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Julie Livingston, an architect and senior project manager with affordable housing provider Home Forward, is the newest member of the Portland Design Commission.

The Portland City Council last week unanimously approved a Bureau of Development Services staff recommendation to appoint Livingston to serve a four-year term on the volunteer commission that reviews major developments within city design districts.

Livingston fills an architect position that’s been vacant since Lango Hansen Landscape Architects principal Jane Hansen stepped down last fall. City staffers are still seeking another architect, design or land development professional to fill a second vacancy created when THA Architecture principal David Keltner left the seven-member commission in March.

Tim Heron, a senior planner with the city, worked closely with Commission Chairman David Wark to review more than 20 applications to fill the two vacancies. Although city staffers also nominated Vallaster Corl Architects founding partner Don Vallaster to fill one of the vacancies, City Commissioner Amanda Fritz, who oversees BDS, recommended that the council appoint only Livingston.

鈥淚’m holding that (second) vacancy because I really wanted someone from an underrepresented community to round out our commission membership,鈥� Fritz said before the council voted to appoint Livingston. 鈥淛ulie certainly adds a lot of value in the scope of work that she’s done, and I really appreciate her service.鈥�

Heron said BDS will repost an announcement seeking design and development professionals interested in serving on the commission with the aim of attracting a more diverse pool of applicants. City staffers also are anticipating an additional vacancy when Commissioner Guenevere Millius, whose second term ended late last year, resigns at the end of this summer, he said.

Livingston filled her new role as design commissioner for the first time on Thursday. She said she become familiar with the commission through her work managing the planning of new affordable housing projects for Home Forward. She admires Portland’s design review process.

鈥淚t’s a gift to our urban environment,鈥� she said. 鈥淒evelopers, architects (and) contractors are all willing to go through this. I think that’s truly remarkable. It’s an amazing process.鈥�

Serving on the commission seemed like a great way to give back to her community by promoting quality architecture and urban design, she said. As a design commissioner, Livingston said she would especially like to promote design equity.

鈥淚t’s been very important to me to raise the bar for everyone: Better design, better construction that serves everybody who lives in our city,鈥� she said. 鈥淓verybody deserves to live in an environment that meets our needs.鈥