Chapel of the Sky

Honor, Built Architecture

Anderson Mason Dale Architects (Denver) for Chapel of the Sky (Granite, Colo.)

Armstrong Oil and Gas

Honor, Built Architecture

Bothwell Davis George Architects (Denver) and Lake|Flato Architects, Inc. (San Antonio, Texas) for Armstrong Oil and Gas, Inc. (Denver)

DEA

Honor, Built Architecture

Gensler (Denver) for DEA – Centennial Station Office Building (Centennial, Colo.)

Additionally, Brian R. Klipp, FAIA of klipp (Denver) was named Architect of the Year and Studio B Architects (Aspen) was named Firm of the Year.

After 22 years of being an employee of other architects, I have opened my new firm and I am in complete charge of my future.  This is kind of scary…but it is really exciting!  It’s a very liberating feeling to know that success and reward is directly tied to my efforts.

Some people have called me crazy for voluntarily leaving a company to do this during the worst economy in 70 years.  Others think its a brilliant move and timing, and I’ll ride the country’s economic recovery into prosperity.  The client response has been overwhelmingly positive, which, I suppose, bodes well for the bank account.  But there’s more to it…

The underlying fundamental reason for launching my own firm is this: there is a better way.

I certainly have goals to grow my business to a handful or so of employees.  But, one thing I want to hold on to is being involved in every project.  Too often, principals sell a project to a client and then turn it over to junior staff, never to be seen by the client again.  The client is not buying the junior staff, they are buying the principal and his reputation.

Design can be great within the confines of a budget and a jurisdiction zoning ordinance.  I believe there is more challenge in creating worthwhile architecture within boundaries than without.  I believe the most skilled architects are those who truly understand the building process and don’t just create a pretty picture.

Regardless of whether a project is a simple warehouse or an icon in a skyline, the project and client deserve the architect’s full attention and effort.  There are too many projects that tend to float to the back of the drawing board and do not get the proper attention they deserve.

There is a better way for architects to service clients.   There is a better way to produce construction documents.  There is a better way to communicate.  There is a better way to manage projects.

Success lies in these simple beliefs….not on the cover of a magazine.

We are meeting with a selected group of neighbors, business owners, and city employees. We’ve also brought in the local recreation district and community college. The advisory committee provides a wonderful cross section of the community with practical goals for the community. They have a vested interest in the future and health of the city they love. The committee also has some terrific ideas for planning and uses.

Our goals, as the planner, are to create an economically viable neighborhood solution that will add value to the city. Too often, suburban communities want to try to force an urban design into their communities, thinking that its an automatic home run. Its not that simple. How do you accomplish creating a new neighborhood that will remain alive and viable? By creating a sense of place.

Basically, memorable destinations generate an emotional reaction in the visitor. Think about your favorite places to visit – why do you love them? Uses, architecture, vehicle and pedestrian circulation, organization, and imagery all contribute to creating a great place. If you create an area that generates a positive emotional connection with visitors, they will return again and again. They will also tell their friends…

We are in the early stages of the project and have essentially completed the information gathering, or programming, phase. At the last meeting, we presented six conceptual schemes which loosely addressed the traffic concerns and the uses within the planning area. The next meeting, we will present two schemes which begin to pin down building areas, public spaces and traffic circulation.

The process of creating a new place or neighborhood is a long and complicated process. There are so many factors to balance and weigh. One thing affects another, sometimes in detriment. That’s where the challenge lies – how best to create our place with the pieces and parts we have?

I cannot post images at this point since we’re not officially public with our design intentions. That will come in the next couple of months. I will then post some of the early planning images so you can see how the process has evolved.

Group one – the idealists and Fountainhead types who beleive that architects are underappreciated and disrespected. The feeling is that we must change the world to show how worthy we are of high fees and thus high pay. We are geniuses and artists and we should be worshipped as a god….otherwise, be damned.

Group two – the architects that have realized that our industry has changed and we are no longer “master builders.” We provide a professional, practical service as a lawyer or an accountant does. We draw assembly instructions for a building.

Award worthy projects and clients are extremely rare. Get used to it. Buildings serve a pupose and that purpose is either to live or work. Yes it is that simple… People need shelter, businesses need a place to operate and generate revenue (the lower the operating costs, the more profit).

Now, how do you create worth and value with your role as an architect? Client service. Anticipate the client’s needs. Understand their goals and what sacrifices they are willing to make. Be the expert that knows the pros and cons of materials and methods. Understand cost and the impact on the client’s bottom line. Speak their language and understand how they define project success. If you do these things, you become valuable and clients will pay for the value.

My philosophy as a architect can be wrapped up in these words, client service. I have been in the architecture industry for over 21 years. I don’t have dreams of being a world famous designer, nor the cheapest guy out there. I provide a good product, smart design, with an ear to what makes my client tick. I want long term clients that recoginize I can make their job easier. I can help make them look good to those they answer to. I want them to beleive…”call Dave, it’ll get taken care of.”

So, back to the question… I run a business and the business should be profitable. If I have too much staff and not enough work, I am not profitable. When supply is high and demand is low, companies and stores have sales and discounts. Why shouldn’t an architect? I raised my fees when work was plentiful… I don’t see disounts as being a bad thing. I see it as being competitive and smart. I see it as an opportunity to reach out to more clients to show them that they have found the only architect they need.

So, I will get more of the few projects out there. I will be the one hiring and growing long before my Howard Roark competition (language alert).

Please note, I will absolutely hold to these underlying principles with clients: I am a professional and expect to be treated as such – I will respect you and you should respect me. I am a human being and I expect to be given latitude when I make a mistake – you are not perfect, neither am I. I am in bussiness to generate a profit and expect to be compensated fairly – just as you do with your business. If a client does not live up to these basic principles, then they are no longer my client.

The problem is not the fees we charge…. the problem is the client we accept.

Way to go team!!

But, then the question becomes: How much experience is necessary?

In architecture, experience is often a requisite for clients on new projects. Have you done this type of thing before? The reason being, that you’ve learned the lessons and can avoid potential costly pitfalls. However, in archtiecture, a building is just a box with walls and a roof. The experience comes in handy in the planning…the layout, the concept. We are trained in the execution of that plan: steel is steel, bricks are bricks, concrete is concrete.

So…in the Red vs Blue contest underway, questions will be raised about how much experience someone has. My question is: can you execute?

Perhaps that’s why its called being an EXECUTIVE.

I’m not sure where clients got the idea that the architect provides a guarantee of perfection….especially when projects are taken at “low bid”.