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CREATING OPPORTUNITIES , from page 7
RW: Lubber Run Community Center in Arlington, Virginia. Arlington is a rapidly urbanizing area and public green space is critical to the community. In addition, there’s a strong commitment to sustainable design and robust and authentic community engagement. The existing facility was beloved, but outdated, while the park was a highly-valued and heavily-used community asset, with significant green space and buffer for the adjacent waterway. Community needs had long exceeded the capacity of the site. In addition to needing additional outdoor program areas, the community needed 50,000 square feet of indoor program and more than 100 parking spaces. A conventional planning approach would have obliterated the site. Together, Arlington Parks & Recreation and VMDO conducted a series of public workshops where we learned how important equity, access, public health, and sustainable design were to this community. The team applied an empathetic approach to gathering cross-generational voices that informed the design of numerous blended spaces connected to nature, interweaving building and landscape. Taking advantage of existing topography, the team slipped a significant portion of the program and all the parking underneath the park, maintaining the stream buffer and mature vegetation, reducing the scale of the building on the park, and dramatically increasing the space available for outdoor programs. The end result is a community center and park that is greater and greener for all residents. It’s a space that elevates the human experience. “As a former director of sustainability, I’ve spent most of my career working to integrate sustainability into our work, process, and culture. We want all of our projects to be happy, healthy, and high- performing.” TZL: What benefits does your firm offer that your people get most excited about? RW: We have an exemplary retirement program, though the level of excitement probably directly correlates to an employee’s age. We help people pursue their interests and find their passion, and that means field trips, continuing education allowances, support for professional certifications and exams, an annual traveling fellowship, and for those who have been with the firm for a while, a sabbatical. TZL: How are you balancing investment in the next generation – which is at an all-time high – with rewards for tenured staff? This has always been a challenge, but seems heightened as investments in development have increased. RW: When our founding principals, majority shareholders at the time, retired in a relatively short timeframe, the second generation of leaders was made keenly aware of the financial burden of that buy-back. So, they came together and agreed upon a sustainable leadership plan, where the largest
VMDO staff enjoying a group outing.
shareholders began voluntarily selling shares at a steady rate early, and all principals agreed to begin selling their shares back to the firm when they turn 62. Further, we created the associate principal level, and offered shares to that group at a reduced cost. This serves as an “on-ramp” into ownership that generates returns on those shares that can be reinvested into the company. So, in general, the rate of share exchange remains relatively steady over the long-term, which also leaves more flexibility for investing in the next generation. TZL: What are some of your top goals for the firm in say the next five years? RW: Some of my top goals include: 1. Building our practice in Washington, D.C. to support the tremendous opportunities in the region. A number of communities in the area have established themselves as leaders in health, sustainability, and net-zero energy. A D.C. office allows us to better serve clients in the region and beyond and gives us access to a larger and more diverse pool of talent. 2. Meeting the goals of the AIA 2030 Commitment. This is the decade of de-carbonization, and we must do everything we can to bring our entire portfolio to net-zero energy by 2030. We know how to do it for new buildings, but it’s a massive challenge for renovations and certain building types. 3. Supporting the next generation of leaders. We’ve done a great job over the past decade or so transitioning leadership and ownership. We’ve just started the transition to a fourth generation, with an increased focus on diversity. A big part of my job is to help identify and develop those leaders, and then support them as they lead the firm into the future. TZL: A firm’s longevity is valuable. What are you doing to encourage your staff to stick around? RW: Create opportunities for others to do great work. Support them as they grow. Get out of the way.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER MAY 30, 2022, ISSUE 1443
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