Message from the AIAO Public Policy Consultant

Cindy Robert
AIAO Public Policy Consultant

A Different Kind of Resiliency…

I remember when we first introduced our State Resilience Officer bill at the 2015 legislative assembly. HB 2270 caused confusion as we did not define “resilience” and found that it meant something different to each legislator we spoke to. While in the body of the bill, we made it clear that the role of the Officer was to “implement and coordinate seismic safety and resilience goal setting and state agency planning and preparation to improve seismic safety and resilience” as the bill passed each body, legislators were still not drilling down on that focus. They wanted “resilience” to encompass so much more: emergency preparedness, active shooter, diseases, weather hazards…both natural and human-caused events.

 So, here we are amid COVID and as we start to turn the corner, public policymakers are looking at immediate needs and long-term planning. The main question will eventually be what have we learned that we can use to be more prepared and resilient the next time an epidemic occurs? As the public policy pendulum swings and reaction to current events provides the energy and amplitude, the definition of “Resilience” has again shifted.

Reopening

We keep hearing “We don’t control the timeline; the virus controls the timeline” – but by nature we are time block thinkers. It is about to be summer which mean outside activities, vacations and picnics.  Fall is football and school. You pay rent/mortgage start of month. You pay taxes in April, or on a quarterly date if you are self-employed. Breakfast in am, dinner in pm. Meetings in one-hour blocks. Starts and stops, all predetermined. So it is hard as we plan for reopening to not be able to begin with a “start date.” Instead the Governor has looked to sectors (i.e. restaurants, recreation, higher ed) and regions to plan on three phases for moving toward our new normal, and we may see sectors and regions start phase 1 at different times.

One constant in the conversation is that the criteria for starting are benchmarks to be met:

Gating Criteria:

• Symptoms: Downward trajectory of influenza-like illnesses reported within 14-day period AND downward trajectory of COVID-like syndromic cases reported within 14-day period.

• Cases: Downward trajectory of documented cases within a 14-day period OR downward trajectory of positive cases as a percent of total tests within a 14-day period.

• Capacity: Hospitals treat all patients without crisis care and robust testing program in place for at-risk healthcare workers.

Core State Preparedness Items:

• Testing and Contact Tracing: Screening/testing for symptomatic individuals, sentinel surveillance sites screening for asymptomatic individuals, contact tracing of all COVID+ cases.

• Healthcare System Capacity: Sufficient PPE, ability to surge ICU capacity.

• Plans: for health and safety of workers in critical industries, health and safety of those living and working in high-risk facilities, mass transit, general social distancing and face coverings protocols, monitor conditions and immediately take steps to mitigate any rebounds/outbreaks by restarting a phase or returning to a previous phase, depending on severity.

Once the above Gating and Core Preparedness items are met, the Governor will direct Phase 1 to start.

The 3 distinct phases have some government protocols and a waiting period of at least 14 days between each to make sure gating criteria numbers are not moving in the wrong direction:

Phase 1:

• Group size max: 10

• Vulnerable individuals stay-at-home

• Telework encouraged

• Elective surgeries resume

• Workplace common areas remain closed

• Minimize non-essential travel

• Schools and youth activities remain closed

• Large venues remain closed

Phase 2:

• Group size limit increased (perhaps to 50)

• Vulnerable populations remain at home

• Schools and gyms open with physical distancing

• Non-essential travel resumes

Phase 3:

• Mass gathering size increases

• Worksites have unrestricted staffing

• Visitors to nursing homes allowed

• Restaurants and bars have more seating

Special Session

Many people wonder why a Special Session of the legislature has not occurred. Simple: it is not needed nor advisable at this point! The Governor has successfully invoked executive orders to establish emergency procedures and disruption of normal statutory regulations. The Emergency Board has also met to allocate emergency fund dollars available to them to help with COVID-19 response. But all other fund disbursement will need legislative approval AFTER the quarterly Revenue Forecast is delivered May 20.  Remember, in short session we had a huge surplus to be spent but the walkout stopped any allocations from happening – now those extra dollars are highly unlikely anyway. Once this mid-biennium report happens, then the legislature can come in and make important decisions with real information. Not only information from Department of Revenue will be forthcoming and helpful to our state leaders, but also from the federal government.  Expect to see it in June.

Resources

The Oregon Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program is just now open and accepting applications for self-employed, contract, and gig workers who are not eligible for regular unemployment benefits. Application is at the top of the OED CARES Act Page.

Other Oregon Employment Department Resources can be found here: Q&A’s on employment issues related to COVID-19.

The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reports up-to-date information regarding testing statistics that can be found on their website. 

And what I consider the most comprehensive (aside from the AIAO Resources page) and well organized site is from the Governor’s Office:  COVID-19 Resources  

Message from the AIA Bend Section Director

Jim Satzinger, AIA
Director, AIA Bend

AIA Oregon Architects, Associates and Allied Members:

I hope you and your families are doing well, staying safe in these crucial days of “Sheltering in Place”.  As a state and region, we are making progress, and with Social Distancing in effect, we are learning to communicate and work virtually in more efficient, effective ways. To that end, AIA Oregon has initiated new online educational programs, social hours and committee meetings using the Zoom platform.

Yesterday afternoon was the inaugural session of the AIA Oregon Digital Design Series, “Digital Design Collaboration – Firms” hosted by Hacker Architects and the DLR Group. On subsequent Wednesday afternoons at 5:00 PM AIA Oregon will offer a Digital Design Program about online communication and collaboration, or a session of “AIA Oregon Presents!” featuring recent projects, design concepts, and building science by our member Architects. Stay connected and informed by reading “Thursdays@Three”, and register to attend these relevant and entertaining AIA Oregon member-authored programs.

