founder Bob Simmons

An architect creates in a world where art and science must live in synchronicity.

Designers must be adept at weaving the aesthetic and experiential fibers of our designs with technical, health/safety and cultural ones.

Founder Bob Simmons is wired in exactly that kind of duality. He describes himself as an equally left and right-brained thinker. He draws and visualizes with his left hand, and ‘makes’ with his right hand, and has a mind for the macro and micro scales in design.

Educated at Carnegie Mellon’s School of Architecture, and mentored by the two co-founders of the school’s Center for Building Performance and Diagnostics, Bob was imbued from the beginning with sense of purpose to make buildings that better our planet.

Bob’s career in architecture started with urban planning and campus life projects in Boston, where a vision of designing for an entire community was at play - one that values robustness of the built form for sustainability, and culture and tradition that build community. In campus environments he has been able to RESEARCH, INVESTIGATE AND EXPERIMENT more because the culture of campus promotes it.

For over thirty years his diverse portfolio of typologies including campus life, housing, office and mixed-use projects grew in scale and range. Bob has developed a national reputation and expertise in successfully BUILDING COMMUNITY on campuses and is a sought-after speaker on projects that focus on all aspects of GATHERING – whether for dining, campus centers, learning or performance.

His passions for both social wellness [gathering] and physical wellness [food + nutrition] has been brought to fruition in campuses promoting WHOLE STUDENT WELLNESS at places such as Harvard University, UMass Amherst, MIT, Muhlenberg College, Colby College, Vanderbilt University, the University of Georgia, and the University of Tennessee.

Although campus life design has been Bob’s primary focus, he has a significant body of work in urban planning and housing. He has designed over 2,000 URBAN HOUSING units ranging from subsidized housing for poor and elderly populations to privately-funded micro-unit and mixed-use developments.

He has also been involved in the planning of several large-scale urban redevelopment projects, where the rebirth of city neighborhoods was accomplished through the TRANSFORMATIONAL RE-DESIGN of industrial buildings. The Fort Point Channel and Fenway neighborhoods in Boston are just two examples where whole neighborhoods have been sustainably revitalized into energetic mixed-use neighborhoods.

Registrations: MA TX

Education: Bachelor of Architecture, Carnegie Mellon University

Affiliations: AIA | LFA | LEED AP

AIA American Institute of Architects; LFA Living Futures Accredited Professional, ILFI International Living Futures Institute; LEED AP Leadership in Energy + Environmental Design; WELL (pending) International WELL Building Institute; SCUP Society of College + University Planners; NACAS National Association of College Auxiliary Services; ACUI Association of College Unions International; NACUFS National Association of College and University Food Service; NCARB National Council of Architectural Registration Boards