ArchitectureWorks

We're excited to be part of the upcoming ULI Alabama tour of Lakeview Marina, a pedestrian-focused destination for office, retail, dining, and entertainment that we're proud to have contributed to through our work on High Dive HiFi Lounge.

High Dive began in 2021 as a concept for an intimate cocktail lounge for audiophiles and evolved through years of design iteration into a full bar and restaurant with a world-class audio-visual setup. Balancing a massive amount of technical infrastructure with an aesthetically refined and architecturally efficient space required close coordination with a broad team of consultants, and we couldn't be more proud of the result.

Join us at 9am on April 21st to hear from Kimley-Horn, CCR, Macknally Land Design, Rives, and the Lakeview Marina team as we discuss the original vision for this adaptive reuse redevelopment and what's next for the community.

Register at https://alabama.uli.org/events/detail/063DE7D6-8335-47B7-968A-B61FC99D6196/?utm_source=realmagnet&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ULIAL%202026%20April1
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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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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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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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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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