Dave Otte, who joined Holst Architecture in 2005 and became its owner in 2017, has seen the firm evolve from a small practice with two partners doing modest projects to a robust team that designs ground-up construction and major adaptive reuse projects.

During the Great Recession, Holst began working more with non-profits and doing affordable housing, civic, and health care and education projects. Otte described its work on Bud Clark Commons as “a pivotal moment both for Holst and for my career.”

“It was our first public project, our first affordable housing project, and really opened our eyes and some doors to a new kind of working. Working more with community and folks on the margins of society and finding ways that architecture can give back,” he said.

Holst’s work on the East County Library is a major step in doing large civic projects that involve extensive community engagement, mass timber construction and ambitious sustainable design elements.

Otte said he appreciates helping Holst create meaningful architecture that people love. “I definitely see all of our work authored by many talented people here. I like to be a guide for folks who are actually a lot more talented than I am.”

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