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ArchitectureWorks Projects Honored at 2025 AIA Alabama Design Awards

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We are proud to announce that ArchitectureWorks re

We are proud to announce that ArchitectureWorks received four awards at the 2025 AIA Alabama Design Awards! The Gulf Coast Ecocenter won an Honor Award and Divine Detail Award for the Small Projects category, as well as being the overall People’s Choice Award winner. The Indian Springs School Kayser/Samford Community Commons also received a Merit Award for the Small Projects category.

The Gulf Coast Ecocenter, a collaboration with WATERSHED, is a 17,000-square-foot environmental education campus designed to foster ecological stewardship along the Gulf Coast. Funded by the RESTORE Council, the LEED Gold and FORTIFIED Silver-certified project uses open-air, low-impact structures with passive ventilation, daylighting, and biophilic design to connect visitors to the surrounding landscape. The jury described it as “a project that transforms sustainability into an architectural and cultural experience,” praising its “poetry in the spaces between” and its “timeless” relationship to its site.

The Kayser/Samford Community Commons, the second phase of Indian Springs School’s 2012 Master Plan, serves as the campus’s primary dining and social hub. Rooted in the landscape and overlooking the campus lake, it blends warm interiors, natural light, and durable materials to create a welcoming, connected environment. The jury commended its “thoughtful integration of material warmth, daylight, and landscape connection.”

Thank you to AIA Alabama and the jury for this recognition!
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@watershedgreen @aiaalabama @city_gulfshores @gulfcoastecocenter @carynorton @tlcengineering @thompsonengineering @hatcher_schuster_interiors @experiencesprings @lakeflato @schoel1888 @mbaengineersinc @bbgsengineeringconsultants @laraswimmer @blharbert @greensimmonscompany
#architectureworks #makebetter #architecture #design #building #construction #birmingham #alabama #interior #interiordesign #bham #birminghamalabama #awards #gulfshores #gulfstatepark #gulfshoresalabama #award

2025 has been a fantastic time of reflection on t

2025 has been a fantastic time of reflection on the past 30 years. Now we look forward to the next 30 - keeping close our commitment to Community, to Collaboration, and to Make Better.

Thank you all for celebrating with us! And of course, in keeping with tradition, a classic AW Hootenanny closed out the night!
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture

While unpredictable headlines dominated the news d

While unpredictable headlines dominated the news during this time, the years 2022-2024 brought opportunities for earlier notions to come full circle as our firm returned to in-office work, albeit with more laptops than desktops. We resumed work on later phases of our school masterplans and with return clients, including an expansion to the Events Pavilion at Auburn University’s President’s Home and a new Community Dining Commons at Indian Springs School. Our K-12 work expanded through new master plans for The Altamont School, Alabama School of Fine Arts, and The Montgomery Academy.

University-level work continued with multiple projects at the big three state institutions. Historic renovations of The University of Alabama’s Oliver Barnard Hall and Tuomey Hall, a new Student Assembly Building on UAB's campus and a major renovation at Lister Hill Historical Collections Gallery, plus renovations to Auburn University's historic Samford Hall and the Rural Studio iconic Red Barn. Meanwhile we returned to the Gulf Coast with Auburn University for a new Gulf Coast Engineering Research Station, while also reimagining two of Birmingham’s historic buildings, The William and Wooden City.

Our most welcome change was the elevation of two of our own to Partners in the firm, Jessica Bennett and Roger Mainor. Together with Partners Cindy Coyle, Jay Pigford, and Bruce Lanier, Roger and Jessica reinforce our commitment to community, to service, and to Make Better.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture
@auburnu @univofalabama @experiencesprings @altamontschool @montgomeryacademy @uabstudents @seeuab @uablhc @ruralstudio @auburnengineers @cityoforangebeach @watershedgreen @thewilliambhm @woodencitybirmingham @asfatheatre @asfadance

The years of 2019 through 2021 brought substantial

The years of 2019 through 2021 brought substantial changes to our office, to the community, and to the world. ArchitectureWorks joyously welcomed new babies and new phases for our work, and deeply mourned the loss of our founding Partner, Richard “Dick” Pigford, FAIA, and our time working side by side due to the Covid 19 pandemic. Throughout these changes our goal to “Make Better” stayed at the forefront as we tended to one another and our craft:

We found ways to work with our hands and grow our community through the completion of the Highland Park Community Garden and the groundbreaking of Jones Valley Teaching Farm’s Center for Food Education.

We stayed committed to the pursuit of learning and outdoor education, completing projects at Creative Montessori School and Turkey Creek Nature Preserve, broke ground on the Gulf Coast Center for Ecotourism & Sustainability, and restored the CCC-era lookout tower atop Flagg Mountain on the Pinhoti National Recreation Trail.

