LEVER Architecture

10/29/2026

Designed by LEVER in collaboration with Field Operations, the NBCUniversal Campus Project transforms the historic working studio lot through new buildings, gardens, and outdoor spaces. A central green framed by existing structures, a new office building, and an employee commons provides space for gatherings and events, while a planted paseo connects the arrival commons to the plaza. Garden workspaces, outdoor dining, and flexible gathering areas extend work and social spaces across the campus.

The Commons is a circular building with a lenticular façade inspired by early zoetropes and the origins of moving pictures. Its ground-floor commissary opens to shaded courtyards and connects to the plaza and paseo, while additional spaces include a special events theater, screening rooms, and a top-floor events center with 360-degree campus views. At the far end of the paseo, One Universal responds to the site's steep grade with a double-height lobby connected to the central green, shared meeting and screening spaces, and an exterior terrace overlooking the campus, the Valley, and the San Gabriel Mountains.

For more information about this project, please visit: https://leverarchitecture.com/projects/nbcuniversal_campus_project

Photo credits: Ema Peter Photography
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10/26/2026

Designed by LEVER, the Jordan Schnitzer School of Art, Art History & Design at PSU at Portland State University brings Art Practice, Art History, and Graphic Design together in a four-story mass timber building. Located at the southern terminus of Portland’s South Park Blocks, the school connects the university with surrounding cultural institutions and the city. The building includes classrooms, studios, production and technology labs, galleries, and shared spaces.

The design incorporates ground-floor galleries along Broadway, a protected outdoor courtyard, and connections to the South Park Blocks and Green Loop. A central student commons provides flexible areas for gathering and work, while smaller galleries integrated into the corridors offer additional space for displaying student work. Exposed timber and natural light contribute to adaptable learning environments throughout the building.

The mass timber structure combines cross-laminated timber (CLT) floors with Douglas fir glulam columns and beams, incorporating 520,000 board feet of regionally sourced timber. Forty-foot timber spans allow for future interior reconfiguration, while off-site fabrication methods supported construction efficiency.

Designed to meet LEED Gold standards, the building incorporates a planted roof, an all-electric mechanical system, and energy-efficient strategies that reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent compared with current energy codes. Surplus heating capacity is designed to serve neighboring Shattuck Hall, reducing its reliance on campus steam. Native and climate-adaptive plantings, including an Oregon White Oak and Red Alders along the Green Loop, contribute to the surrounding landscape.

For more information about this project, please visit: https://leverarchitecture.com/projects/psu_school_of_art_design

Photo credit: © Jason O’Rear
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10/26/2026

10/23/2026

Designed by LEVER, Albina One is a
94-unit affordable housing project in Portland, Oregon and the first built project in the Albina Vision Community Investment Plan. The building includes accessible balconies, courtyards, communal spaces, classrooms, a communal kitchen, and a large outdoor playground within a private courtyard interior.

The project features a deep blue façade with artwork by local artists and gold screens that step down through the garden to support privacy and reflection. A major park space runs the length of the building, while a plaza connects to the primary entry and double-height community space. Daylit corridors and west-facing double-height terraces provide views of the river and contribute to the building's formal identity.

For more information about this project, please visit: https://leverarchitecture.com/projects/albina_one

Photo credit [image 1]: Justin Cordova
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Photo credit [image 2]: © Lara Swimmer / Esto
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10/22/2026

10/22/2026

Thomas Robinson, FAIA, Founding Principal of LEVER, has been named the 2026 Innovator by Architectural Record, recognized for his pioneering work with mass timber that pushes disciplinary boundaries, including Portland State University’s Jordan Schnitzer School of Art + Art History + Design in Portland, Oregon, 843 N. Spring Street in Los Angeles, California, and Meyer Memorial Trust in Portland, Oregon.

Robinson will also speak at Architectural Record’s Innovation Conference on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, from 1:30 to 2:20 pm. His presentation, Forest to Frame: Regenerative Timber Architecture, will address mass timber as both architectural practice and philosophy, examining new construction, adaptive reuse, high-rise innovation, and hybrid construction. The presentation will consider how architecture can transform supply chains, strengthen communities, and deepen relationships with the landscapes from which building materials are sourced.

