Assistant Professor & Chair of the Baker Lighting Lab, University of Oregon
Studio Coordinator and Instructor
Student work by Tay Srikuttamart and Hadley Carlberg
Over the past several years, the U.S. craft brewing industry has expanded in leaps and bounds; from 3,814 craft breweries in 2014 to 7,346 in 2018 with a 7% increase in retail dollar value and 150,000 new jobs [1]. Oregon has helped pioneer the growth of this industry, with an explosion in the number of craft breweries across the state. Eugene is home to multiple award-winning brands, with the top ten largest companies boosting their annual production by 12% between 2012 and 2017. That equates to 38,000 more barrels or 9.4 million more pints [2]. In other words, business is expanding. While production and job growth create opportunities for continued investment in the local industry, the role of the brewery as an architectural typology is also under flux. The craft brewery has transformed from an industrial model with minimal public interface to a multi-use, community integrated program that supports not only the manufacturing of beer, but also the service of food and support for music and community-oriented events.
Ninkasi, one the oldest and largest breweries in Eugene, has recently upgraded their tasting room from 700 to 4,000 sf, complete with food, drink, and hosting services. This shift has been echoed by smaller brands like Falling Sky, who have expanded to multiple locations, including a brewpub, delicatessen, and pizzeria. In 2017, Falling Sky saw a 50% increase in beer production over 2015 levels. While larger breweries like Ninkasi export large quantities of beer out-of-state, mid-sized craft breweries like Falling Sky rely on a symbiotic relationship between their brewing and restaurant activities to promote a higher price-point-per-pint through direct sales. In many ways, these new mid-sized breweries are starting to challenge the traditional bar and restaurant culture by offering a family-friendly place to taste, meet, eat, and socialize.
Despite this expansion in the local industry and job market, there are limited options for pursuing training in the science and business of brewing. There are a growing number of undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs offering education in this field across the United States, but only a handful of these programs exist in the state of Oregon. To meet the growth in our regional job market, this studio proposes a new Center affiliated with the University of Oregon College of Business and the Lane Community College School of Culinary Arts and Hotel/Restaurant/Tourism Management.
This term’s project proposes 30,000 sf of new construction in an urban site in downtown Eugene. The program includes three primary volumes: Serving & Eating Spaces (10,000 sf), Learning Spaces (10,000 sf) and Brewing Spaces (30,000 sf). Each of these volumes is further divided to accommodate specific spaces related to these program categories (see the next page for a break-down) with a mix of indoor and outdoor spaces.
[1] https://www.brewersassociation.org/press-releases/brewers-association-releases-annual-growth-report/
siobhan rockcastle 