Roadrunner Food Drive Success!

For the past three years, The Design Group has held a holiday food drive for one of our favorite charities, the Roadrunner Food Bank.

As you may or may not know, New Mexico has the highest rate of childhood hunger in the nation and is #2 for Food Insecurity.  The reality of this problem was brought to light in the Albuquerque Journal last October:

http://www.abqjournal.com/278640/news/hunger-really-does-exist-in-nm.html

We’re proud to say that our efforts in December raised 215 pounds of food donations, which beat our previous record by over 80 pounds! Way to go DG-ers!

DG Community Commitment Program

As a commitment to our local communities, and in recognition of our employees who generously donate their time to their favorite causes, we are proud to introduce the DG Community Commitment Program. For every hour of volunteer work, The Design Group will match employee efforts with a $10 donation to their chosen organization.

We're looking forward to making a real difference in 2014!

Hidalgo Medical Services Wins Non-Profit of the Year Award

NM Business First

New Mexico Business First has named Hidalgo Medical Services as the Nonprofit Health & Human Services Provider of the Year! Congratulations to our clients at HMS for this well-deserved honor.

The Design Group recently completed the HMS Public Health Facility in Silver City, New Mexico. Please visit our website for more information about this exciting project!
http://www.designgroupnm.com/design-hidalgo-silver-city.htm

Reigning Champs

The Design Group competed in our favorite event of the year - the Urban Olympics for the Amy Biehl High School Foundation. At the 4th Annual competition, our Design Groupies defended their title for the Best Costume, and also won 1st place in the Human Scream event!

Congratulations to all of our team members who participated, and thanks to the Urban Olympics crew for putting on another great event.

Fashionable Olympians

The Design Group took home the trophy for Best Costume at the 3rd Annual Urban Olympics! The event raised over $25,000 for the Amy Biehl High School Foundation, in support of student programs at the school. Teams of five competed at Albuquerque Civic Plaza on May 4th in fun events such as water cooler relays, office chair races, and giant Jenga.

We're proud to sponsor this event for a project that is close to our hearts.

Amy Biehl High School Foundation Press Release

Master Plan

The New DG Headquarters Master Plan

A city planned around the automobile, Albuquerque sprawls out over the Rio Grande valley with half a million people on approximately 180 square miles.  This is a density of about 2,912 people per mile.  It may seem substantial but when compared with other American cities such as Chicago, with 12,192 people per sq mi, New York City with 17,931 people per sq mi or Boston with 7,249 people per sq mi., we have a lot of elbow room.   And while most Albuquerque residents relish their space, it does come at a cost.  Large busy streets divide neighborhoods, cars are the primary means of transportation, much of the city lacks a distinctive identity and we lose meaningful open space as the city grows westward. 

At Design Group we believe in urban planning that reflects the character of Albuquerque but also reinvests in our current neighborhoods, making our existing communities stronger, and knitting the fabric of the city and its people together.  As a part of this we have included in our master plan a possible residential or mixed use development on our site. Currently the parking lot will exceed our parking demands, and with more staff than ever walking or biking to work, there would be room for a small efficient development.  At this point these plans are very much on the drawing board, however they represent for us a brighter future for our community and our city.

A New Neighborhood, A Committment to Community



The New Neighborhood



Once the Design Group moves into its new Headquarters, the commute will get much shorter for several team members, including Emily Brudenell:

”Once we move, I will be able to walk to work in the amount of time it takes me currently to drive, or bike in even less time.  It’s going to be great; I can’t wait to move!”

The selection of this site was deliberate.  Owners Doug Majewski and Gregory Hartman considered dozens of sites before finally deciding to move forward with the location on Vassar.  Vassar offered the most opportunities to develop a project that would help cultivate a stronger community and support a diverse, walkable neighborhood. As Gregory observed,

"We are thrilled to become a part of a mixed use neighborhood where employees can live, work, learn, play and shop all within walking distance.  The Design Group was founded on community projects like this that positively impact our neighborhoods for future generations.  Adding another fifty years of life to a vacant building through revitalization is not only true sustainability but it also enriches our common cultural heritage.”

That many staff members will be able to walk or bike to work is a bonus.  Says one team member, Kirstin Kalberg:

“I love the fact that our new office is located on the cusp of a residential neighborhood.  It lends a sense of community to our office and work.  The location is really fantastic.”