2019 Bay Area Architecture & Design Lunch & Learn

Mark Schwettman

Director
SOM

Mark Schwettmann is a Director based in SOM’s San Francisco office. With a diverse range of international experience in major mixed-use, residential, corporate, hospitality, and academic projects, he is also deeply involved in improving the built environment of San Francisco, his home city. In his role as Director and Studio Head, he manages and mentors a group of design professionals working around the world, but particularly in San Francisco. In addition to these responsibilities, he leads the Digital Design Group in the firm's San Francisco office. This group maintains SOM’s position at the forefront of design by integrating leading-edge technology into the design process. The intersection of his lifelong interest in digital technology and the complex issues of building in San Francisco led to the design and construction of SOM’s award-winning San Francisco Digital Context Analysis Model, which is used extensively in all of the firm's work in the city, and also by government agencies for analysis of complex urban design issues. With extensive knowledge of the project approval process in the San Francisco Bay Area, Schwettmann has guided many projects through complex public processes. These projects include the Moscone Convention Center Expansion and Improvement Project, the 75 Howard Street residential tower, and 1500 Mission Street, a mixed-use project that will include the offices of multiple San Francisco city departments responsible for the built environment. Schwettmann has also been involved in significant large-scale, mixed-use projects in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Fuzhou, and Wuxi, bringing environmental and social sensitivity to the energetic and fast-paced environment of large-scale development in China.

Richelle Nolan

Managing Director
Interior Architects

Rosa Sheng

FAIA – Director of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion
SmithGroup

Rosa T. Sheng, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C is a Principal and Director of Equity Diversity Inclusion at SmithGroup, while also leading as AIASF President 2018 and Founding Chair of Equity by Design. As a design architect with 24 years of experience in the built environment, Rosa has led a variety of award-winning and internationally acclaimed projects from the aesthetically minimal, highly technical development of the glass structures for Apple’s original high-profile retail stores, to the innovative and sustainable LEED NC Gold–certified Lorry I. Lokey Graduate School of Business at Mills College in Oakland, California. Rosa's thought leadership and activism has been recognized for catalyzing a national movement for equitable practice in Architecture including three pivotal surveys, workshops, critical writing, and public speaking outreach nationally and abroad. Press coverage of her critical work with Equity by Design include Architect Magazine, Architectural Record, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, TEDxPhiladelphia and KQED/NPR.

Christi Farrell

Regional Spatial Experience Director
WeWork

David McCullough

Principal
McCullough Landscape Architecture

A graduate of Cal Poly University, San Luis Obispo, David formed McCullough Landscape Architecture as a sole proprietorship in 1999 while consulting for another firm. After wife and partner, Catherine joined the business in 2001 and became Chief Executive Officer and President in 2002; the firm became a woman-owned corporation and a certified Small Business by the State of California. With offices in San Diego and the Bay Area, McCullough creates spaces for hospitality, retail, mixed-use and institutional properties around the world. As principal landscape architect, David oversees all aspects of the design and production of firm projects at McCullough. He serves as head designer on all projects and maintains quality control on all work completed. Previous projects have earned awards and recognition in several national publications. David finds time in his schedule to take leadership in creative organizations such as the the San Diego Architecture Foundation (SDAF) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) local Urban Design Committee. He currently serves as Chair of the Pecha Kucha Night program, which is on its sixth successful year. He finds it inspiring to take part in such a diverse mix of creative minds while bringing them together to share with the public their wild ideas. In addition, recently David was appointed by San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer to serve on the Historical Resources Board as Chair, which governs the identification, protection, retention and preservation of historical sites in San Diego. Concurrently, he has been invited to serve on the city’s Code Monitoring Team (CMT). David’s design philosophy is centered around merging context and creative passion with grit, soul, and style. The firm takes every project with a uniquely creative approach that centers around diversity, discovery and conservation. David feels it’s important to engage the human spirit with nature, while expressing empathy. Recent projects include a large waterfront development in Shanghai, China, Seaport San Diego redevelopment, several multifamily projects in Calgary and Vancouver, along with other notable hospitality, entertainment, and mixed-use collaborations in the Western US and Canada.

Mark Cavagnero

Founding Partner
Mark Cavagnero Associates

Mark Cavagnero, FAIA, founded Mark Cavagnero Associates in 1988, and has guided its growth into a design-centered practice serving clients internationally. His work embodies a timeless quality, visible in a broad range of renovation and new construction work. Mark is focused on creating tangible spaces that encourage the ephemeral aspects of human interactions. As the founding principal of the firm, Mark provides leadership over the design of all projects within the office. He brings over three decades of expertise in the planning, design and construction and has been recognized for seamlessly integrating environmental, cultural and contextual strategies to curate a holistic design approach, through various building types from education, museums, civic buildings, theaters, and residential buildings. His projects are known for careful attention to balanced natural light through all parts of the building, in support of activities and wellness of the occupants. Mark Cavagnero Associates’ approach in design has garnered the firm more than 100 awards from international, national, state, and local organizations. Mark has personally been recognized with the AIACC 2010 Distinguished Practice Award and the AIACC 2015 Maybeck Award for outstanding lifetime achievement, among many other accolades. He is currently engaged on projects throughout North America, including the new San Francisco Moscone Center Expansion; San Francisco Conservatory of Music; the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Quest Diagnostics headquarters in New York; as well as projects for Salesforce spanning across Asia, North America and Europe.