Hosted by Architectural Record, the 2026 Record Awards recognize the year’s best built and unbuilt projects and honor leading and emerging voices in the profession. The awards ceremony will take place on Wednesday, November 4, 2026, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City, following Architectural Record’s Innovation Conference.

Additional honorees include Elizabeth Diller, Cofounding Partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, recipient of the 2026 Architect of Record Award for lifetime achievement, and Jeffrey Huber, Principal at Brooks Scarpa Huber Architects, recipient of the 2026 Rising Professional Award for his contributions to the profession, particularly in public realm design integrating environmental performance.

For more information, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/y48et8ba

10/21/2026

Designed by LEVER, the Jordan Schnitzer School of Art, Art History & Design at PSU brings Art Practice, Art History, and Graphic Design together under one roof. Located at the southern terminus of Portland’s South Park Blocks, the four-story building connects the university with surrounding cultural institutions and the city. The facility includes classrooms, studios, production and technology labs, galleries, and shared spaces. Ground-floor galleries along Broadway and a protected outdoor courtyard extend opportunities for creative work and public engagement.

The mass timber structure combines cross-laminated timber (CLT) floors with Douglas fir glulam columns and beams, incorporating 520,000 board feet of regionally sourced timber. Half of the wood used for the glulam components comes from regional Tribal enterprises. The structural system incorporates forty-foot timber spans, allowing flexibility for future interior reconfiguration.

Designed to meet LEED Gold standards, the building incorporates a planted roof, an all-electric mechanical system, and energy-efficient strategies that reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent compared with buildings constructed under current energy codes. Surplus heating capacity is designed to serve neighboring Shattuck Hall, further reducing campus steam consumption.

For more information about LEVER’s Portland State University project, please visit: https://leverarchitecture.com/projects/psu_school_of_art_design

Photo credit: © Jason O’Rear
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10/21/2026

RECORD's Innovation Conference is two weeks away!

The magazine's flagship annual educational and networking gathering will return to the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Lower Manhattan on November 4 for its 2026 edition. The conference will feature a compelling lineup of international practitioners who will present throughout the course of the full-day event. Like last year, the conference will be followed by an evening cocktail reception and honors presentation—also held at the Museum of Jewish Heritage—celebrating the winners of the second-annual Record Awards.

Attendees can earn 5.5 AIA LU/HSW.

Learn more about the featured speakers, conference agenda, and how to register here: https://brnw.ch/21x6zDl

LEVER Architecture, Snøhetta, Ennead Architects, RAMSA Robert A.M. Stern Architects, 5468796 Architecture Inc., Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects + Partners, Max Núñez Arquitectos.

10/20/2026

Learn more about LEVER's campus expansion projects including Portland State University’s Jordan Schnitzer School of Art + Art History + Design, NBCUniversal Campus Project, Adidas Headquarters Expansion and Gold Building, and Meyer Memorial Trust: leverarchitecture.com

10/19/2026

Cascada is a boutique hotel and spa in Portland's Alberta Arts community. The hybrid mass timber development is conceived as an urban model for an all-inclusive luxury hotel experience, with massing that reduces the building's overall scale and connects with the surrounding streetscape. Its program includes a hotel, restaurant, wellness facilities, ground-level retail spaces, and below-grade parking.

The wellness program extends across three floors and includes hammam-inspired bath and steam rooms, a swimming pool, gym, reception, and treatment rooms. An indoor-outdoor dining terrace, workspaces, conference rooms, and a bridge to the spa reception occupy the second floor, while 100 hotel units are located on the third through fifth floors.

The LEED Platinum design uses mass timber and low-carbon concrete to reduce the building's carbon footprint. Stormwater reuse, triple-pane windows, solar panels, energy-efficient systems, and an efficient envelope support its sustainability goals. Exposed Mass Plywood Panels, a two-story green wall, interior and exterior plantings, natural light, and ventilation integrate biophilic design throughout the building.

For more information about this project, please visit: https://leverarchitecture.com/projects/cascada

Photo credits: Ema Peter Photography
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