Dillon Jones
project manageR – ARCHITECT
Dillon@SantulanArch.com
Dillon is an architectural sustainability champion and designer hailing from the great state of Oregon with brief stints in New Mexico. He joined Santulan Architecture with a deep reservoir of sustainability knowledge and senior housing design experience. Dillon has a passion for Passive House design, and his architecture is informed by a pragmatic approach to sustainability; using strategies that benefit both clients and tenants without undue reliance on active sustainability strategies. Outside the office Dillon spends his time in the wondrous outdoors, acting as a mad scientist in the kitchen, and cheering on his favorite sports teams. Go Ducks!
Dillon is a licensed architect in Colorado and Oregon.
Get to know dillon
If you could snap your fingers and become an expert in something, what would it be?
If I could be an expert in something at the snap of a finger it would have to be sustainability in practice. It is imperative we have leaders with practical field experience. As we learn more about the human psyche, we realize we need to live more harmoniously with our environment and migrate toward a circular economy. Sustainable design creates access to healthier environments for all.
What is your idea of a perfect day?
My ideal is doing the Colorado pentathlon; start with a sunrise hike, hit the slopes to go skiing, followed by a bike ride, hit some clay pigeons at the range, and finish the day with a sunset cooking over a fire pit at the campsite.
Where did you grow up? How does your background and life experiences impact your design process?
Originally, I am from LA metro area but left California for greener pastures to attend the University of Oregon. My parents both worked in ‘space’ side of the aerospace industry developing Space Shuttle Main Engine and Delta II’s RS-27A main engine among other programs. My twin brother decided to work in the ‘aero’ part of aerospace, working on programs such as hybrid airship, as well as miscellaneous Skunkworks and defense programs. Coming from a very engineering inclined family, I grew up with a sense of pragmatism and objectivity. But going to school in Oregon brought out my naturalistic sensibilities. At school I learnt how to be a good steward of the environment; designing buildings that complement and protect its ‘genius loci’. The blending of both my pragmatic and naturalistic sensibilities drive my design process. I strive to create efficient spaces that respect the climate through use of passive sustainability strategies, always keeping in mind cost.
What is your favorite sport and why?
My favorite sport is Formula One. Each race feels like an HBO miniseries at +300km/h! It is intriguing how each of the 10 teams build car to optimize enough downforce and low drag for 17 different tracks across the world. Before every race, the teams reveal new wings, barge boards, and floors to eke out fractions of a second over their competitors. On race day, your eyes are glued to the timing boards, watching a driver’s destiny unfold before you as they try to either pass, or undercut, or overcut (passing through use of the pit stop), or deal with a safety car or a botched pit stop. The smallest margins determine the end of season championship table.