What Dillingham Associates does

Dillingham Associates is a Berkeley, California-based landscape architecture firm founded in 1983, specializing in community parks, regional parks and open space, urban design, institutional and educational campus projects, and residential and commercial site design. The firm operates as a traditional professional services practice led by Founding Principal Reed Dillingham (50 years of experience, California State Landscape Architect License #1431, Harvard GSD MLA) and Managing Principal Paul Dillingham (Cal Poly Pomona MLA, 12 years experience), supported by a small team including a project manager, office administrator, and office mascot. The firm's client base is concentrated in the San Francisco Bay Area, with primary customers including municipal governments (Cities of Oakland, Berkeley, Palo Alto, Fremont, Santa Clara, Martinez, Arcata, Colma, Campbell, Gilroy, Mill Valley, San Leandro, San Mateo, Novato, Los Altos Hills, Los Gatos), educational institutions (UC Berkeley, San Francisco State, multiple K-12 districts), regional agencies (Santa Clara County Parks, East Bay Municipal Utility District, Contra Costa Water District, The Presidio Trust), and select private developers and healthcare providers.

The firm delivers services through direct professional engagement, obtaining projects via competitive municipal procurement processes and established institutional relationships rather than through any proprietary technology platform. Service delivery spans the full design lifecycle from master planning through construction documentation across all five practice areas. Notable accolades include the American Public Works Association Project of the Year 2016 for the Lake Merritt Sail Boat House Shoreline project. The firm maintains a portfolio-based web presence but has no disclosed software products, API integrations, or technology stack beyond standard professional practice tools.

Dillingham Associates is a privately held, bootstrapped firm owned and operated by the founding Dillingham family with no external institutional investors, parent company, or funding rounds disclosed. Revenue is generated through project-based professional services contracts with quote-based pricing typical of the landscape architecture consulting sector. The firm operates from a single Berkeley headquarters at 2927 Newbury Street, Suite B, with no documented geographic expansion beyond the Bay Area market and no evidence of M&A activity, restructuring, or leadership transitions beyond the Reed-to-Paul Dillingham principal succession.

Name

Dillingham Associates

Legal name

Dillingham Associates

Website

https://dillinghamlandarch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dillingham Associates is a Berkeley, California-based landscape architecture firm founded in 1983, serving Bay Area municipalities, educational institutions, and public agencies with community parks, urban design, campus, and open space planning services through a small, principal-led professional practice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Landscape Architecture Services

NAICS

Landscape Architectural Services (54132)

akta.pro primary industry

Landscape Architecture & Site Design (BPAHAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Urban Planning & Master Planning (BPAHAKAD)

Keywords

• Landscape architecture services
• Urban design planning
• Master planning services
• Park design consulting
• Community development design

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkeley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Landscape Architecture Consulting Services: Professional services revenue generated through landscape architecture design and planning consulting engagements for public and private sector clients. Projects include community parks, urban design, institutional/educational facilities, residential and commercial developments, and regional parks/open space planning. Revenue is project-based, typically through contracts with municipalities, institutions, and developers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Dillingham Associates is a landscape architecture firm that designs public and private outdoor spaces, organized into five practice areas: Community Parks, Regional Parks + Open Space, Urban Design, Institutional + Educational, and Residential + Commercial. Services span master planning, site design, and construction documentation for municipal governments, educational institutions, healthcare facilities, public utilities, and private developers in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Product overview

Dillingham Associates is a landscape architecture firm offering a unified set of design services organized into five distinct practice areas: Community Parks, Regional Parks + Open Space, Urban Design, Institutional + Educational, and Residential + Commercial. Their portfolio encompasses the full lifecycle from master planning through construction documentation, serving municipal clients, educational institutions, healthcare providers, and private developers across California. The company is led by Reed Dillingham (Founding Principal) and Paul Dillingham (Managing Principal), supported by landscape designers and project managers. All services are delivered through direct professional engagement rather than a software product or platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Community Parks Design of community parks including recreational facilities, play areas, dog parks, shoreline improvements, and public gathering spaces for municipal clients in the San Francisco Bay Area.
• Regional Parks + Open Space Master planning and design for regional parks, open space preservation, trails, reservoir facilities, and heritage sites for county parks departments, open space trusts, and utility district clients.
• Urban Design Urban design services including streetscape improvements, gateway design, pedestrian conversions, civic center planning, and transit-oriented development for municipal clients.
• Institutional + Educational Design for educational campuses, medical facilities, civic buildings, and utility infrastructure including universities, school districts, healthcare organizations, and public agencies.
• Residential + Commercial Private residential and commercial landscape design including corporate campuses, retail environments, hospitality venues, and high-end residential properties.

Quantifiable outcome

• American Public Works Association Project of the Year 2016 for Lake Merritt Sail Boat House Shoreline

Named customers35 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• OLIN: OLIN is a landscape architecture, urban design, and planning studio working across public parks, civic spaces, and institutional campuses. It is directly comparable to Dillingham Associates on project type and client base, particularly for high-design public realm commissions.
• SWA Group: SWA Group is a landscape architecture, urban design, and planning firm with deep California roots and a national practice. It directly competes with Dillingham Associates on community parks, urban design, and institutional campus projects in the Bay Area and beyond.
• LandDesign: LandDesign is a national landscape architecture, civil engineering, and urban design firm with a strong portfolio of community parks, mixed-use developments, and campus projects. It competes with Dillingham Associates on private and public sector commissions across community parks and urban design practice areas.
• Hargreaves Associates: Hargreaves Associates is a Bay Area-based landscape architecture and planning firm with a long history of public park, waterfront, and campus projects. It competes head-to-head with Dillingham Associates on many of the same municipal and institutional clients in Northern California.
• James Corner Field Operations: James Corner Field Operations is a landscape architecture and urban design firm known for high-profile public space projects such as the High Line. It competes with Dillingham Associates for marquee public realm, waterfront, and master planning commissions.
• LandArc: LandArc is a California-based landscape architecture firm with practices in community design, urban infill, and civic spaces. It competes directly with Dillingham Associates for Bay Area municipal and institutional commissions.
• CMG Landscape Architecture: CMG Landscape Architecture is a California-based landscape architecture firm specializing in public realm, urban design, and waterfront projects. It is highly comparable to Dillingham Associates in scale, geography, and municipal client focus.
• Sasaki Associates: Sasaki is a landscape architecture, urban planning, and design firm with a strong campus, open space, and urban design portfolio. It directly competes with Dillingham Associates on regional parks, master planning, and institutional campus projects.

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: AECOM is a global infrastructure and design firm with a large landscape architecture practice serving municipalities, institutions, and private developers. It competes with Dillingham Associates on larger, multi-disciplinary public-sector procurements but operates at vastly greater scale and broader scope.
• Page (Page Southerland Page): Page is an architecture and engineering firm with integrated landscape architecture services. It overlaps with Dillingham Associates on institutional campus, civic, and healthcare landscape projects, though Page delivers these as part of a broader multi-disciplinary practice.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dillingham Associates