Blog

Seven Years In: Learning from 2030 Reporting How the AIA 2030 Commitment metrics help us develop our own standards for building performance

The Acta Non Verba Farm at Tassafaronga Village Grows More Than Just Produce Small-scale urban farming makes a big impact in affordable housing communities.

The Power and Peril of Reaching for Net Zero Energy in Affordable Multifamily Developments Principal and Sustainable Design Lead, Katie Ackerly walks through finding the right resilience strategy, regardless of ZNE goals.

Affordable by Design: A2 Apartments David Baker, FAIA, and Associate Taylor Dearinger share a close look at how the A2 Apartments fill a gap in Baltimore's housing market.

Continuing our JUST Practice—2.0 Associate Taylor Dearinger, Assoc. AIA, LEED GA, walks through how we continue to grow toward a more equitable organization.

DBA Climate and Housing Reading Group A firm-wide project to increase climate literacy and engagement by discussing current books, articles, and podcasts. Read with us!

Virtual Community Engagement: Opportunities and Strategies for Increasing Access David Baker Architects reflects on what we've learned from shifting our community engagement process to virtual platforms.

Introducing DBA's Newest Associates We're excited to announce our new all-women class of associates.

9 Ways to Build Housing for People—from the Inside DBA's Interiors Lead, Julie de Jesus, AIA, LEED AP, IIDA, walks through how we use our signature design strategies to guide and refine our building's inside spaces.

Introducing DBA's Newest Principals We're excited to announce our expanded leadership team.

Katie Ackerly, AIA, LEED AP, CPHC, Principal Katie Ackerly, AIA, LEED AP, CPHC, has been elevated to Principal at David Baker Architects.

Brett Randall Jones, AIA, LEED AP, Principal Brett Randall Jones, AIA, LEED AP, has been elevated to Principal at David Baker Architects.

Pedram Farashbandi, AIA, Principal Pedram Farashbandi, AIA, has been elevated to Principal at David Baker Architects.

Caroline Souza, AIA, Principal Caroline Souza, AIA, has been elevated to Principal at David Baker Architects.

Small but Mighty Acts of Urbanism at Birmingham's Pepper Place Principal Amanda Loper, AIA, LEED AP, breaks down the little interventions that go into creating a dynamic urban environment.

Making Big Moves at Mason on Mariposa David Baker talks about the site specifics and design features of Potrero Hill's newest development

Smoke and Heat: How to Prepare Multifamily Housing for Climate Events A Guide to Immediate Actions and Long-term Goals for Housing Providers in Response to Smoke and Heat Wave Events

Our Work Continues During COVID-19 David Baker Architects unpacks our transition to remote work by adapting our process, ensuring firm culture, and increasing flexibility to continue creating through the pandemic.

Density's Not Done! DBA Principals address housing density in light of the pandemic.

July 2020: The Magic is Back in Birmingham Part Three: The Future Part three in a three-part series about Principal Amanda Loper’s return from San Francisco to Birmingham, Alabama, now home of DBA's southeastern office.

May 2020: Modular Multifamily for Affordable Housing Developers

Attaining the cost and time benefits of prefab where the need is greatest.

December 2019: DBA_OAK Comes to Life!

Transforming a disused warehouse into our new Oakland office.

November 2019: The Magic is Back in Birmingham—Part Two, The Turnaround Begins The second post in a three-part series about DBA Principal Amanda Loper’s journey from San Francisco to Birmingham, now home of DBA_BHM, our southeastern office.

October 2019: The Magic is Back in Birmingham—Part One, Return to the Past Part one in a three-part series about Principal Amanda Loper’s return from San Francisco to Birmingham, Alabama, now home of DBA's southeastern office.

July 2019: Designing Bini's Kitchen DBA designs the first brick-and-mortar of an acclaimed Nepalese culinary startup.

June 2019: Making Great Urban Places DBA Urban Design enriches and builds neighborhoods with the community in mind.

April 2019: Daniel Simons FAIA DBA Principal Daniel Simons has been elevated to Fellow by the American Institute of Architects.

February 2019: Community-Based Hospitality Looking to the people and the place to inform a new space.

January 2019: Resilient by Design, Protecting East Oakland from Rising Sea Levels A holistic approach to addressing local sea-level rise.

December 2018: A Traveler's Perspective on Housing Affordability David Baker reflects on what global cities can teach about housing and development.

Building Our JUST Practice How a new transparency platform spurred us to keep “walking the talk”—and where we go from here.

The New Multifamily Modular DBA's shared modular-construction resource for developers, architects, contractors, and consultants.

Exploring the Living Building Challenge Affordable Housing Pilot We're taking two affordable housing developments through the LBC's comprehensive, philosophical program.

Community Engagement: Hotel Sebastopol Curiosity and sincere conversation with the community elevate our designs.

DBA_Lab Gets Playful for PARK(ing) Day The Wishing Cloud came together quickly for one day of play at SFMOMA.

Pop-Up Placemaking: SPARC-It-Place A look at activating a site between acquisition and construction.

Inside the Art at Foundry Commons Through curation and commission, DBA_Inside puts together thoughtful art programs for community spaces.

