Karen Pottebaum, AIA, LEED AP Joins PAYETTE as an Associate Principal

We are pleased to welcome our newest Associate Principal to the firm, Karen Pottebaum.

At PAYETTE, our people are our primary asset. Karen joins PAYETTE with over 20 years of experience with healthcare planning, design and project management.

Here, Karen shares her approach – and a bit about herself.

Why do you do what you do?
As a child, the neighborhood that I grew up in was an old horse farm that was slowly being developed into single family homes. As each house was being built, my father would take me on walks to explore the construction sites. I was always fascinated by the space and organization, imaging what each one would look like when finished. I knew for a long time that I wanted to be an architect, but after my first healthcare user group meeting, I knew that I had to focus on these types of projects. The passion for excellence and dedication of physicians and clinicians is contagious and knowing the impact of your work on the wellbeing of others is very gratifying. Not only do I enjoy the satisfaction of creating good, livable space, but I also enjoy the nostalgia of the summer evening walks with my dad.

What are you most excited about in regards to your new role at PAYETTE?
I am really excited to get involved with the creative problem solving process here at PAYETTE. I believe that there is a real effort to develop the best solutions here and that there is a real excitement for the work. The most fulfilling projects I have worked on have been the collaboration and exploration of ideas with the design team and the end users.

Where is your favorite place in the world?
There is no single one but many due to the memories of the places I’ve lived. Springtime in DC is beautiful with the blossoms; summertime in Chicago with the vibrant street festivals; fall in Cincinnati with family and the holidays; winter in Southern California because you can still golf every weekend.

What’s on your iPod?
Lots of retro 80’s music and every U2 album. But these days I tend to listen to more NPR podcasts such as Fresh Air and Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.

The sky is the limit: what would you redesign?
I would want to re-design my past projects knowing what I know now. More significantly, I would restructure the government election process by shortening all political campaigns to two months and capping donor contributions to $1k. I would also make it mandatory that all super PAC groups make charitable 501(c) contributions in equal amounts to political campaign donations.

What do you do in your free time?
I just survived flipping a little townhouse in DC that consumed most of my free time for the past several years. Take that off the bucket list. Otherwise, I enjoy painting, craft work and cooking.

What do you follow?
I became a soccer fan after the ’06 World Cup and follow the Premier League off and on depending on what my Saturday mornings are like.

What inspires you?
Sunrises and spring breezes. Both signify a fresh start.