Heritage Heroes

Heritage Hero 2026

This years Heritage Hero is Chris Campbell, architect and independent business owner of Redhouse Architecture Design.

Chris moved to Woodland in 1989…on Stroll Day. She saw all kinds of people dressed in 1890’s clothing and walking around having a good time. “What a great town, is it like this all the time?” was her first thought. Even though Stroll Day wasn’t every day, Chris stayed in Woodland and eventually bought her own historic home, built in 1913.

Her sensitivity to the era of her “new-old” house guided her renovations. Chris also generously shared her home, opening it up for Dickens in the Valley and the Stroll Through History. She has also led many walking tours through the tree-shrouded sidewalks of “old” Woodland. As an architect, Chris is appreciative of the many different styles of houses in the older parts of town. “You can walk a few blocks and see Victorians, Craftsman bungalows and Spanish Colonial Revival homes. For an architect Woodland is a treasure of different home building styles”.

Chris first became interested in architecture when she started designing her own doll houses. Her father wanted her to become an engineer, but Chris knew she wanted to combine practical engineering skills with creative design.

Chris attended CalPoly in San Luis Obispo, but switched to and graduated from the renowned California College of Arts and Crafts.

A dream job, working in downtown San Francisco and designing all kinds of structures for private homes, schools, hospitals and various businesses was a great start to her career. But Chris discovered that what she really enjoyed was working with people who wanted to improve their homes and did not have unlimited budgets. “My ultimate goal is not to create ‘photo-ops’ but home and business spaces of beauty, comfort and utility”.
Once she gets an idea of a client’s wish list, she likes to spend three or four hours just walking through the space, getting a feel for the style and generating ideas for changes that will fit with the existing home or business. Her goal is to design something that will look as if it was always part of the house.

This design philosophy has meant that Chris’s many historic home renovations here in Woodland have enhanced the original style of the house while updating it for how people live today. By preserving the heritage of the past she is creating legacies for the future.