(Photo | Courtesy of BLRB Architects)
In a move that will enhance the range and depth of architectural resources available to Central and Eastern Oregon clients, BLRB Architects announced that it has acquired Ascent Architecture and Interiors of Bend.
Ascent, helmed by owner and principal, Seth Anderson, AIA, has served private and public clients in Bend and Central Oregon since 2014. Named 2018 Architecture Firm of the Year by the Central Oregon Builders Association, Ascent has completed several visible and award-winning commercial, housing and hospitality projects including Bethlehem Inn Homeless Shelter, Worthy Brewing Expansion and Observatory, Madras Vision Source and Lake Place mixed-use.
Specializing in architecture for public use, with a focus on educational and civic facilities, BLRB is a regional firm with a significant portfolio of housing, hospitality and commercial projects in Bend and the surrounding region. Ascent’s focus on commercial, medical, hospitality and senior housing projects represented a natural complement to BLRB’s vision for its practice in Central Oregon. The firm opened its Bend office in 2011 and employs a local team of 12 with 80 team members firm-wide.
The acquisition of Ascent will expand local staffing to 27, and significantly increase the professional resources and service capacity available to clients of both firms. Anderson will serve as principal of BLRB’s Bend office. Employees of both firms will remain in their current offices for the short term and integrate into new office space this fall.
“Joining BLRB represents an amazing opportunity for the Ascent team,” said Anderson. “Our team will have access to a very deep well of specialized expertise and technology resources. We’re also excited to have an expanded team of colleagues, both regionally and locally, with whom to create and collaborate.”
“Seth and I worked together years ago and we knew that we had shared values and a similar outlook on design, service, workplace practices and organizational growth,” said BLRB’s managing principal, Greg McCracken, AIA. “I respect and admire Seth’s work and what he and the team at Ascent have accomplished, so as this idea evolved between us over the last year, it seemed like a natural fit for both firms.”
