Paul Hajjar swung open the ornate gate of the Kowalski-Dennett House, built in Brownsville in 1893, to admit a busload of architects and associates onto the brick-paved patio and into his home/attorney’s office.  The historic house, shaded by palms, kumquats, bougainvillea and bananas, was designed to catch the southeast breeze.  The house’s long windows reach from the floor to near the 12-foot ceiling, Rice University architectural historian Stephen Fox pointed out. He led the tour of outstanding examples of 150 years of border architecture during the annual AIA-LRGV chapter conference.

Before 1990, the Valley’s small cadre of architects could fit around one large table.

Currently, about 80 architects belong to the AIA-LRGV chapter, comprising the majority of Valley architects. “There’s a lot more work for them now,” said Carmen Perez Garcia, long-time executive director of the organization. “A number of them who worked for bigger firms in other places to start off have come back to the Valley.”

Some established their own firms, like Brownville architect Roberto Ruiz, who focuses on condos and historic preservation, while others went into partnerships. Overall, a growing group of respected and productive architects now call the Valley home. Each one is ardent about their profession and the projects they design to enhance the spaces where we work, play and live.

Design & Style

Danny Boultinghouse, of Boltinghouse Simpson Gates Architects, remembers when McAllen had only three architectural firms back in 1972.  “We’re coming out of a slow period now, and new, young firms are popping up. I get calls for residential work, but I don’t know who to refer them to.” He believes some of the new firms will take on residential commissions to establish their credentials.

“It’s hard for any firm in this market to specialize. Our niche is one-of-a-kind buildings.  When everything is different, it’s more fun and more challenging,” he said.  His firm handles commercial and public work, from Temple Emanuel and McAllen Public Library to MOST History and South Texas College and UTPA buildings.

“Most of the architects down here, we don’t think we are competing.  We’re more of a big family, maybe because we are small and isolated,” he said.  Yet his firm is getting to ready to add to its staff, “if we can find them.” Architects are not plentiful, in part, because the profession now requires a degree from a four- or five-year program, followed by a three-year internship and then passing a rigorous national exam.

“This may be a hands-on profession, but most often the hands are on computers,” said Boultinghouse, who continues to sketch his initial designs.

In fact, automation has gone so far that some young interns are weak on drawing skills after their semesters of working with computer design programs, according to Manuel Hinojosa, an architect with ROFA in McAllen. He earned an art degree before he studied architecture. “I always have to teach them to get loose and to visualize, to go back to basics,” and sketch ideas.

Hinojosa, who is one of three AIA Fellows in the Valley, said senior architects continue to learn. “The younger generation is the leading edge, telling us this is how to do it.  The older guys sort of manage and mentor, I think. I don’t see myself being phased out, because there is a need for wisdom and experience in design and running a business.”

“People don’t know how important design is for the quality of life,” said Gilbert Gallegos, architect and senior vice president at Broaddus Associates, a facilities program management company.  The firm has managed, among other projects, the design and construction of the Arts Center at Texas Southmost College and four Edinburg elementary schools.

Gallegos joked that architects sometimes functions as counselors, mediating major opinion differences of a board or committee, because “Everybody’s a frustrated architect. But in reality, if you really listen to the client, you end up with something unique.  That’s what I enjoy.”

The site is the most important decision you make, including the orientation of the building, Gallegos said.  In the Valley, with few dominant terrain elements, the focal points of buildings often are introspective, such as courtyards and atriums.

Architects communicate verbally and graphically, ultimately turning clients’ needs into a written contract, said Juan Mujica, Gignac’s office manager who has an architectural degree. The south Texas firm created the Cameron County Courthouse Annex, Harlingen’s Aquatic Center and Boggus Stadium, fire stations and numerous schools.

“Our bread and butter is K-12 architecture. The key is understanding the market and your clients,” said Mujica. “Sometimes you have to guide them through the process, assessing their needs and helping them stay within budget.  Ultimately, you have to be able to communicate.”

Gignac provides construction administration, making sure that what is being constructed is the same as what is in the construction documents and delivered on time. It prepared the master plan for the McAllen Convention Center and had to negotiate exact locations, building heights and use of construction cranes, because the site is on the flight path for McAllen-Miller International Airport.

Murad Abusalim, who heads the Associate of Science degree in architecture program at Texas Southmost College, said almost all the graduates have gone on to one of the seven schools of architecture in Texas and beyond.  Established in 2009, the program currently has 39 students, who, as part of each semester’s design studio, work on community service projects.

Mark Cuda of Steelcase looks at architecture from the interiors and real estate perspective.  Would you be surprised to learn that the top two complaints of office workers relate to the lighting and temperature?  And that different generations want different things in their workspaces?  Boomers want private offices, he said, while millennials prefer clustering and close proximity to others for the crosspollination of ideas.  Interior spaces need to be adaptable for their inhabitants to function effectively.

Cuda added that workplace surveys, which look at who is where at what times, can lead to the rearrangement and repurposing of workspace. One trend is toward smaller meeting spaces and more common work areas, a move that is reflected in new architectural designs.

Besides presenting building designs that suit the climate and the culture, architects show that the built environment can build cooperation and community identity.

For more information, see lrgvaia.org, broaddusassociates.com, bsgarchitects.com, rofainc.com, tsc.edu and gignacarchitects.com. 

November 2015 cover story by Eileen Mattei