Perkins Eastman and BLT Architects (BLTa) have recently announced their merger, effective February 1, 2022.
Perkins Eastman, which now has 1,100+ employees in 24 studios worldwide, has worked on projects on five continents in 60 countries. Its award-winning portfolio reflects expertise in healthcare, senior living, large-scale mixed use, higher education, K-12, hospitality, and workplace design as well as planning, urban design, and strategic consulting. BLTa, now known as “BLTa—A Perkins Eastman Studio,” has built an exceptionally strong integrated architecture and interior design firm of 41 professionals with deep roots in Philadelphia. With a studio in Pittsburgh for the last 27 years, Perkins Eastman has built a strong presence throughout Pennsylvania, especially in Western Pennsylvania. The addition of the BLTa studio strengthens the firm’s presence in the eastern part of the state as well. In merging with BLTa, Perkins Eastman enhances its expertise in mixed-use, multi-family residential, hospitality, workplace, higher education, historic renovations, adaptive reuse conversions, resorts and gaming, and transit-based projects.
“We are very pleased that BLTa has joined us and we now have a strong partner in Philadelphia. We have had the opportunity to get to know BLTa over the last several years and believe they bring significant skills and experience to our national practice. Moreover, we have always had important clients in Philadelphia, eastern Pennsylvania, and the adjacent states, and with BLTa we can now better serve those that want a combination of our national expertise combined with experienced local delivery and service,” says Brad Perkins, FAIA, chairman and co-founder of Perkins Eastman.
“We are thrilled to be merging with Perkins Eastman,” says Michael L. Prifti, FAIA, managing principal of BLTa, who joined the firm in 1982, back when it was known as Bower Lewis Thrower/Architects. “This union will give us the opportunity to serve our national clients in jurisdictions where we don’t currently practice. Perkins Eastman has new markets we’ve never touched. And with more feet on the ground, we can more easily and geographically serve our clients,” he says. Prifti also notes this merger will give BLTa’s architects and designers opportunities to diversify their projects and continue to grow as professionals.
Recent award-winning properties within the BLTa portfolio include: The Stephen Girard Building, where the firm revealed and preserved elegant design elements, integrating a 236-key Canopy by Hilton hotel within East Market, the one-million sf, ongoing transformation of a three square block area; The Bourse, a 380,000 sf adaptive reuse renovation of the first commodities exchange hall in the United States; and One City, an adaptive reuse project that converted an 1899 Renaissance Revival office building into a market-rate apartment building. Each of these properties won a Grand Jury 2021 Preservation Achievement Award given by the Preservation Alliance for Greater Philadelphia. The Stephen Girard Building and One City also won AIA Philadelphia Awards in the Historic Preservation/Adaptive Reuse Built category, and The Bourse won AIA Pennsylvania’s top prize – a Silver Medal. Hospitality Design magazine named Live! Casino and Hotel Philadelphia among the Best Hotel Openings of 2020. Live! Casino Pittsburgh, another BLTa design, also opened in 2020.
Shawn Basler, co-CEO and executive director of Perkins Eastman, notes that combining Perkins Eastman’s 40 years of global experience with BLTa’s 60 years of local expertise and relationships creates a powerful combination. “They’ll be able to draw on our well-established market credibility and resources, as well as geographic reach, while we’ll be able to tap into their deep knowledge of the Philadelphia metropolitan region along with their considerable expertise.”
Related Stories
| Sep 21, 2022
Demand for design services accelerates
Demand for design services from U.S. architecture firms grew at an accelerated pace in August, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).
K-12 Schools | Sep 21, 2022
Architecture that invites everyone to dance
If “diversity” is being invited to the party in education facilities, “inclusivity” is being asked to dance, writes Emily Pierson-Brown, People Culture Manager with Perkins Eastman.
| Sep 20, 2022
NIBS develops implementation plan for digital transformation of built environment
The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) says it has developed an implementation and launch plan for a sweeping digital transformation of the built environment.
| Sep 20, 2022
New Long Beach office building reflects Mid-Century Modern garden-style motif
The new Long Beach, Calif., headquarters of Laserfiche, a provider of intelligent content management and business process automation software, was built on a brownfield parcel previously considered undevelopable.
| Sep 19, 2022
New York City construction site inspections, enforcement found ‘inadequate’
A new report by the New York State Comptroller found that New York City construction site inspections and regulation enforcement need improvement.
| Sep 16, 2022
Fairfax County, Va., considers impactful code change to reduce flood risk
Fairfax County, Va., in the Washington, D.C., metro region is considering a major code change to reduce the risk from floods.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 15, 2022
Heat Pumps in Multifamily Projects
RMI's Lacey Tan gives the basics of heat pumps and how they can reduce energy costs and carbon emissions in apartment projects.
| Sep 15, 2022
Monthly construction input prices dip in August
Construction input prices decreased 1.4% in August compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data released today.
| Sep 15, 2022
First LEED Platinum, net zero and net zero water synagogue opens
Kol Emeth Center, the world’s first LEED Platinum, net zero and net zero water synagogue, opened recently in Palo Alto, Calif.
| Sep 14, 2022
Fires on Amazon warehouse roofs seemingly caused by faulty PV installations
Amazon has made installing solar panels on rooftops a key part of its ESG strategy, but a series of events last year show how challenging greening up major facilities can be.
