On the Boards: El Dorado integrates a trauma-informed design approach to a youth treatment facility in Oregon.
- GRAY AWARDS
- 10 minutes ago
- 2 min read
El Dorado’s design for Parrott Creek Child and Family Services is a finalist in the 8th annual GRAY Awards.
FINALIST
Breakout category: On the Boards
Designer: El Dorado
Completion: August 2025
Images: El Dorado
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SUBMISSION
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Parrott Creek Child & Family Services, in collaboration with the developer and the architect, is embarking on a multiphase expansion and construction project at their Oregon City campus to enhance their residential treatment for highly traumatized youth. This expansion, funded by private and public sources, aims to create modern, trauma-informed buildings that double the capacity of the facility to care for up to 40 youth, addressing the pressing need for such services in Oregon. By working with local and national experts, Parrott Creek seeks to redefine the care provided to system-involved youth, emphasizing diversity and inclusivity. The project integrates a “trauma-informed design” approach, leveraging the landscape to foster healing and connection with nature. Collaborative efforts with organizations like Your Street Your Voice, University of Oregon, and Harvard Graduate School of Design demonstrate a commitment to equity-centered design principles. Furthermore, through this initiative, Parrott Creek honors the Indigenous peoples’ ancestral lands and aims to create a culturally inclusive environment, including a “Land Back” initiative for Indigenous communities.
DESIGN TEAM:
David Dowell, Daniel Renner, Sophie Hong, David Suttle, Brock Traffas, Aubrey Moore, Elisandra Garcia
COLLABORATORS:
Contractor: Walsh Construction
Developer: Adre
Landscape Architecture: Agency Landscape & Planning
Interior Designer: Fowler Interior Design
Lighting Design: OStructural:
Valar Consulting Engineering
MEP Engineer: PAE
Civil Engineer: 3J Consulting
Acoustic Engineer: ABD Engineering
Septic Engineer: KPFF
Geologist: PBS Engineering
Environmental Graphics: Ditroen
DESIGNER PROFILE:
El Dorado is an integrated architecture, urban design, curatorial, education, and fabrication practice based in Kansas City, MO, and Portland, OR. The acclaimed firm cultivates an ethos born of the Midwest, combining frugality and pragmatism with a commitment to support community through design. El Dorado has expanded widely, where projects and people take them, leading to its opening of the Portland studio and to new commissions and projects nationwide and overseas. Bringing a sense of accessibility and a penchant for big ideas to a new market, El Dorado is known for collaborations with artists to incorporate public art into architectural works, for material and fabrication innovation, and for solutions with civic and social impact.
The 8th Annual GRAY Awards is sponsored by:
