Michelle Kaufmann's Prefab Design Firm Takes a Break

DESIGN - 2009-06-20 - MK DesignIn practice since 2004, Michelle Kaufmann advanced the ideal of high-quality, well-designed, prefab residential architecture.  She and her colleagues completed 40 prefab houses. While reducing waste in construction and embodying other benefits of prefab, the houses integrated outdoor spaces with interiors.  She also worked toward increasing the affordability of high design. On May 27, 2009, Michelle annouced that she was closing her firm, saying that, " .  .  . the financial meltdown and plunging home values have caught up with us."  Ms. Kaufman says she is looking toward the next chapter and is confident that there will be one.  No doubt, fans of modernist design hope to see her back on the scene as soon as possible.  For the Los Angeles Times article about the shuttering of Michelle Kaufmann Designs, go to http://bit.ly/4BZAFL .  

H. Pike Oliver

Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, H. Pike Oliver has worked on real estate development strategies and master-planned communities since the early 1970s, including nearly eight years at the Irvine Company. He resided in the City of Irvine for five years in the 1980s and nine years in the 1990s.

As the founder and sole proprietor of URBANEXUS, Oliver works on advancing equitable and sustainable real estate development and natural lands management. He is also an affiliate instructor at the Runstad Department of Real Estate at the University of Washington.

Early in his career, Oliver worked for public agencies, including the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research where he was a principal contributor to An Urban Strategy for California. Prior to relocating to Seattle in 2013, Oliver taught real estate development at Cornell University and directed the undergraduate program in urban and regional studies. He is a member of the Urban Land Institute, the American Planning Association and a founder and emeritus member of the California Planning Roundtable.

Oliver is a graduate of the urban studies and planning program at San Francisco State University and earned a master’s degree in urban planning at UCLA.

https://urbanexus.com
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Housing Assets as a Percentage of Gross Development Product