A modern-retro carwash, a Chicago greenhouse for sustainable produce, a rustic Colorado mountain home, a dramatic software company interior and an Oklahoma public safety facility are among the projects winning top honors at the Association of Licensed Architects (ALA) 24th Annual Design Awards, which recognized projects for design achievement.
A total of 39 awards were presented in commercial, institutional, residential, multi-family, religious, interior and unbuilt categories.
The highest honor, the Don Erickson Presidential Award, went to Full Service Car Wash, Brookfield, Wis., designed by SchultzWerk Architecture Inc., Wauwatosa, Wis. The project also received a Silver Award in the Commercial/Industrial category.
From an unremarkable concrete block building, the car wash was transformed with bold, retro-inspired shapes and colors, attention-getting signage and dramatic lighting. “Even the most prosaic project can be visually exciting, and the winner of this year’s Presidential Award, Full Service Car Wash, shows how architecture can be more about the actual end product than about the use,” said Jeff Budgell, President of the Association of Licensed Architects on presenting the award. “There are no insignificant projects,” he added. “Good architecture adds value to people’s lives even in small ways.”
Gold Award winners included: CCC Intelligent Solutions, Chicago designed by Partners by Design, Chicago; Four Mile Canyon, Boulder, Colo., designed by William Tabberson Architects, Muncie, Ind.; Gotham Greens at Pullman Park, Chicago, designed by Heitman Architects, Itasca, Ill., and Lawton Public Safety Facility, Lawton, Okla., designed by Dewberry Architects Inc., Elmhurst, Ill.
“This year’s projects were exceptional,” said Joanne Sullivan, ALA Executive Director. “Many focused on our human experience and interaction within the space. Other projects brought in natural elements to mimic the surroundings, with special attention to sustainability.”
Architects, contractors, owners/developers and guests attended the Nov. 18 presentation held at Medinah Country Club, Medinah, Ill. Emcee was Christopher Groesbeck, AIA, Principal, UrbanLab Architecture & Urban Design.
ALA 2022 Design Awards entries were evaluated by a panel of judges, including Daniel Baigelman, AIA, Principal, Full Circle Architects, Rada Doytcheva, Ph.D., FAIA, ALA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C, Principal/Head of Design, RADA Architects, Dan Earles, ALA, AIA, LEED AP ID+C, President, Earles Architects and Associates Inc., Blair Payson, AIA, LEED AP, Principal/Owner, Olson Kundig and Jeri D. W. Spurling, AIA, Senior Project Architect, Haley Ward Inc.
The Presidential Award is named for the founder and first president of ALA, Don Erickson (1929 – 2006), who was instrumental in forming the association in 1998, and was a student and protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright.
The 2022 ALA Design Awards Program is sponsored by Andersen Windows & Doors and Exclusive Windows Inc.