Caddis Culture

If you design cities for kids, you will make a wonderful, walkable, equitable, and accessible world. Caddis Collaborative has had many opportunities over the years to design stimulating and enriching places for children and youth. We believe strongly that architects should ask those they are designing for what they want. We ask kids what they want, and we take the risk of being open to their ideas. As a result, we design buildings that reflect their needs.

Adults living with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) have distinct housing needs and circumstances, affecting them and their families. Each person is unique, and adults with I/DD fall across a large spectrum of abilities and challenges. The opportunity is to create meaningful homes for individuals in this community. Common design elements are key and are based on principles of universal design and full accessibility.

Architects are embracing trauma-informed design as an aspect of universal design so that spaces designed for the broad population will also support users with past trauma. This approach to architecture foregrounds the needs of those who have been homeless, have been abused, are experiencing physical or intellectual disabilities, or are otherwise at risk. The goal is to create designs that promote well-being.

Caddis Collaborative is excited to be working with consulting architect Jim Kehoe, who brings his work with architecture and neuroscience to our projects in western Colorado. Thanks to Jim, our work on a multifamily neighborhood in Ridgway, Colorado, as well as our work on affordable housing developments is designed to support residents’ health and well-being.

At Caddis Collaborative, we’re always learning and constantly honing our practice as architects. Each week we get together as a team for our “Caddis Fly Lunch and Learn” series.

The company that plays together works well together. Caddis Collaborative enjoys an annual staff camping trip, snowshoeing and skiing outings in the winter, and other team-building activities throughout the year.

Julian Fischer Frank, architectural associate at Caddis Collaborative, is inspired by being creative. “I like getting messy with my hands in whatever art form,” he says, “and that’s typically how I spend my time outside of work.” Julian brings his creativity into his work for Caddis. He says, “My passion is to design for communities and to think about how people interact. What inspires me is the power of architecture to influence society and the progression of human life.”

We’ve been asking Caddis Collaborative staffers what brings them joy. Senior architect Chad Kipfer has been a practicing Buddhist and daily meditator for many years. Chad’s practice is informed by deep study. “It brings me joy to do these studies and bring that into my life,” he says. “That’s my path.”

We asked Caddis Collaborative staff members what they’re reading. Architectural associate Morgan Krasovich highly recommends Matt Haig’s novel "The Midnight Library." Although it is a fantasy fiction book, it is light on fantasy – “it’s not dragons or witches,” Morgan says – and heavy on compelling story.