And most importantly, we valued being together and being in Birmingham by furthering our restoration work at 16th Street Baptist Church, Historic Bethel Baptist Church and St. Paul’s Cathedral, and creating new storefronts with Continental Drift, Slims Pizzeria, and Son of a Butcher.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture
@highlandparkgarden @jonesvalleyteachingfarm @creativemontessorischool @turkeycreeknp @gulfcoastecocenter @city_gulfshores @altrailsfoundation @pinhoti_trail_alliance @16thstreetbaptist @stpaulsbhm @driftbham @thesonofabutcher_bham

Between 2016 and 2018, ArchitectureWorks entered a

Between 2016 and 2018, ArchitectureWorks entered a period of remarkable transition and growth. The firm’s work stretched across Alabama—from over 25 miles of trails and two new campuses at Gulf State Park to the master planning and documentation of the Pinhoti Trail—reflecting a deep commitment to elevating design and connecting communities to place.

As projects grew in scale and complexity, so did the studio. ArchitectureWorks reached its largest size to date, and future partners Jessica Bennett, Bruce Lanier, and Roger Mainor began their journeys with the firm, bringing expertise across residential, hospitality, and retail design.

Notable projects from this era include MAKEbhm’s home in Avondale, Cayenne Creative’s offices, Brät Brot, the Highlands School Student Life Center, and a mixed-use development in Cahaba Heights featuring El Zun Zun, Crestline Bagel, and Leaf & Petal. One hundred-year old loblolly pines were also repurposed for a small, private lakeside pavilion.

Throughout this era, the firm honed its craft—sketching, building, and learning together with curiosity, camaraderie, and care.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture
@gulfstatepark @pinhoti_trail_alliance @makebhm @cayennecreative @highlandsschoolbhm @el_zunzun @crestlinebagel @leafnpetal

The years 2013-2015 saw a wealth of design produce

The years 2013-2015 saw a wealth of design produced by the office: An open-air gymnasium at Camp Desoto using trees felled onsite for the main structure, The Bayhouse and Dining Hall for Children’s Harbor featuring custom timber and steel mast-like structures, and an adaptive reuse of a 1920’s historic downtown building for the Birmingham School of Law.

K-12 projects included FarmLabs for Jones Valley Teaching Farm that brought the Good School Food curriculum to eight Birmingham City Schools, a major renovation of Altamont School’s gym-cafe-torium space into the Cabaniss-Kaul Fine Arts Center, new academic buildings for Indian Springs School that refocused the campus to their iconic lake, and a new primary school building that gave new life to Creative Montessori’s campus.

Fundraisers and cultural events continued in SawWorks. Dick’s most favorite event every year, dreamArchitecture, is an art program for elementary school children that asks them to draw their dream (house, park, museum, different each year). Sponsored by AIA Birmingham, the event found its home in SawWorks with Dick emceeing, celebrating the kids’ art every year.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture
@experiencesprings @creativemontessorischool @alabamacenterforarch @aiabirmingham @jonesvalleyteachingfarm @camp.desoto @childrensharbor @bhamschooloflaw @altamontschool

By 2010, we were shifting from Macs to PCs, and di

By 2010, we were shifting from Macs to PCs, and digital 3D models were quickly taking the place of physical wood models. At the same time, Birmingham was beginning to recover from the 2008 crash - Railroad Park opened in 2010, and Regions Field was on the horizon, both giving downtown Birmingham the public spaces needed for revitalization.

During these years, our expertise expanded into education, with master plans for Indian Springs School and Creative Montessori School followed closely by phase one design projects at both schools. The 2012 Indian Springs Master Plan would be our first of two partnerships with Lake|Flato, Jay’s former firm in Texas. Stakeholder collaboration, a staple of AW’s ethos, shaped these visions, creating campuses that reflect their values and foster vibrant, connected learning environments.

Residential work carried forward our tradition of crafting homes rooted in place, while historic restoration projects at Independent Presbyterian Church and St. Paul’s Cathedral underscored our commitment to preserving Birmingham’s architectural legacy.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture
@experiencesprings @lakeflato @creativemontessorischool @ipcbirmingham @stpaulsbhm @cahabariversociety1988

2007 – the year the world left behind the Blackb

2007 – the year the world left behind the Blackberry and all button-laden cell phones – cue the iPhone. 2007 to 2009 also brought new faces to ArchitectureWorks who were instrumental in our growth. Scott Thompson and Marzette Fisher both joined AW, bringing a wealth of experience in large scale projects and firm leadership.

These few years also saw a major shift in the Architecture and construction industry as the 2008 housing crisis crippled the economy and sent the world into the Great Recession. AW was fortunately positioned in diverse projects and clients to weather the next five years of recovery. Significant projects during this time ranged from University and Commercial work (Auburn’s Solon Dixon Forestry School & FarmLinks Headquarters) to Adaptive Re-use and Residential projects (Intermark Ad Agency’s HQ and Pumphouse Lane).

Community engagement continued through our SawWorks space as it welcomed Impact America’s SpeakFirst debate group which met in the space every afternoon for about ten years. The community space also hosted Čestmír Suška through the BMA Artist-in-Residence program for 6 months.

In 2008, our design for a new Events Pavilion at Auburn University’s President’s Home would be the first of many University level projects at Auburn, Alabama, & UAB. As with many of our clients through the years, AW was hired again last year to design an expansion for the Pavilion, construction slated to be complete 2025.
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#aw30 #makebetter #birmingham #alabama #architecture @intermarkgroup @auburnu