International design and architecture firm Perkins Eastman and California-based firm Dougherty are pleased to announce the intent to merge their practices. The merger will significantly build upon the established practices—particularly K12 and higher education design—of both firms and diversify their combined expertise, particularly in California. The combined firm will total over 1000 employees, adding enhanced resources, client value, and opportunities for employees. The merger is planned to be effective May 1, 2018.
Erich Burkhart FAIA, Executive Director and Managing Principal of Perkins Eastman’s San Francisco office, says, “Perkins Eastman has had a longstanding commitment to expand on the West Coast. Dougherty’s respected and highly-regarded architectural design practice here in California naturally aligns with Perkins Eastman’s plan to diversify the firm’s expertise in the region, enhancing our client relationships, and providing growth opportunities for our valued employees.”
Betsey Olenick Dougherty FAIA, LEED AP, Dougherty’s founding principal, furthers: “The merger of Dougherty with Perkins Eastman represents the perfect alliance of a highly respected international design firm with a regional hands-on studio. Both firms share a common cultural commitment to personal service, quality, technology advancement, sustainability, and community-based quality of life projects.”
Both firms were founded with similar beliefs—that architecture can have a direct and positive impact on people’s lives, achieved through close collaboration with the client and community. In particular, the award-winning K-12 and higher education portfolios of both firms reflect a commitment to the planning and design of high-performance environments that enhance educational outcomes for students and function as the centers of their communities. The merger will strategically position the combined firm to better address the requirements—and opportunities—of 21st-century high-performance educational and other civic environments.
Related Stories
Urban Planning | May 25, 2023
4 considerations for increasing biodiversity in construction projects
As climate change is linked with biodiversity depletion, fostering biodiverse landscapes during construction can create benefits beyond the immediate surroundings of the project.
K-12 Schools | May 25, 2023
From net zero to net positive in K-12 schools
Perkins Eastman’s pursuit of healthy, net positive schools goes beyond environmental health; it targets all who work, teach, and learn inside them.
Contractors | May 24, 2023
The average U.S. contractor has 8.9 months worth of construction work in the pipeline, as of April 2023
Contractor backlogs climbed slightly in April, from a seven-month low the previous month, according to Associated Builders and Contractors.
Mass Timber | May 23, 2023
Luxury farm resort uses CLT framing and geothermal system to boost sustainability
Construction was recently completed on a 325-acre luxury farm resort in Franklin, Tenn., that is dedicated to agricultural innovation and sustainable, productive land use. With sustainability a key goal, The Inn and Spa at Southall was built with cross-laminated and heavy timber, and a geothermal variant refrigerant flow (VRF) heating and cooling system.
Architects | May 23, 2023
DEI initiatives at KAI Enterprises, with Michael Kennedy, Jr. and Gyasi Haynes
Michael Kennedy, Jr. and Gyasi Haynes of KAI Enterprises, St. Louis, describe their firm's effort to create a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion—and how their own experiences as black men in the design and construction industry shaped that initiative.
Multifamily Housing | May 23, 2023
One out of three office buildings in largest U.S. cities are suitable for residential conversion
Roughly one in three office buildings in the largest U.S. cities are well suited to be converted to multifamily residential properties, according to a study by global real estate firm Avison Young. Some 6,206 buildings across 10 U.S. cities present viable opportunities for conversion to residential use.
Architects | May 23, 2023
Ware Malcomb hires Francisco Perez-Azua as Director, Interior Architecture & Design, in its Miami office
Ware Malcomb hires Francisco Perez-Azua as Director, Interior Architecture & Design, in its Miami office.
K-12 Schools | May 22, 2023
The revival of single-building K-12 schools
Schools that combine grades PK through 12 are suddenly not so uncommon. Education sector experts explain why.
Architects | May 19, 2023
Snøhetta architects make a bid to unionize the firm's New York studio
Employees at the New York office of architecture firm Snøhetta have filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to unionize the studio. Snøhetta employees’ action marks the third time architects at a private-sector architecture studio in the U.S. took that step.
Healthcare Facilities | May 19, 2023
A new behavioral health facility in California targets net zero energy
Shortly before Mental Health Awareness Month in May, development and construction firm Skanska announced the topping out of California’s first behavioral health facility—and the largest in the nation—to target net zero energy. Located in Redwood City, San Mateo County, Calif., the 77,610-sf Cordilleras Health System Replacement Project is slated for completion in late 2024.