Page Text: Principal, Director of Practice - Landscape Architecture
Matthew Porteous, PLA, ASLA
Matt pursues integrated and creative design solutions that focus on activating civic infrastructure and pedestrian-centered streetscapes to make inviting civic spaces, mixed-use communities and commercial developments. He excels at balancing the diverse needs of private development, cities, agencies with economic demands and public processes. Matt’s goal is to create experiences that leverage each site’s unique character and foster social connections.
His expertise lies in master planning, urban design, and landscape architecture. For 20 years, he has partnered with dozens of communities, cities, and architectural and engineering firms to design a diverse range of urban projects including civic and campus public spaces, mixed-use/residential, commercial and transit.
Principal, Director of Design - Landscape Architecture
Jake Woland, PLA, ASLA, LEED AP
Jake weaves the environmental and social together in the design of places for people, the thread connecting his background in Landscape Architecture, geology and theatrical design. With over 20 years as a design leader, Jake approaches the conceptualization of the space between buildings, with empathy and thoughtful consideration of place. He leads design teams creating stories of identity, interlacing green infrastructure and ecological opportunities with the unique project possibilities and constraints. These solutions are choreographed resulting in resilient projects that address the needs of the present and future city.
By nature an educator, Jake regularly lectures at UW, has taught urban design studios at Rutgers, and is the author of a highly regarded textbook on sustainable site design. He has worked across a wide variety of urban conditions and scales, including waterfronts, civic open spaces, transit facilities, streetscapes and single building to multiple block mixed use and commercial projects. Jake extends his excitement for sharing knowledge with our clients and teams, whether introducing and exploring new construction materials or the integration of layered benefits into urban design solutions. He is also a passionate and collaborative leader in seeking equitable and Anti-Racist approaches within the design community.
KC Hermsen, PLA, ASLA
KC Hermsen, PLA, ASLA
In her work at HEWITT, KC is always looking for opportunities to infuse the quirk and character that make places unique. She was drawn to landscape architecture by its ability to impact sustainability and equity in the built environment, and is driven by environmental and universal design principles. She believes that a project is most successful when the design approach combines collaborative creativity and site-specific solutions with a solid understanding of the buildability. Currently, KC is working on projects in a range of scales from mixed-use apartments to high-rises.
As a Southern California transplant, KC always brings a little Point Break energy to the table. She came to the Northwest to attend the University of Washington, where she earned her Bachelor of Landscape Architecture as well as minors in Architectural Studies and Environmental Science. To this day, KC is still trying to get Washingtonia filifera to grow in the PNW.
Senior Associate
Mike Koski-Harja, PLA
Mike enjoys collaboration and is fascinated with the craft of the design process. In particular, he has a keen interest in the documentation and construction phases of projects. He believes in being thoughtful in how we do our work, always looking beyond our own tasks to the larger goals and opportunities within each project. As a result, he has enjoyed managing a full range of small to large multi-disciplinary projects in the public and private sectors, working on campuses, commercial developments, and regional transportation systems.
Mike received Bachelor of Environmental Studies and Master of Landscape Architecture degrees from the University of Manitoba before moving to Seattle. When he can get away, you’ll find him travelling or fly fishing, collecting new experiences to fuel the creative process.
Associate
Myles Harvey, PLA, ASLA
Since graduating from the landscape architecture program at University of Washington, Myles has worked with multidisciplinary teams on projects ranging from healthcare and academia to public open space, multi-family housing to mixed-use development.
Throughout his career, the timbre of his work is design that encourages social life; Myles builds landscapes that feel collaborative and participatory, while rooted to their setting. Inspired by the rugged terrain of Nevada, his childhood home, he seeks to create spaces that invite users to experience the resilience and inter-connectivity of the natural world.
Nancy Chan, PLA, ASLA
Nancy Chan, PLA, ASLA
Nancy is a designer that is passionate about creating opportunities for connection with our fellow citizens and with our natural environment. She brings to her work at Hewitt a collaborative mindset focused on creating spaces that are engaging and functional across all scales, while fostering a deep sense of place. She has experience collaborating on interdisciplinary teams on a diverse range of urban projects including mixed-use development, multifamily residential, and open space/transit projects. Most recently she has contributed her skills to Lakefront Blocks, 333 Dexter, and Arbor Blocks.
Nancy is a Texas native who has spent much of the last two decades exploring new landscapes. Her design perspective is shaped by the diverse communities where she has resided across the country and abroad, from New York to Spain, and California to Washington.
Nancy holds a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Washington. She is a licensed landscape architect in Washington state and is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects.
Associate
Rachel Miller, PLA, ASLA
Born and raised in Seattle, Rachel earned her Bachelor of Landscape Architecture Degree from the University of Washington. Her childhood love of Pacific Northwest forests and beaches developed into a passion for crafting urban landscapes which draw inspiration from the beauty and adaptability of the environment around us.
Having recently completed Lakefront Blocks, she is now working on mixed-use and open space projects at several regional retail centers, including University Village, with the goal of turning parking lots into pedestrian paradises. Through an approach that combines inspired collaboration with a strong understanding of the complexities of building in the urban environment, Rachel contributes to the creation of people places that are functional, flexible, and unique.
Associate
Reese Cowan Stewart, PLA, ASLA
Reese sees every project as an opportunity to strengthen the relationship between people and the land they inhabit. Cultural landscapes are defined by what they mean to the people who call them home as much as by soils, ecology, topography, views, and structures. The ability to tune into the essence of a place in a manner that is reflective, respectful, and creative is at the core of her professional passion.
Reese is an advocate for quality design in the built environment, with a diverse portfolio that includes a wide variety of public and institutional projects such as parks, schools, recreational facilities, streetscapes, public buildings, trails, and children’s play areas. Each was designed to express the client’s energy and desire for a project while listening to the innate qualities of the landscape—and then carefully crafted to balance both.
Reese holds a Master of Landscape Architecture degree and a Bachelor of Environmental Design degree in from the University of Manitoba, in addition to a Master of Landscape Architecture degree from the University of Washington.
Robin Croen
Robin Croen
Inspired by his travels both at home and abroad, Robin is driven to find creative solutions that address the needs of people and place while responding to ever-changing environmental challenges. At HEWITT he works at multiple scales, using design to interweave the complexities of natural systems and the built environment.
Originally from California, Robin earned his Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture from the University of California at Davis. He earned his Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Washington, where he also gained experience in sustainable urban planning while working for UW’s Green Futures Lab. His experience traveling and working abroad culminated in co-authoring the book System and Scale: A Guide to Green Infrastructure.
101 Stewart Street, Suite 200
Seattle, WA 98101