Employee Spotlight: Kate Stickley
How has your career grown since joining Arterra?
What started as a two-person firm with just Vera and myself is now sixteen people! I learned to love the creativity in building a business and creating an office culture that is based on mentorship and craft.
What motivates you?
People. I find it most rewarding to connect and build relationships. It brings great meaning and purpose to our work within the office, with our clients and our professional colleagues.
What or who inspired you to pursue a career in landscape architecture?
My high school guidance counselor suggested I look into landscape architecture and environmental design. My mother is a fiber artist, and her mother was a painter and her aunt a weaver. Art was always in my home. I always loved being outside, climbing trees, building rock dams in the stream behind my home, and cutting trails through the woods. When I toured colleges I saw the work being produced in design studios and immediately felt inspired to try Landscape Architecture out.
What has been your favorite project so far?
That's like asking a parent who your favorite kid is! Our first net-zero project in Marin is a high point for me. We had an inspiring client who had the vision to create a home that would be as sustainable as possible. What we learned together continues to inspire us in our work today. And it's gorgeous! When your client says living in their home makes them feel the serenity of a spa and in one with the land, you know you've nailed it.
What was your favorite thing as a child?
So many! I think what always captivated me to this day (and still does) is maps and charts. Topographic maps from parks, street maps in exploring cities, historic maps of what the coastline of San Francisco used to be prior development, charts for sailing, and navigating waters. I guess I feel so at home designing a site plan or master planning a large tract of land because I've always had a curiosity and interest in how we navigate and experience the land and seas.