Bruce Jett

Principal
JETT Landscape Architecture + Design

Bruce Jett has practiced landscape architecture for over 30 years, beginning his career with a small practice in the East Bay in 1987. In 1999 Bruce founded Bruce Jett Associates with the singular belief that urban-focused landscape architecture plays a pivotal role in making cities vibrant, livable places that uplift the human experience through thoughtful, well designed outdoor environments. As founding principal of JETT Landscape Architecture + Design, Bruce’s work explores the middle ground between nature, architecture and designed outdoor space to foster the interplay of people with each other, buildings and broader contexts such as history, cultural values and social needs. The firm’s award-winning projects are noted for their creative response to programmatic needs, innovative use of materials and environmental sensitivity. The work touches upon a wide variety of projects throughout California. Bruce is currently working on the renovation of the former Berkeley Art Museum on the U.C. Berkeley Campus, numerous multi-family housing projects, hospitality, education and commercial projects. Bruce is particularly proud of the range of projects the firm has undertaken over the past few years to address homelessness, including permanent supportive housing in San Jose, San Leandro and Oakland, veteran’s housing in Colma and campus planning for temporary shelters at two sites in San Jose. Bruce has also been involved in working with the firm’s two other principals to integrate the latest in project delivery technologies into its day-to-day operations. He is an active member of the Urban Land Institute, ASLA and Spur and enjoys working to inspire high school and university students about thoughtful land use and the development process through ULI’s Urban Plan Program.

David Brenner

Founder & Principal
Habitat Horticulture

David’s love of plants finds vibrant expression in his living walls. Arresting panoramas of greenery, David’s painterly walls are abstract works of living art whose compositions employ color, texture, volume, and line informed by botanical expertise. Habitat Horticulture founder David Brenner is a pioneer in the field of living walls. Trained at California Polytechnic University and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, David’s experiments with growing mediums and plant species interaction led to the development of his proprietary living wall system. Working at the intersection of botany, architecture, interior design and urbanism, he has applied his passion for plants to a growing list of inspired projects, including such iconic vertical gardens as those at SFMOMA, the California Academy of Sciences, Westfield Century City, Facebook, and Google. Habitat Horticulture’s architectural partners include Studios Architects, Snøhetta, Gensler, HKS and EHDD. The walls are often groundbreaking feats of horticultural engineering: the SFMOMA wall, 150 by 28 feet, is the largest in the US, while the 90-foot garden adorning San Francisco’s Jasper building facade is America’s tallest. David sees his work as an integral part of a shift in consciousness bringing a renewed awareness of the importance of nature in our lives. With over 100 living walls completed over the past 5 years, Habitat Horticulture is at the center of the contemporary greening of the urban built environment.

Jeff Fini

CEO
Alfa Tech

As Founder of AlfaTech, Jeff has over 35 years of experience in the engineering design, development, and execution of projects worldwide for numerous high profile and Fortune 500 firms. Jeff has successfully grown the firm to three highly successful offices in California, and now has resources through 55 additional offices across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. Through Jeff’s efforts and his ability to build strong and lasting client relationships, the firm has worked on some of the most innovative and creative projects for firms such as Uber, LinkedIn, Okta, ADI, AirBnB, Kaiser, Stanford, and Genentech. The firm is presently involved in the highly visible Lucas Museum in Los Angeles, and additionally, through Jeff’s efforts, AlfaTech has become a known leader in the Data Center industry, providing engineering and technology services for data centers around the globe. Jeff has been recognized through CoreNet as Service Provider of the Year through the Northern California Chapter.

Michael Johnson

CEO
UrbanCore Development

V. Fei Tsen

President
Windflower

As a developer and public official with experience in the nonprofit, public and private spheres, Ms. Tsen has more than 30 years of experience in building housing at all levels of affordability, civic projects, and large scale, mixed use developments. She is the President and CEO of Windflower Properties, a multi-family residential development company and President of Tsen & Associates, a real estate advisory firm. She was the Director of Real Estate for the Port of San Francisco, the Director of Redevelopment for the City of Emeryville, and a Commissioner of the former San Francisco Redevelopment Agency. She is currently President of the Treasure Island Development Authority that oversees the design and construction of infrastructure, streetscape, parks and open space for the former naval military base. Her expertise and leadership were critical in finalizing the design and financing for Yerba Buena Gardens and re-envisioning the San Francisco waterfront after the demolition of the Embarcadero Freeway. She has served on numerous Boards for arts, education and nonprofit community development organizations. Ms. Tsen was a recipient of the prestigious Loeb Fellowship, which the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University awards to outstanding designers and leaders who make our cities and natural environments more vigorous and sustainable.