Building Lightly in El Tejar DBA_Lab takes part in a design/build project in El Tejar, Guatemala

A Journey through our 2030 Commitment DBA's Sustainability Lead, Katie Ackerly, shares her thoughts on addressing the AIA's comprehensive performance initiative.

Behind the Scenes at DBA_Workshop DBA_Workshop builds custom casework, furniture, prototypes, and other creative projects in Oakland.

An Ode to the Podium Taller is better! Here's why.

The DBA Pin-Up Weekly pin-ups encourage looseness, creativity, and sharing across projects.

Saint Clare Coffee Comes to the SPUR Urban Center By Allison Arieff, SPUR Editorial Director

peepSHOW 2.0 for the 2016 Market Street Prototyping Festival Text PEEP to 22333 to help us win $5,000 to fund finishing peepSHOW!

Why We're "Pro" Pro Bono Donating our services for public-interest design has benefits for both the community and for our staff.

A Collaborative Approach to City Making: Lessons From Sydney Innovative planning in Sydney, Australia has resulted in great public spaces, highly visible public art and an embrace of density.

Constraints and Creativity Shape Affordable Housing for Seniors in Oakland, California

Design Begins with People Reflections on our community design charrette series for a re-imagined neighborhood in Asheville, North Carolina.

AIA 2030 Commitment DBA has signed on to the AIA 2030 Commitment with the goal of documenting building performance and moving toward net-zero.

Stepping into the Q Zone Exploring the rich edge between the building and the sidewalk.

11 Strategies for Building Community with Affordable Housing David Baker and Amit C. Price Patel share their design philosophy in the February issue of Urban Land Magazine.

The 30A Cognitive Dissonance Blues Amanda Loper reflects on the "perfection" of planned communities.

Art for All! Strategies and significance of including art in every building.

This Is Where ... Urban Field Notes: Amanda Loper explores some of the urban moments that make the city so vibrant.

Focus on the First 20 Feet Amanda Loper and David Baker, featured in SPUR's June Urbanist.

Densifying Design Amanda Loper proposes densifying design strategies as one piece of the urban housing solution.

DBA Workshop The DBA Workshop is located in the upcoming DBA-OAK office space near 21st Street and San Pablo Avenue in Oakland.

2012 Looking Back

2012 Looking Back: DBA was most fortunate to have a good year, full of great clients, collaborations, challenges, and accomplishments!

Acta Non Verba Youth Urban Farm Project Acta Non Verba Farm brings fresh food and breathes fresh life into the Tassafaronga community.

Anecdatal Evidence The health value of supportive affordable housing as evidenced by anecdote.

Cards We've refreshed our postcards with 8 new cards and a custom micro-manufactured case.

Great Second Street Second Street is about to get bike lanes and fresh pavement. Let's do it right with European-style Cycle Tracks!

2010: Interactive New Year's Wishes Our snail-mail custom labor-intensive coloring book for 2010!

Quilting (D)B David Baker is one of many creative contributors to the San Francisco Bike Coalition's 2009 Bike Quilt.

Transit-Oriented Developments David Baker discusses the merits of and strategies for creating Transit-Oriented Developments.

XERO Project in the Polls Our award-winning design for a zero-energy block in Dallas is in the running in a people's-choice straw poll—get the vote out for XERO Project and help bring a little DBA to TX.

Tiny Shelters Charrette In April 2009 David Baker was invited as the Bruce Goff Chair of Creative Architecture to spend a week at the University of Oklahoma Architecture School lecturing and teaching a short charrette ("workshop" in architect lingo!).

Hearthstone BUILDER Humanitarian Award David Baker was recently dubbed one of the 30 most influential and innovative people in the housing industry of the past 30 years.

Residential Architect Honors Paseo Senter Paseo Senter gets national notice with a 2009 RADA Merit Award.

Emilie Baker Remembering Emilie Baker.

Slow Food Nation DBA and CCS Architects banded together with Slow Food Nation and local vendors and farmers to bring "slow fast food" to Civic Center Plaza.

Velo Vogue Profile: David Baker Does the bike (or the bell) make the man? Velo Vogue assesses David Baker.

Travels with db... In search of architecture, urban design, and transportation infrastructure!

Finishing Touches Doors are open at our 200 Second Street Condominiums in Oakland, and the building's two lofty lobbies have been adorned with murals by local artists Casey Jex Smith and Andrew Schoultz.

China (Work)shop David Baker and other Cal faculty lead the China Studio team to Jiaxing and back.

Critical Visit David Baker was invited to be the 2006 John Portman Visiting Critic at the Georgia Institute of Technology’s College of Architecture this past autumn.

Unbundle New Urban Parking + Housing Lower parking requirements allow for more units of affordable housing, less urban traffic congestion, and increased urban vitality.

Architectural Design Strategies Lavishing creativity and consideration on the design of the human environment results in a link with future inhabitants.

Design of Community Design implementation requires community involvement, contextual design, and a lot of communication.

Mr. + Mrs. Bernard W. Baker Emilie Baker, 1914-2008 The best mom I ever had. Bernard W. Baker, 1899-1981 My dad was a self-trained architect who designed and built the solar house where I was born.

Office Views A snapshot of life at DBA.