The launch of “AIA Oregon Presents!” on Wednesday, May 20, 5:00 PM features three unique projects - from design to execution - demonstrating creative and sustainable solutions to Program, Neighborhood Context, Site Response and Design, Building Material and Systems Integration, Innovative Details, and Project Successes and Lessons learned. The PowerPoint slide shows will be narrated by author Architects, Staff and Consultants, followed by attendee Comments and Questions. These presentations will be similar in form to Design Award submittals, but instead of anonymous authorship and jury deliberation, presenting Architect(s) will personally tell their story, describe and share their work with AIA Oregon members using Schematic Design Drawings, Construction Documents and Photographs of in-process and completed work.

Calling all AIA Oregon Architects! Submit your work for future sessions of “AIA Oregon Presents!” and share your thoughts, concepts and solutions in our ever-changing profession. Receive valuable feedback from your contemporaries, and hone your presentation skills, refine your design solutions. Please contact me at jasatzinger@gmail.com or (505) 946-7103.

In February, just before Mardi Gras, AIA Oregon leaders attended AIA Grassroots 2020 in New Orleans. We shared stories and discussed solutions to Gender and Racial Bias within our profession. We met with Mayors and learned how Citizen Architects can engage Civic Leaders and influence the shaping of our Communities. We attended sessions about “The Big Move”, AIA’s commitment to 2030 goals, and are now answering AIA’s “call to action” to create a Climate Action Plan in all AIA Chapters. This is now our primary focus, and given our abilities as problem-solvers and creators, I have never been more excited about being an Architect than I am today. Our relevance as a profession is without peer.

As a member of AIA Oregon you have the opportunity to learn about new building systems and technology, to advance your career path, to share experiences with fellow Architects, and to demonstrate your leadership abilities as we plan and re-frame the built environment for a sustainable future. Get involved, attend our programs, share your knowledge with fellow Architects and Industry Professionals, and join a Committee of interest to you. The more you give to AIA Oregon, the more you receive.

Message from the Communications Committee Chair

John Flynn, AIA
AIAO Director At-Large
Chair, Communications Committee

Hello, Colleagues –

This is John Flynn, AIA Oregon Board of Directors (At-Large), coming to you from my dining room table.  My focus on the AIA Board is Communications and I’m writing to give you a bit of an update on our continued work to improve our outreach and engagement with membership across our statewide community.

When I last wrote a T@3 message, I mentioned our Fall 2019 work session – a gathering of architects from a wide perspective of involvement within AIA Oregon – where much of the strategic initiative discussions turned towards two essential member services within our organization:  Programming and Communications.  As we have moved into our new structure as a statewide chapter, we have committed to building a strong and united architecture community across the state.  From a communications perspective, this means improving our means and methods of reaching out to membership with the objective of providing the best services to you.

Have you noticed the recent changes in our website?  We have been responding to member suggestions for more resources and content, more insight into programs and committee work, and a more dynamic interface.  Allow me to highlight a few of these recent changes and preview some of the improvements to come.

Our Resources page has developed into a well spring for professional practice support, educational opportunities, and general information to help you navigate your career.  We’ll continue to provide new resources and links to relevant information as part of our continuing communications efforts.  And yes, there is a substantial Covid-19 resources page specifically crafted to be relevant to the architecture community.

Programming and event planning continue to be a primary vocation for AIA Oregon.  In the Events tab of our website, we’ve added an Event Schedule for 2020.  This graphic is a master planning diagram that functions as an overview for our statewide programming efforts.  It’s a living document that we’ll continue to update as we refine our programs for the months to come.  In our new social-distanced community, events are virtual and internet-connected.  AIA Oregon has responded, through its committees, by hosting weekly “Happy Hours” focused on getting members together around topics of common interest.  The Events page lists the current schedule for these informative gatherings.

We are in the process of reconstituting our website’s home page.  We’ve already made some modest changes and more changes are in the works to create a more dynamic and easier-to-navigate user interface.  Another page that is in development is “Find an Architect” – a statewide resource providing introductions and contact information for member firms.  This page will allow visitors to filter their searches by location, project type, firm size, and several other parameters.  We expect both these pages to launch in the near future.

 Other ideas AIA Oregon’s Communication Committee is pushing: 

• Expanding our website’s News offerings to include more content from Committees and members – look for “Forum” in the months to come.

• Continued refinements to all our weekly missive, Thursdays @ Three

• Expanded coverage of events and programs in our social networking platforms – Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram

Now, I’d like to address the topic of the day-week-month-year.  (I only touched on it briefly above.  Imagine that!)  We’ve paid particular attention to making sure that membership can find, through our communication platforms, relevant information that informs their business practices, professional interactions, and opportunities going forward during the current pandemic.  Who knew, six months ago, that we would be self-isolating, working from home, and video conferencing all day long?  Personally, I’m four weeks into a corona-beard, our daughter’s college commencement has been cancelled, and the highlight of my week is a trip to the grocery store.  This is new common ground for all of us but, as challenging as it is, we will support one another going forward.  For those of us engaged with AIA Oregon, our focus will be on helping to find that path forward.  A shout out to AIA Oregon staff, who have done a terrific job addressing the current pandemic landscape on our communication platforms.

Thanks and best of health to everyone!