BBT Architects Marks 50 Years of Community-Centered Design in Oregon

Throughout 2026, BBT Architects is proud to celebrate 50 years of practice rooted in service to communities across Oregon. This anniversary year offers an opportunity to reflect on the people, partnerships, and projects that have shaped our firm—and to look ahead to the conversations and collaborations still to come.

Over the coming months, we’ll share stories from BBT’s past and present, highlighting the individuals who built our culture, the work that defines our legacy, and the values that continue to guide our future.

A Firm Foundation

Founded in 1976 as Waldron Huston Barber Architects, BBT began as a small practice shaped by the shared vision of its founding partners: David Waldron, Neal Huston, and Ronald Barber.

Through economic cycles, leadership transitions, and steady growth, the firm evolved into BBT Architects in 1988 under the partnership of Ron Barber, Jim Barrett, and Todd Turner, maintaining a commitment to long-term relationships and community engagement. As Central Oregon experienced rapid growth and economic transformation in the late 1990s and beyond, BBT grew alongside the region—remaining deeply connected to clients, colleagues, and the communities it serves.

Architecture in Service of Community

For 50 years, BBT Architects has focused on designing places that support everyday life—where people learn, receive care, work, and come together. Across Oregon, the firm’s work reflects a consistent belief that architecture is most successful when it responds directly to the needs, values, and aspirations of the communities it serves.

Education
Education has long been central to BBT’s practice and one of its most enduring areas of impact. Early school projects helped establish trusted relationships with districts that continue today, evolving into decades-long partnerships built on collaboration, local understanding, and disciplined stewardship of public resources.

BBT’s education portfolio spans the full continuum of learning environments, from preschools and elementary schools to comprehensive high schools and post-secondary campuses. Across these projects, the firm prioritizes student and staff experience, and long-term value—designing schools that function not only as places of learning, but as lasting community anchors.

Healthcare
BBT’s healthcare work is grounded in expanding access to essential services and supporting the complex needs of patients and providers alike. The firm approaches healthcare design with a focus on operational clarity, and environments that promote dignity, comfort, and wellbeing.

Whether serving growing communities or rural regions, BBT’s healthcare projects reflect an understanding of healthcare facilities as vital civic infrastructure—places that must perform reliably while remaining welcoming and humane over time.

Commercial and Municipal
BBT’s commercial and municipal projects support the organizations, services, and public spaces that sustain community life. From civic buildings and public gathering places to workplaces and mission-driven commercial environments, these projects are designed to be durable, functional, and closely connected to their vision and goals.

Across sectors, BBT partners with clients to create spaces that align with organizational values, support long-term growth, and contribute positively to the surrounding community—integrating flexible planning and resource-efficient strategies that enhance longevity and performance.

A Shared Thread
While much of BBT’s work is rooted in Oregon’s high-desert communities, the firm has also completed projects across the state, including in Ashland, Gresham, Hermiston, Medford, Pendleton, and Springfield. Across these varied settings, the common thread remains the same: a commitment to designing spaces that reflect, support, and nurture the communities that shape them—today and over time.

Transition of Leadership and Future Vision

Through five decades of growth, creativity, and collaboration, BBT’s leadership has been shaped by a remarkable group of partners whose collective stewardship established a strong foundation for the firm’s future.

In recent years, BBT entered a new chapter with the expansion of its leadership team and a planned transition that reflects continuity, mentorship, and shared vision. As ownership transitions to the next generation of partners, the firm remains grounded in the values that have defined its work for 50 years: responsibility to community, thoughtful collaboration, and belief in design as a catalyst for positive change.

BBT’s 50th anniversary is more than a milestone—it is a celebration of the clients, partners, and communities who have shaped our journey. With gratitude for the relationships that defined our first 50 years, we look ahead with optimism, prepared to imagine and build environments that honor culture, elevate wellbeing, and support Oregon’s future.

 

BBT Architects is an award-winning, woman-owned architecture firm based in Bend, Oregon. Led by partners Kourtney Strong, Kyle Burke, and Renée Alexander, our 19-person studio specializes in architecture, planning, interiors, and sustainable design—united by a shared vision for connected, equitable, and enduring built environments.