Jeff Brink

Principal
DCI Engineers

Jeff Brink has over 20 years of structural design experience with significant developments up and down the west coast, ranging from Performance Based Design high-rises to mixed-use projects at Candlestick Point, the SF Shipyard, and Yerba Buena Island. Current projects include the City of San Francisco’s new office tower at 1500 Mission Street and the Virgin Hotel adjacent to the Moscone Center. Jeff’s technical expertise at integrating innovative structural systems, combined with his broad understanding of the construction industry, allows architecturally decisive projects to be achieved while still maintaining the project budget.

Jim Lewis

Director of Sales, Architectural Façade Systems
Clark Pacific

Jim Lewis brings over 25 years of building industry experience delivering and designing prefabricated systems for the architectural facades market. He spent several years at the Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (PCI) where he was responsible for the areas of architecture, productivity, BIM, safety, and innovation and prior to that, Gate Precast, where he educated architects, owners, and contractors on the economic and sustainable value of prefabricated architectural façade systems. Mr. Lewis has a degree in architecture from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA.

Hassan Ally

Principal
Thorton Tomasetti

Hassan Ally brings over 20 years of experience in design, management and delivery of projects in the construction industry. He is adept at generating value for clients through technical and commercial skills, contract negotiation and risk management. As the leader of Thornton Tomasetti’s San Francisco office, he is focused on generating value for clients by leveraging strong technical expertise and a client focused team. He leads a team of experts whose technical skills span a wide spectrum of industry, including Real Estate (Commercial, Residential, Hospitality), Higher Education, Technology (Campus, TI, and Data Centers), Biotech, Aviation, Transportation, Government (DGS, GSA, Federal and County), Civic, Social, Cultural, Sports, Convention Centers, and Healthcare.

Kamala Subbarayan

RE & Workplace Services
Google

Adam Nakagoshi

Regional Design Technology Director
Gensler

Adam Nakagoshi is the Regional Design Technology Director for Gensler’s Northwest Region, and is based in the San Francisco office. With a background in architecture, building information modeling (BIM), and data-driven 3D modeling, Adam leads the integration of digital technologies as a way to bridge the gap between the visualization of unbuilt environments with virtual and augmented reality technology (VR and AR). He guides the research and development, application for project use, and the implementation of the technology into the design process for teams throughout the region. His clients include NVIDIA, San Francisco International Airport, and the City of San Jose. Adam holds a Masters in Architecture from the University of South Florida.

Mike DeLacey

Principal & CEO
Microdesk

Michael is an enterprise-level Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operations and Maintenance (AECO) technology consultant with more than 25 years of experience in integrating technology into the planning, design, construction and operations and maintenance process of buildings and infrastructure. As Principal and CEO, Michael oversees all aspects of Microdesk’s sales, marketing, consulting and software development operations. He has been instrumental in developing technology plans and implementation strategies for organizations and government agencies throughout the United States and Europe. A sought after thought leader within AECO, Michael has participated in numerous industry events and panel discussions presented by Autodesk, Bisnow, and BuiltWorlds. His published commentaries on technology, sustainability and urbanization appear in business and trade publications. His experience and knowledge of the industry has led to interviews on a major regional cable network and popular industry podcasts.

Greg Johnson

Managing Director, San Francisco
Perkins + Will

Michael Orr

Managing Principal
HDR Architecture

Michael Orr is the Managing Principal of HDR San Francisco where he oversees day-to-day operations and the strategic direction of the practice. His diverse background includes practicing as a healthcare architect and management consultant.

