family Center, among others. The firm has donated design services when resources were limited and has brought the same technical rigor to community facilities as to any other project type. The team understands the pressures nonprofit clients face: constrained budgets, donor and funder expectations, complex regulatory environments, and the weight of serving vulnerable populations.
The firm has direct experience designing behavioral health environments, including the Looking Glass Regional Crisis Center East, a 12,000-square-foot sub-acute residential mental health treatment center for youth ages 12 to 18 in Eugene. That project required adaptive reuse of an existing building, expedited design and permitting, trauma-informed design principles, ligature-resistant fixtures, and close coordination with Lane County and the Oregon Department of Human Services. The firm also completed a shelter renovation for Looking Glass's Station 7 facility and designed a cottage cluster in Springfield for Hosea Youth Services.
Trauma-informed design is an approach to the built environment that prioritizes safety, trust, and a sense of control for the people who use a space, particularly those who have experienced trauma, housing instability, or crisis. In practice, that means access to natural daylight, intuitive wayfinding, materials and colors that feel calming rather than clinical, and spaces that offer both community connection and personal refuge. Arbor South applies these principles across its nonprofit and affordable housing work, including the Looking Glass Regional Crisis Center and ongoing work with Hosea Youth Services, where we are providing affordable housing for youth exiting homelessness.
Yes. The firm has significant experience helping community organizations navigate jurisdictional complexity, including conditional use permits, public utility easements, SDC fee adjustments, and expedited permitting processes. For Relief Nursery in Eugene, Arbor South coordinated directly with City staff to identify a permitting pathway that allowed site work to begin within a tight window while protecting program operations and public safety. For the Joyce A. Langeliers Family Center in Springfield, the team worked with the City to remediate costly SDC fees by adjusting the project's classification, a practical solution that directly protected the nonprofit's budget.
The firm works with nonprofit clients on a case-by-case basis and has a demonstrated history of discounting fees and donating services to mission-driven organizations. The Looking Glass Regional Crisis Center was completed at a significantly discounted architectural fee. Dan Hill and the firm donated design and construction services for SquareOne Villages' Emerald Village, and The Ethan, a fully accessible tiny home built for a paralyzed youth in Springfield. We also donated the plans for The Ethan to the City of Eugene's pre-approved ADU program. Arbor South views community service as an integral part of its operation, not as a marketing strategy.
Yes. Arbor South has completed public-sector work including the Junction City Community Center renovation, the transformation of a 5,750-square-foot fire station into a fully ADA-accessible community facility. The firm has also worked with school districts and tribal partners on public and community projects and pursues retainer relationships with municipalities and small agencies throughout the region. Arbor South is experienced with public procurement processes, including RFP/RFQ submissions and A/E pool contracts.
The firm treats public projects with the same accountability it would expect from any steward of community resources. That means early budget alignment, transparent communication about scope and cost, proactive coordination with agencies having jurisdiction, and documentation standards that protect the public's investment by reducing change orders and field surprises. Jason Knope, Former City Administrator of Junction City, has noted that Arbor South "keeps projects on track, handles challenges professionally, and always looks out for the City's best interests."