Experience

While Locus Design is a new chapter, it is built upon decades of leadership in the architectural industry. Our capability is rooted in a career-long history of managing complex, high-stakes projects, but our direction is defined by a deep personal connection to the outdoors. It is this convergence of professional rigor and personal passion that uniquely positions us to execute the nature-focused work we seek. To provide a small sample of the technical depth we bring to every partnership, we have highlighted a few projects from our previous roles. These selections represent the foundation of our expertise and serve as the benchmark for the quality of work we now deliver as we pursue our dream of designing to the ecology of place.

Site Sensitivity & Contextual Design

Mather Lodge Pool & Grotto | Petit Jean State Park | SCM Architects

Leading the design and documentation for the Mather Lodge aquatic landscape solidified the expertise of using site sensitivity to drive conceptual form within the context of a historic park based in and about the local ecology. To address the extreme topography, the design stacked a pool equipment vault, trailhead restrooms, and a waterfall grotto into a three-story stone focal point. This strategy transformed a steep grade into a programmatic asset. Responsibilities involved coordinating civil, landscape, and pool consultants to ensure the modern infrastructure blended seamlessly with the park’s historic context.

Technical Detailing & Materiality

Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University | BNIM Architects

Gained through deep collaboration with Steven Holl Architects and Front Inc., this experience focused on the rigorous detailing of a complex exterior envelope. The project included Pima Beige Italian limestone, which had never been installed in the United States, as custom steel-framed curtain wall. Technical achievements featured a cable-supported glass facade anchored to a long-span roof structure, large skylights submerged within a reflecting pool, and acoustically isolated music practice rooms independently suspended from the roof structure.

Complex Stakeholder Management

Butterfly Pavilion | Hillary Rodham Clinton Children's Library | Allison Architects

Leading the design and siting of this living exhibit solidified expertise in aligning diverse, specialized interests. The scope involved orchestrating input from the US EPA, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and UALR biologists to integrate a functioning habitat within the library landscape. Responsibilities included synthesizing strict scientific criteria with institutional goals, managing a complex consultant team to create a vision that satisfied both ecological standards and educational needs.

Regulatory & Code Leadership

The Ledger | Marlon Blackwell Architects

As Project Manager, this role involved guiding the design and construction of a switchback bike ramp that extends from the street to the roof. Since no code existed for elevated bike lanes, the work required extensive negotiation with local officials to define compliance. The process involved coordinating a complex egress strategy and guardrail design with the contractor and city, proving that rigorous code analysis can pave the way for unprecedented architectural features.

Budget & Constructability Control

Springdale Animal Shelter | SCM Architects

Leading the Springdale Animal Shelter project solidified expertise in rescuing over-budget concepts through strategic efficiency. When site costs escalated, the design was restructured from a three-building campus into a two-building solution, saving over $1 million. By consolidating quarantine and public kennels using advanced mechanical separation and acoustic design, the full program was preserved without compromising safety. This approach utilized robust, affordable materials to create a high-quality community destination, bringing the project back on budget and through successful construction.

Adaptive Reuse & Renovation

The Lamplighter School - Phase II | Marlon Blackwell Architects

Served as Project Manager for this sensitive expansion of an original O'Neil Ford building, integrating five new additions with extensive interior renovations. The scope involved converting administrative spaces into classrooms and establishing a new campus foreground with a copper and cypress office wing. Responsibilities included detailing back-ventilated wood rainscreen systems to ensure material longevity and coordinating with the contractor to deliver complex phasing within a tight academic schedule.