Neeraj Bhatia

Founder
The Open Workshop

EERAJ BHATIA is an architect and urban designer from Toronto, Canada. His work resides at the intersection of politics, infrastructure and urbanism. Neeraj is a co-director of InfraNet Lab, a non-profit research collective probing the spatial byproducts of contemporary resource logistics, and the founder of The Open Workshop, a design office examining the project of plurality. Further, he is the research Director of The Petropolis of Tomorrow, which explores the relationship between urbanism and resource extraction. He has worked for Eisenman Architects, Coop Himmelblau, Bruce Mau Design, OMA, Lateral Office, and ORG.Neeraj has previously taught at Cornell University, Rice University, The University of Toronto, The University of Waterloo, and Ohio State University. He is currently an Assistant Professor at The California College of the Arts, where he also he is also co-director of the The Urban Works Agency. His research has been published in Volume/Archis, MONU, Thresholds, Footprint, Domus, Onsite Review, Field Journal and Yale Perspecta. He is co-editor of The Petropolis of Tomorrow (with Mary Casper, Actar, 2013), Bracket [Goes Soft] (with Lola Sheppard, Actar, 2013), Arium: Weather + Architecture (with Jürgen Mayer H., Hatje Cantz Publishing, 2009), and co-author of Pamphlet Architecture 30: Coupling — Strategies for Infrastructural Opportunism (with InfraNet Lab, Princeton Architectural Press, 2010). Neeraj has received Graham Foundation Grants, The Lawrence B. Anderson Award, Shell Center for Sustainability Grant, Odebrecht first-prize Award for Sustainability, ACSA Faculty Design Award, and the Thesis Prize (MIT, 2007; University of Waterloo, 2005). Neeraj received his Masters degree in Architecture and Urban Design from MIT where he was studying on a Fulbright Fellowship. Prior to that, he attended the University of Waterloo where he obtained a Bachelor of Environmental Studies and a Bachelor of Architecture. He is an NCARB licensed Architect in the Province of Ontario.

Forth Bagley

Principal
KPF

Since joining KPF in 2005, Forth has led the design and management of a variety of commercial projects, including hotel, retail, residential and mixed-use projects in the United States, England, China, Thailand, and India. He has focused on issues of density, the intersection of public and private space, and the intricate programmatic relationships of some of the most complex projects in the contemporary city. In Beijing, Forth is leading the design of an 85,000-square-meter retail and hotel project in the heart of the city’s Wangfujing District, not far from the Forbidden City. The project attempts to reshape Wangfujing as Beijing’s premier luxury retail and lifestyle district. Five floors of retail are capped by restaurants and a small Mandarin Oriental Hotel with roof gardens and event courtyards overlooking historic Beijing. In addition to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Beijing, Forth has also completed designs for many other hotels: the Mandarin Oriental, Macau; Four Seasons, Chengdu; Rosewood, Bangkok; Grand Hyatt, Nanjing and New World Hotel, Chengdu. Forth has led the design and management of many of the firm’s tall towers, including one of China’s largest mixed-use projects – the iconic Guangzhou CTF Finance Centre. The 530-meter-tall building houses a hotel, serviced apartments and offices as well as a large retail podium with terracing roof gardens and connections to mass transit. When completed in 2017, the complex will be the anchor of Guangzhou’s emerging CBD and the tallest, most programmatically integrated skyscraper in the city. Forth has also designed some of the world’s most high-density retail environments. He is currently leading the execution of the interior design of Hudson Yards’ retail environments, a six floor mall part of a large mixed-use complex at the north end of the Highline, in New York City. He has led the interior design of many of the recent retail renovations of The Landmark, in Central Hong Kong, and he is leading the design of Chengdu Union Sun Plaza, an eight-level luxury retail center in central Chengdu, China. Forth’s stand-alone residential projects blend the interface between interior and exterior space, and further his exploration of the relationship between context and the melding of private and public space. He is currently leading the design of a distinctive residential tower in Hong Kong’s expanding Soho district. The tower features column-free corners and cantilevered balconies at the building’s edges, which have the effect of maximizing interior space as well as views to the exterior. Forth co-edited Perspecta 38 through the Yale School of Architecture, where he is a frequent guest critic and where he taught as the Eero Saarinen Visiting Professor in the spring semester of 2011. He has lectured at Yale and Harvard, and has been a guest critic at the University of Hong Kong Department of Architecture and elsewhere. He is a licensed architect in the State of New York.

Nataly Gattegno

Co-Founder & Design Principal
Future Cities Lab

Jeff Hutchens

Senior Director, Safety & Health
AvalonBay Communities

Mr. Hutchens’s role at AvalonBay Communities involves leading a Safety team which provides support across the entire business enterprise, from community construction to residential operations, engineering and maintenance to property redevelopment. His recent efforts at AvalonBay resulted in a highly successful safety culture change implementation. Built on the concept of “Safety Performance as a Leadership Challenge” to drive culture change, the Incident and Injury Free approach resulted in significant improvement in both injury reduction and safety perception. His work in support of new safety technology led to the development of the firm’s innovative Fire Elimination program, awarded the International Risk Management Institute’s Horizon Award for Innovation. Prior to AvalonBay Communities, Mr. Hutchens led safety teams for Turner Construction’s business units in New York City; supported the US Army Corps of Engineers during Base Realignment and Closure contracts, including renovation of the Pentagon. Mr. Hutchens led safety and health programs for a startup company focused on small-business contracts in the United States and the United Kingdom. Mr. Hutchens began his work in safety and health during his service in the US Navy’s Submarine service.