HIGHLIGHTING LOCAL TALENT – January 8, 2007

As we have the past several years, AIABaltimore will again highlight the award winners of one of our annual design competitions. Major award winners of the 2007 AIABaltimore Excellence in Design Awards program will speak on Tuesday, January 8, at the Johns Hopkins Downtown Center auditorium, Charles and Fayette Streets. 5:30 reception and 6 p.m. program. 1.5 AIA/CES (HSW) credits with registration. FREE and open to the public.

Our major design award winners will explain the design aesthetic and vision of their firm, then engage in discussion with the audience. Photographs of all 2007 winning projects and jury comments are included on our Design Awards Committee page.

David Benn, AIA, has over 33 years experience in the disciplines of architecture, urban design and planning with special expertise in urban and educational projects. David’s work includes a wide variety of historic and new construction, architecture and planning. The recipient of the Cornell University Eidlitz Traveling Fellowship, he practiced architecture in London, Teheran, New York City and Ithaca, New York. After teaching architectural design at Cornell University, he joined Diane Cho in this Baltimore firm that is now 27 years old. He has won numerous design awards from the American Institute of Architects, the American Planning Association/Maryland Chapter, American School and University Association, the Maryland Historic Trust, Baltimore Heritage, the National Association of Homebuilders, and the Waterfront Center. Many of these awards are the result of his sensitivity to urban design, master planning and historic renovation.

Richard Burns, AIA, is a 1978 graduate of Princeton University where he received Masters Degrees in both Architecture and Urban Planning. Three years earlier, he obtained a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He is a senior partner at Design Collective, Inc. and principal-in-charge of all urban design, mixed-use, entertainment, cultural and tourism projects. Rich has received national attention and recognition for his creative solutions to complex urban problems and challenges. His project portfolio includes revitalized historic urban retail districts, reclaimed urban brownfields, master plans for urban cultural districts, and waterfront redevelopments.

He is an expert in the areas of Traditional Neighborhood Development and Transit Oriented Development, and is a strong advocate for New Urbanism. Rich is also recognized as a leader and expert in the fields of programming, planning, and design for destination attractions. He is involved in urban projects throughout the United States and abroad and still maintains an active project portfolio in Baltimore. Projects completed under his leadership have received numerous awards for design excellence from the American Institute of Architects, the Urban Land Institute, American Planning Association and the Congress for the New Urbanism.

Mark Beck, AIA, is the Founding Principal of Beck, Powell & Parsons, Inc. Mark specializes in design, master planning, and feasibility studies and has won many awards for design excellence. Mark’s education includes Executive Master of Business Administration, Loyola College 1978; Master of Urban Design, Catholic University of America 1974; Master of City and Regional Planning, Masters in Urban Architecture, Catholic University of America 1973; and a Bachelor of Architecture, University of Cincinnati 1958. Mark is a strong and dedicated supporter of the community and the architectural profession. He has served as President of AIABaltimore, Cofounder and Board President of the Maryland Center for Character Education, Founding Member of the Board for the East Towson Child Development Center, President of the Board of Talbot Family Network, school intern mentor and many other noteworthy causes.

Adam Gross, FAIA, is a Principal with Baltimore-based architecture and planning firm Ayers/Saint/Gross. He joined the firm in 1984, then called Ayers/Saint, and has since been a leader in its architectural design and campus planning efforts. The firm became Ayers/Saint/Gross within two years, and later expanded to two additional office locations in Washington, D.C. and Tempe, AZ. Adam has worked with numerous colleges and universities both locally and around the world, including Johns Hopkins University, the University of Maryland, George Washington University, the University of Virginia, and a new 8,000-acre university in India, called Vedanta University. In addition, he has written and lectured extensively on urban design, collegiate architecture and master planning. Adam is Past President of AIABaltimore; current President of the Advisory Board for the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Center for Architecture; serves on multiple university architectural program advisory boards; and is a Fellow with the Institute for Urban Design. Adam graduated from Syracuse University in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in architecture.

Jon Grant, AIA, is the Founder and President of Grant Architects, a full-service architectural firm started in 1988. He received his architecture degree from Carnegie Mellon University in 1976, his architecture registration in 1981 and his NCARB certification in 1992. Jon has been actively involved in the development of real estate since 1982; including housing projects, office buildings, historic renovations, land development, assisted living facilities, senior communities and retail centers. He completed LEED training and is committed to the inclusion of green building concepts.

Gordon Ingerson, AIA, is the lead architectural designer for Grant Architects. He has served as a design expert on many local and regional committees and has reviewed planning proposals from the Baltimore City Planning Department, the Neighborhood Design Center and the Historic East Baltimore Community Action Coalition. Gordon is responsible for much of the firm’s overall success in student housing, higher education, historical preservation and multi-family housing across the East Coast. His portfolio encompasses the design and execution of major architectural projects including higher education, student housing, multi-family housing, senior housing, retail, commercial, multi-use, research centers, medical office buildings and historic preservation projects.