Interview with Alex Hill

Posted 10/1/2020

Tell us about one project keeping you busy right now.
I’ve been designing and managing the World Trade Center project in Denver’s RiNo District since I moved from the Houston office to the Denver office a couple years ago. Having authorship in the design and creation in such a nexus of cultural activity and development is really inspiring. As this project has evolved, so has my growth as a designer and project manager. I’ve been able to build and lead a team which has allowed me to work with a lot of really talented designers. I’ve gained insight into what motivates employees, the immense value of fostering diverse insights from colleagues and what it takes to cultivate a cohesive team. It’s a true labor of love.

How are you fostering the workshop culture in a remote work environment?
Since I started at Design Workshop, I’ve been collaborating with designers across our other offices so remote collaboration has been embedded in me as a normal way of working. What I do miss is the value of sitting in a room together and iterating design ideas on a tracer paper and pinning ideas on the wall. Instead we make the best of the digital tools we have that enable us to do live sketching virtually. While not ideal, we have been able to continue to be creative and solution-oriented keeping our projects moving forward.

What is the biggest issue impacting your work today?
Resiliency. The big question I am wrestling with is how do we prioritize the creation of resilient spaces through the lens of community and equity? Although creating spaces that are ecologically resilient continues to be an important part of our work, I believe it is time landscape architects ensure we are prioritizing spatial equity during all phases of the design and construction process. How do we ensure all voices are heard during design reviews? How do we incorporate features in outdoor spaces that address the needs of diverse groups? These are just a few of the issues that we as an entire practice need to be thinking about for all our projects. I don’t have all the answers, but I am committed to ensuring all the work I do addresses these critical issues.