Moody Nolan

At Moody Nolan, we know what it means to be left out of rooms that were built without you in mind. As the largest African American–owned architecture firm in the country, our entire practice is rooted in the belief that design is never neutral, it either includes or excludes, uplifts or disempowers.

To our LGBTQIA+ colleagues, collaborators, and communities: you are not an afterthought in our work. You are central to our mission of improving lives through design.

Throughout the month, we'll center voices from around the firm, offering perspectives on what belonging and inclusivity mean in the workplace, and in the world.

Happy Pride. 🏳️‍🌈

The University of Pittsburgh Campus Recreation and Wellness Center (Pitt Campus Recreation ) is redefining what a rec center can be.

At 276,000 SF and nine stories, the center brings together fitness courts, a sky track, a recreation pool, a climbing wall, and multipurpose rooms under one roof. The design works with the site's natural topography to connect the upper and lower portions of campus through a pedestrian throughway, making the building a literal bridge between two halves of campus.

Designed to function as a campus connector, the iconic facility is a place where physical health, mental well-being, and community-building happen in the same space.

Campus Rec Magazine takes a deeper look at how it all came together:
campusrecmag.com/building-a-bridge-for-campus-recreation-at-the-university-of-pittsburgh/

On June 6th, go behind the scenes with NeoCon Shows for one of the most anticipated civic projects in the country, with an inside look at the design and construction of Home Court at the Obama Presidential Center (Obama Foundation). Led by Partner, Renauld Mitchell, this guided experience explores the architectural vision, design strategy, and build process behind the space.
Register at: https://neocon.com/programming/inside-design

On , we’re reminded how museums do more than preserve the past. They create space for communities to connect with histories too often overlooked or left without a permanent home. This moment feels especially meaningful this year with construction officially underway on the Poindexter Village African American Museum on Columbus’ Near East Side.

Dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940, Poindexter Village was among the nation’s first public housing communities built for African Americans and the first in Ohio. The neighborhood was home to doctors, educators, artists, business owners, and families who helped shape the city’s Black cultural life during the mid-20th century. But during the decades that followed, public disinvestment and discriminatory policies eroded the conditions that allowed the neighborhood to thrive. By 2013, only 2 of the original 35 buildings remained.

Though much of Poindexter Village was lost to demolition, former residents and their families kept its legacy alive. The new museum will bring those memories into public view on the very site where they unfolded.

Anchored by the two remaining restored duplexes, the museum will feature permanent and rotating exhibition spaces, including a recreated 1940s apartment. A research center, art gallery, community gathering spaces, and activated outdoor areas will extend learning beyond the exhibits, creating more ways to engage with Poindexter Village’s history.

Together, these spaces will connect Poindexter Village’s local history to a broader national story of public housing and urban renewal, while centering the voices of the people who called it home.

Learn more about Poindexter Village and Ohio History Connection here: https://lnkd.in/gY8zShxU