I Am AIA:

Victoria Buker

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Victoria has worked in the development industry in just about every facet of the industry; as owner, real estate developer, landscape architect and now contractor. For the last 4 years, Victoria has been building Sellen’s design-build portfolio. Recent projects include an office building on the Capitol campus in Olympia with ZGF & a 12 story office building in South Lake Union with Olson Kundig. Prior to Sellen, Victoria was a development manager for Vulcan for 10 years leading design & construction teams to create UW Medicine’s research facilities in South Lake Union.

What project are you working on now?

I am currently providing pre-construction services for Children’s Building Care project on the Sand Point campus and PAWS facility in Snohomish County.

How do you explain what you do for a living?

When I look back on my career it’s been consistent. No matter what my title is, I’ve always enjoyed what I do, and what I do is create places for people to work and live.

Where is the field of architecture, engineering or construction headed?

The old adage of “Nothing is constant as change” rings true for the AEC world. I think the fields of architecture, engineering & construction are becoming more integrated and specialized at the same time. Each building is more complicated, with higher goals – more efficient work space, less energy use, more daylight, less operating costs, faster schedule, less costs. There is pressure to make design & construction more efficient and lean. The challenge is to remove the waste but retain the beauty.