AIA Georgia’s 2018 Design Firm of the Year grew its team by 22 percent and expects to see continued growth in 2019, especially with mixed-use projects
One of the oldest and largest Atlanta-based architecture and design firms with offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City, Cooper Carry announced that it completed 38 design projects, or 4.2 million square feet, in 11 states in the past year, with an additional 84 new projects awarded. In 2018, Cooper Carry was also honored as Firm of the Year by AIA’s Georgia chapter.
Due to a surge in demand for services across its 16 studios, Cooper Carry hired Ray Bouley as the firm’s first Chief Growth Officer in February and Alex Lopatynsky, AIA, Associate Principal, as Managing Director of its New York office in June. Additionally, the company has recruited professionals with expertise in historic preservation and adaptive reuse, lighting design, branding and experiential marketing, and energy modeling to further expand the firm’s capabilities.Cooper Carry added more than 50 employees in 2018 to accommodate the substantial growth across many of its studios.
Looking ahead to 2019, Kevin Cantley, President and CEO of Cooper Carry, forecasts continued firm-wide expansion, with an emphasis on mixed-use communities that integrate the public realm with retail, education, creative office, hotels and/or convention centers.
“In 2019, we expect to see continued growth in the development of mixed-use projects that intrinsically benefit our neighborhoods and cities,” said Cantley. “From innovation districts to transit-oriented developments, renovated malls to state-of-the-art laboratory spaces, Cooper Carryis uniquely able to pull talent from 16 studios to create resilient, multiuse places that serve as meaningful community gathering places for generations to come.”
Cooper Carry has emerged as a leader in collaborative and cross-disciplinary design with the delivery of mixed-use projects such as Ballston Quarter in Arlington, Virginia, and Hill Center in Brentwood, Tennessee, which received an Excellence in Development Award from Urban Land Institute’s Nashville chapter.
Cooper Carry’s 16 studios include: Environmental Graphic Design, Government, Higher Education, Hospitality, Interior Design, International, K-12 Education, Landscape Architecture, Mixed-Use, Office Workplace, Residential, Restaurants and Bars, Retail, Science and Technology, Transit and TOD, and Urban Design and Planning.
The Hospitality Studio remains strong, with 12 new hotels awarded in 2018, including the 470-key Columbus Convention Center Hotel expansion in Columbus, Ohio, a 525-key convention center hotel in Richmond, Virginia, and the Inn at Darden at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. The team also debuted the 504-room dual-brand hotel at Columbia Place in Washington, DC, and the 55-room Inn at Barnsley Resort and Georgian Hall’s 19,000-square-foot special events facility in Adairsville, Georgia. Following the first major expansion for the historic 3,300-acre resort, Cooper Carry received a Hospitality Award of Merit from Engineering News-Record Southeast’s Best Projects Awards in the residential category.
The Johnson Studio at Cooper Carry was awarded 25 new projects. Highlights of the year include the openings of South City Kitchen inside The Hotel at Avalon in Alpharetta, Georgia, and a wave of new Del Frisco’s restaurants across the country. At the edge of Buckhead’s Phipps Plaza, Ecco also opened in 2018.
Along with Cooper Carry’s private sector business, the firm’s Higher Education, Science + Technology and K-12 Studios had a very strong year. In 2018, the K-12 Studio was awarded seven projects, and the Higher Education studio was awarded four projects. Science + Technology completed four projects and was awarded six. Of significance, in April the firm received the prestigious AIA COTE Top Ten award, alongside Lake | Flato, for Georgia Institute of Technology’s Roger A. and Helen B. Krone Engineered Biosystems Building.
“We are thrilled with this year’s progress and pace of new projects,” added Cantley. “Our firm’s revenue rose by 30% percent over 2017. That increase is a direct result of the talented people that constitute Cooper Carry. We are proud of how these results reflect our momentum in 2018, and signal the direction of our firm’s evolution for the 12 months ahead.”
About Cooper Carry
Cooper Carry provides architecture, planning, landscape architecture, interior design, environmental graphic design and sustainability consulting services. Founded in 1960, the firm specializes in the design of corporate, education, government, hospitality, mixed-use, office, residential, retail, science + technology, and transit projects. The firm has designed projects in 45 states and globally in the Caribbean, Middle East, Asia, Africa and Central America. Engaging a fundamental design philosophy centered on the concept that environments should connect people to people and people to place, the firm promotes the philosophy of “connective architecture.” Designers understand the local market and the specific cultural and physical contexts in which the building will serve those who interact with it while conceiving memorable spaces, inside and out. Listening to the client and gaining a deep understanding of the market and site prior to commencing design, Cooper Carry balances passionate creativity with client service. The firm expands vision and adds value to every project and its community.
For more information, visit coopercarry.com.
