News, Sustainable Practice

Living Shelter Architects and Board & Vellum Join Forces

We’ve been keeping a secret, but it’s for a good reason, and we’re pleased to finally get to share! We’ve always been dedicated to bringing our clients the best we have to offer in our services, approach, and design philosophy. Now with Living Shelter Architects joining the team, we’re excited to be able to provide even more to our community.


Great news! Board & Vellum welcomes Living Shelter.

We are so thrilled to finally be able to share this news with everyone — as of April 1st, 2022, the talented sustainable design firm, Living Shelter Architects, is joining Board & Vellum.

Founded in 1992 by Terry Phelan, Living Shelter Architects (LSA) has been elevating sustainable design practices for 30 years. Terry Phelan is a thought leader in green building known for her passionate education of the public and other designers on sustainable building practices and creating healthy and thoughtfully designed spaces.

As Terry looks towards retirement, she began seeking ways to transition her firm to enable the team of dedicated designers at LSA to carry on the mission. At Board & Vellum, we’ve been eager to accelerate our knowledge and growth into the world of deeply sustainable projects.

The more we explored the idea of teaming up, the more natural it felt — our firms share the same values, we are both dedicated to excellent client care, and we are both passionate about delivering beautifully-designed, contextually-sensitive projects.

A commitment to sustainable practices has always been at the core of Board & Vellum’s approach. With a deep bench of talented and passionate architects, interior designers, and landscape architects with credentials and accreditations like LEED and CPHC, our team is more ready than ever to bring approachable sustainability measures to more of our work. Now, with Terry Phelan at the helm of a new studio focused on sustainable practices, we are thrilled to be able to offer more for our clients who would like to design projects in the deep green space.

With the secret out, we hope you’ll stay tuned — as our teams come together, we will have plenty more to share. In the meantime, please join us in welcoming Terry Phelan and the Living Shelter team to Board & Vellum!


This post is a companion to our other posts about Board & Vellum and Living Shelter Architects teaming up.

More on Board & Vellum and Living Shelter Architects Joining Forces

Teaming Up: A Message From Jeff Pelletier

Though we’ve long been dedicated to sustainable design, diving deeper into the world of green building was part of a more-intensive effort we’d just started to flesh out. But things move quickly here at Board & Vellum, and we’re not afraid to make big changes when the right opportunities arise. Learn more about Jeff’s thoughts and perspective on this great news in Teaming Up: A Message From Jeff Pelletier.

Teaming Up: A Message From Terry Phelan

Terry has spent 30 years building a career and business focused on accessible sustainable design. Now, as her retirement approaches, Terry is looking toward a future that protects her legacy while expanding the amazing work she and Living Shelter have started. Read more about Terry’s thoughts and perspective on this great news in Teaming Up: A Message From Terry Phelan.

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Teaming Up: A Message From Terry Phelan

As a leader in sustainable and green design, Terry has dedicated her 30-plus-year career to finding ways to expand the deep green space. As her retirement approaches, Terry is looking forward to continuing to focus on educating the public and mentoring the next generation of designers to carry on the amazing work she and Living Shelter have started.

Teaming Up: A Message From Jeff Pelletier

When the opportunity to advance our plans to expand our green and sustainable practice arose, it was too good to pass up. We feel fortunate to welcome Living Shelter Architects to our team — a dedicated group of designers whose mission and values align so well with our own. Sometimes, things just fit!

Living Shelter Architects and Board & Vellum Join Forces

We’ve been keeping a secret, but it’s for a good reason, and we’re pleased to finally get to share! We’ve always been dedicated to bringing our clients the best we have to offer in our services, approach, and design philosophy. Now with Living Shelter Architects joining the team, we’re excited to be able to provide even more to our community.

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