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Stantec Featured in INDULGE Design & Real Estate Issue 2019

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Stantec’s Andrew Burnett, Raed Alawadhi, and Aida Sanchez-Gomez were featured in INDULGE’s 2019 Design and Real Estate Issue. They shared their experience, expertise, and insights in the architecture and design industry.

Andrew Burnett, Senior Principal, says Solitair Brickell is a project that stands out as an example of the firm’s work. The building’s unique façade inspired by the Medjool palm tree stands out from other high-rises in the Brickell area. He adds that architecture is transcendent, and it contributes to our collective sense of place connecting us to each other and our environmental ecology. 

When it comes to design, Raed Alawadhi, Senior Interior Designer, is influenced by his travels, especially Europe, because of their way of intervening a modern addition into an old building. Interior design trends he’s currently seeing include golds and rose golds and clients are very drawn to it, he adds.

According to Aida Sanchez-Gomez, Senior Architect, the Bacardi building has made an impact on her design style because it captures the essence of Miami and its people with its fused art and architecture. When it comes to her approach to architecture, she states that she is more concerned with how a project’s design crafts an experience for its occupants. She looks for the story that drives the design, and sometimes it stems from the natural environment or history of the site.

Read more on INDULGE.

Stantec Featured in INDULGE Design & Real Estate Issue 2019

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Stantec’s Andrew Burnett, Raed Alawadhi, and Aida Sanchez-Gomez were featured in INDULGE’s 2019 Design and Real Estate Issue. They shared their experience, expertise, and insights in the architecture and design industry.

Andrew Burnett, Senior Principal, says Solitair Brickell is a project that stands out as an example of the firm’s work. The building’s unique façade inspired by the Medjool palm tree stands out from other high-rises in the Brickell area. He adds that architecture is transcendent, and it contributes to our collective sense of place connecting us to each other and our environmental ecology. 

When it comes to design, Raed Alawadhi, Senior Interior Designer, is influenced by his travels, especially Europe, because of their way of intervening a modern addition into an old building. Interior design trends he’s currently seeing include golds and rose golds and clients are very drawn to it, he adds.

According to Aida Sanchez-Gomez, Senior Architect, the Bacardi building has made an impact on her design style because it captures the essence of Miami and its people with its fused art and architecture. When it comes to her approach to architecture, she states that she is more concerned with how a project’s design crafts an experience for its occupants. She looks for the story that drives the design, and sometimes it stems from the natural environment or history of the site.

Read more on INDULGE.

Wesley Kean Tells Indulge The Story Behind His Latest KoDA Design, Apizza Brooklyn

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Photo By: Nick Garcia

Award-winning architecture and design firm, KoDA, practices design with ambition for its clients  and optimism for the world. Led by Principal and Founder Wesley Kean, he uses analysis and research to inform create the design of distinctive buildings, landscapes, interiors and experiences.

One of KoDA’s recent projects, the new Apizza Brooklyn restaurant in Coral Gables, is perhaps a perfect illustration of the firm’s research-based design process. Kean and his associates took on quite a bit of in-depth analysis, diving deep into the company’s brand and figuring out how the firm could communicate that vision through spatial configurations, materials and menu design. KoDA even read the restaurant’s online reviews.

“This process allowed us to distill the brand down to its essence, and build and evolve it back into the space,” Kean said.

Their findings led them straight to a familiar icon.

“The brand is very tied to New York, so we spent a lot of time evaluating the city,” Kean said. “The instinct is to jump to subway tile or brick, but we took a step back and asked ourselves, ‘What’s truly synonymous with New York?’ And we just knew we had to go with a scaffolding concept.”

To read more on Kean and his process of design, visit INDULGE Miami.

Hospitality Leaders Discuss Industry Trends at Miami Hospitality Designs Awards Panel

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dsc_4812-copyTop leaders in South Florida’s hospitality industry gathered yesterday for the Miami Hospitality Design Awards’ inaugural panel discussion, Distinctive Hospitality Design in Miami’s Evolving Neighborhoods.

 Hosted by the award’s founders Oberhausen Marketing & Public Relations, the Greater Miami & The Beaches Hotel Association and AIA Miami Chapter and in support of IIDA South Florida, the panel took place at the Hyatt Centric Brickell.  The panelists included Stantec Director of Interiors, Susan LaFleur; The Barlington Group Co-founder, Bill Fuller; and The Genuine Hospitality Group Chef and Owner, Michael Schwartz.

Moderated by Indulge Magazine Editor in Chief, Evan Benn, the panelists discussed how consumer demands are affecting hospitality architecture, design and programming.

 Downtown Miami, Brickell, Wynwood, Little Havana, and Coconut Grove are some of these evolving neighborhoods that have emerged with their own distinctive identity.

“We take into account what speaks to us about the neighborhood and translate it into the architecture and interiors to make each project relatable to its location,” said Susan LaFleur.

“Although the food has to be great, I’ve always said it’s not the one thing that makes a restaurant successful,” said Michael Schwartz. “We want our restaurants to fit with the neighborhood, so we look at where we are, what we’re trying to accomplish and how that plays into the design.”

“Little Havana is a passion project for me because of my Cuban American background,” said Bill Fuller. “We seek out historic properties in Miami to give them a new life, but always wrap the property’s history into what we do to keep the building’s and neighborhood’s authenticity.”

The panel is part of the awards’ program leading up to the second annual Miami Hospitality Design Awards to be held in spring 2019. The awards will honor the architects and designers whose hospitality projects have enriched Miami’s built environment. Next year’s awards will include new categories, giving additional designers an opportunity to showcase their work.

Stay tuned for details on the 2019 Miami Hospitality Design Awards by visiting http://miamidesignawards.com.

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2018 Miami Hospitality Design Awards Panel

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The founders of Miami Hospitality Design Awards, Oberhausen Marketing & Public Relations, AIA Miami and the Greater Miami & The Beaches Hotel Association (GMBHA), invite you to join South Florida hospitality leaders for a panel discussion on distinctive hospitality design in Miami’s evolving neighborhoods. The panel, moderated by Evan Benn, Editor-in-Chief of INDULGE, will be held at the Hyatt Centric Brickell on Thursday, September 20, 2018 from 4 pm to 7 pm.

The panelists include:

Susan LaFleur, Stantec’s Director of Interiors, is an award-winning interior designer with expertise spanning hospitality and residential projects across the country. Her knowledge of emerging trends, detailed focus on design aesthetics, and a deep understanding of her client’s needs allow her to take a holistic design approach, creating spaces that are timeless and tell a story for each guest.

Bill Fuller is co-founder of Barlington Group and co-founder of Madroom Hospitality, the company behind the Little Havana bar, Ball & Chain. A preservationist at heart, Fuller has partnered with local entrepreneurs and owners of emerging concepts to bring them to the Miami urban core and house their concepts in the historic properties that Barlington Group has diligently worked to assemble and restore.

Michael Schwartz is a James Beard Award Winning Chef and owner of The Genuine Hospitality Group. As a nationally recognized celebrity chef, Schwartz has successfully developed complementary concepts focusing on great service and delicious food, with a genuine culture embraced by employees and guests alike.

For more information on the panel, visit Miami Hospitality Design Awards. Click here to register.