City of Portland welcomes two new members to the Design Commission

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About the Design Commission

The Design Commission provides leadership and expertise on urban design and architecture and advances the purpose of the Design overlay zone. The Design overlay zone ensures that Portland is both a city designed for people and a city in harmony with nature. The Design overlay zone supports the city's evolution within current and emerging centers of civic life. The overlay promotes design excellence in the built environment through the application of additional design standards and design guidelines.

The Design Commission reviews land use applications for development proposals within design districts. The two new appointees bring new perspectives and insights into the importance of innovative design in contributing to the public spaces that Portlanders enjoy.

Hanifah Abioto

Hanifah Abioto was appointed to serve in the public art position on the Design Commission and began her term in mid-May. She is co-owner of an art and design firm with her family, Studio Abioto, that focuses on Black diasporic art, history, and lifestyle.

"Moving to Portland in 2010, I have witnessed profound change in a city shaped by the constant intersection of nature and development," she said. "Living in a place that has transformed so deeply has made me attentive to how design shapes wellbeing and quietly communicates what is possible, welcomed, or overlooked in our city - often long before anyone can consciously name it, and sometimes long after harm has already occurred.

"As an artist who returns to sound, writing, and printmaking as primary architects of my work, I am trained to notice scale, material, rhythm, and absence, and how these elements shape how people experience themselves in space and place. This way of seeing is why I am both equipped and invested in contributing to Portland through the Design Commission, where there is an opportunity to uplift lived, collective, and diverse experience through public art and design."

Tommy Solomon

Tommy Solomon will join the Design Commission on Dec. 1 in its landscape architect position. He is the owner and principal of Ground Workshop, an award-winning landscape architecture practice, where he has led a wide range of nationally recognized projects spanning the public realm, institutional, housing, and ecological landscapes.

"I take great pride in the opportunity to help shape communities through design," said Solomon. "Having lived, worked, and raised family in Portland since 2014, it has been a privilege to contribute to the city's evolving public realm, including projects that have come before the Portland Design Commission.

"My work is grounded in humility, curiosity, and a commitment to understanding how design decisions affect people with different needs, cultural contexts, and abilities. I hold deep respect for the Portland Design Commission and the responsibility it carries, and I am honored to support its mission in service of Portland's built environment."