From left: Jonny Rohrbaugh, Melissa Sandoval, Brooke Calhoun, Jake Inserra, Amelia Muller, Jacqueline Lin, and Carley Leckie.
“This new class of Associates exemplifies the depth of commitment and creativity that makes DBA who we are, and points to where our firm is headed. These multi-talented individuals have broken new ground for our practice in building performance, AI, urban planning, and design identity. We couldn’t be more excited to elevate them and see where they take us next.”
—Katie Ackerly, AIA, CPHC, Principal
We’d like to offer our congratulations—and gratitude—to the newest DBA Associates! These folks bring incredible talent, innovation, passion, and skill to our practice and our projects. We’re throwing a party this summer to celebrate them (save the date: June 25). In the meantime, you can get to know these additions to the DBA leadership team here.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jonny Rohrbaugh, AIA, CPHC
Driven by curiosity and craft, Jonny’s practice bridges the gap between graphic design, sculpture, and sustainable architecture. Jonny is a Certified Passive House Consultant with a focus on high-performance building envelopes that celebrate the resilient assemblies required for a zero-carbon future. His work at DBA encompasses multifamily construction with a parallel focus on emerging technologies. Strongly interested in the responsible integration of AI in architectural practice, Jonny is our newly minted AI Practice Lead and is overseeing our firm-wide AI tool evaluation and adoption strategy. Jonny is a Facilities Committee Member at Creativity Explored, a San Francisco nonprofit that supports artists with developmental disabilities, a commitment that reflects his belief in art’s power to connect people to their environment.
You can contact Jonny here.
Key projects:
Colibrí Commons, affordable family housing in East Palo Alto, Calif.
Harvey West Studios, permanent supportive housing and services in Santa Cruz, Calif.
Hunters View Phase 3, affordable family housing in San Francisco
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Melissa Sandoval, AIA
Melissa is focused on designing positive living environments that are both collaborative, forward-thinking, and most of all—for everyone. Melissa worked for several years abroad in Copenhagen and Hong Kong, specializing in cultural and educational projects that integrate healthy living environments with and response to local context. Her experience has ranged from conceptual through design development. At DBA, Melissa focuses on early phase entitlement, visualization, and concept design. She is a skilled artist with a penchant for watercoloring, sketching, and photography, alongside interests in travel, hiking, and kayaking.
You can contact Melissa here.
Key projects:
The Charles, affordable family housing in San Jose, Calif.
1633 Valencia, permanent supportive housing for seniors in San Francisco’s Mission District
RESHAP Alameda Point, the redevelopment of a former Navy base into a diverse affordable neighborhood
Sheldon Farms, a new transit-oriented affordable family community in Elk Grove, Calif.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Brooke Calhoun, AIA
Brooke is a collaborative architect who approaches projects with the flexible philosophy that there’s never just one right answer. Brooke has in-depth experience across all phases of affordable housing design in the Bay Area. She is an active member of the firm’s equity committee, advocating for inclusion and diversity within DBA’s office, practice, and projects. Brooke is an active outdoor adventurer—she hiked the whole John Muir Trail last summer—and enjoys painting, weaving, and reading science fiction.
You can contact Brooke here.
Key projects:
Amani & Nia, affordable family housing in San Francisco's Sunnydale neighborhood
34th & San Pablo, permanent supportive and affordable housing in Oakland, CA
Brightwell West, affordable housing on State Lands in downtown San Francisco, CA
850 Turk, affordable housing on State Lands in downtown San Francisco, CA
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jake Inserra, AIA, LEED GA
Jake is a committed architect who leverages a diverse skillset to bring sustainable designs, spaces, and places to people everywhere. Experienced with high-rise design, modular design, and diverse affordable housing approaches, Jake’s work is in the pursuit of a brighter world characterized by rich and tactile materials, measured and balanced forms, and communities that feel supported by their environment. A talented and prolific illustrator, Jake leads regular DBA outings for shared urban sketching opportunities. He can be found seeking out natural and urban beauty on his bicycle, or with a sketchbook in hand, capturing those experiences one line at a time.
You can contact Jake here.
Key projects:
ElevenEleven, a 240-foot high-rise in downtown San Francisco
Sango Court, modular permanent supportive housing in Milpitas, CA
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Amelia Muller, AICP
As a trained urban planner and designer, Amelia is drawn to work in small and mid-sized cities and to questions of how opportunity meets place. Before joining DBA’s Urban Design Studio, Amelia served as Civic Design Principal and Senior Advisor in the City of Birmingham Mayor’s Office, where she led a lean team charged with catalyzing innovative approaches to major challenges in the city—including urban development, resilience, sustainability, economic mobility, and food access. Born and raised in Greenville, S.C., Amelia has recently returned to her hometown, where she serves as a Commissioner of the Greenville Housing Authority, which serves more than 5,000 families.
You can contact Amelia here.
Key projects:
Woodland Park Master Plan
Pepper Place Master Plan, a coordinated series of micro-interventions to upgrade a beloved Birmingham fixture
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Jacqueline Lin, AIA
Jacqueline’s approach to design features a high level of attention to aesthetics, human comfort, daylighting, and energy efficiency. An astute architect, Jacqueline has worked at a variety of project scales across all phases of design. At DBA, she is focused on improving building performance and the quality of indoor environments through responsible materials selection, energy tracking, and post-occupancy study. Jacqueline leads our ongoing healthy materials effort through research, vetting, and partnerships. Currently she is an adjunct professor, teaching Building Energy at California College of the Arts, which reinforces her values in sustainable architecture. Jacqueline grew up in a coastal suburb in Southern California. In her free time, she enjoys backpacking in the Sierra Nevada mountains, yoga, reading, and sketching.
You can contact Jacqueline here.
Key projects:
Harvey West Studios, permanent supportive housing in Santa Cruz, CA
DBA’s Healthy Materials Research
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Carley Leckie
Carley approaches design as a collaborative process with attention to personal, material, and community narratives and experiences. A flexible, nimble designer, Carley has worked across a range of scales, with an emphasis on initial concept design and community engagement efforts. Carley leads DBA’s internal design charrettes, bringing collective design attention to our projects, and is focused on implementing new methods of architectural representation as a tool for elevating design through visual storytelling. Carley grew up in rural Virginia, where she became passionate about access to good design in underserved communities—and hiked the whole state of Virginia on the Appalachian Trail. She enjoys photographing Bay Area landscapes, crafting, beach-going, and playing mahjong.
You can contact Carley here.
Key projects:
Steplight, National Single Stair Design Competition San Francisco Winner
Exquisite Porch, DBA’s exhibit in “PORCH: An Architecture of Generosity” at the Venice Biennale
Felix, market-rate housing in Santa Rosa, CA
North Berkeley BART Transit-Oriented Development Plan, a new mixed-income community for an underused transit site
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________