Terwilliger Plaza
Project Overview
Terwilliger Plaza is a self-governed senior living community in Portland, OR with a story worth telling — a vibrant, active membership that defies every tired retirement community cliché. When they engaged Think Joule as agency of record ahead of the groundbreaking on Parkview, their newest campus expansion, the challenge was twofold: build awareness and momentum for a 10-story, 127-unit Passive House high-rise that didn't exist yet, and do it in a way that authentically reflected the richness of the community already thriving on campus.
My Role
Lead Designer
Art Director
My Role
I led the creative direction across the full scope of the engagement — brand experience, environmental design, campaign strategy, collateral, signage and wayfinding, social media, digital, print, direct mail, and photography. Working closely with our team and external partners, we held the brand vision across an unusually wide range of touchpoints simultaneously: a physical design center, a multi-channel awareness campaign, a monthly newsletter, sales tools, construction banners, and a modular signage system designed to scale across the entire campus.
The Brand system
The Terwilliger Plaza identity was built to feel approachable, clean, and straightforward — warm enough to welcome prospective residents, refined enough to signal the quality and sophistication of the Parkview product. A palette of indigo and cyan, accented with yellow and anchored in generous white space, gave the brand a clarity and openness that aligned with the Passive House design philosophy of the building itself. The system extended across every channel — digital and social advertising, print and direct mail, brochures, floorplans, construction banners, a newsletter, swag, a staged home photoshoot, and a modular signage family designed for scalability and seamless integration across the campus at critical wayfinding decision points.
The Brand system
The heart of the creative strategy was visual storytelling — not selling a building, but surfacing the richness of the community already living at Terwilliger Plaza. In the 2,500 SF Design Center, we crafted seven impact installations to tell that story cohesively: a modular testimonial wall, graphics on glass, built signage on gyp, a Passive House exhibit wall, and a custom cabinetry room divider wove the brand throughout the space, giving prospective residents an aspirational but authentic window into the lifestyle awaiting them.
Authentic member voices, developed through hours of interviews by content partner Hudner Strategies, grounded the campaign in real experience rather than marketing language. When Covid-19 required a pivot to virtual programming mid-campaign, the integrated infrastructure we'd built translated seamlessly — and the virtual events performed exceptionally. Every touchpoint, from the Design Center to the construction banners visible from the street, was designed to do the same thing: make a future resident feel welcomed before they ever moved in.
DJC Top Projects 2024 Honoree
Indigo Awards 2023, Bronze in Branding for Real Estate
Recognition
Project Team
Creative Director: Jennifer Bryan
Content Strategist: Jamie Bourgidu
Art Director, Lead Designer: Danielle Breck
Senior Designers: Bre Tauscher, Keri Bonn
Brand Producer: Emilie Beath
Photography: David Papazian, Danielle Breck
Designed under the direction of Think Joule.
Project partners
Forge Graphic Works
Hudner Strategies
LRS Architects
Sign Wizards
Walsh Construction Co.