The latest People in the News highlighting new hires, promotions, honors & recognition of the men and women in the St. Louis building community.
Lawrence Group Announces 2019 Promotions
Lawrence Group is pleased to announce the following promotions: Todd Bundren, Riza Encarnacion, Matt Lundgren, Lisa Morrison, Greg Trost and Galen Vassar have been promoted to associate principal.
Todd Bundren, NCARB, LEED AP® BD+C leads multiple teams that focus on national accounts in the retail, hospitality and senior living markets. He also heads up Lawrence Group’s sustainable design and LEED Certification efforts for the built environment. He is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council and sits on the Planning and Zoning Commission for the town of Crestwood, MO. Bundren joined Lawrence Group in 2006 and has more than 15 years of experience.
Riza Encarnacion, RA, NCARB, specializes in managing large, complex projects for healthcare clients. She is currently managing the design team for the $550 million SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital and served as project manager for the award-winning SSM Health St. Mary’s Replacement Hospital in Jefferson City. She joined Lawrence Group in 2001 and has 29 years of experience.
Matt Lundgren, AIA, LEED AP® provides management and operational oversight for Lawrence Group’s New York office. He specializes in experiential retail design and hospitality solutions for national clients such as Warby Parker, Blue Bottle Coffee, Adore Me and Tend. Lundgren joined Lawrence Group in 2012 and has 17 years of experience.
Lisa Morrison, WELL AP, NCIDQ specializes in the visioning and design of innovative workplace and hospitality environments. As a newly accredited WELL AP, she designed Missouri’s first WELL-certified project for Cushman & Wakefield and recently designed a new workplace strategy for OPAA Food Management. She has teamed with Lodging Hospitality Management for renovations at St. Louis Union Station. Lisa joined Lawrence Group in 2012 and will continue to help the firm grow its workplace and hospitality markets.
Greg Trost, AIA, LEED AP®, specializes in adaptive reuse and historic renovation, educating clients on state and federal historic tax credit eligible buildings. His award-winning projects include The Core Apartment Residences, 4100 Lindell and Page 2 of 3 Cupples Building 9. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects and U.S. Green Building Council. Trost joined Lawrence Group in 2014 and has more than 20 years of experience.
Galen Vassar, NCIDQ, leads Lawrence Group’s hospitality practice, improving guest experiences for hotel, restaurant and entertainment clients. She is a St. Louis Business Journal 40 under 40 award winner, and her experience includes award-winning St. Louis landmarks such as Hotel Ignacio, Angad Arts Hotel, Park Pacific and Sun Theater. She joined the firm in 2005 and has more than 15 years of experience.
Jill Engel has been promoted to director of real estate operations. Jill Engel joined Lawrence Group in 2017 has more than 20 years of experience. She specializes in real estate operations and asset management. Her projects include Park Pacific, Marquette, Southside Tower and Southside Station. Alicia Buehrle, Matt Huff, John Iffrig, Corey Pinkley have been promoted to senior associate.
Alicia Buehrle joined Lawrence Group in 2006 and has more than 14 years of experience. She specializes in senior living and healthcare design, and her projects include Cottages at Lake Saint Louis and Nazareth Living Center.
Matt Huff, AIA, NCARB, joined Lawrence Group in 2016 and has 20 years of design experience. His diverse portfolio includes libraries, charter schools, universities, healthcare, commercial, residential, historic renovation and urban infill projects
John Iffrig, PLA, ASLA, joined Lawrence Group in 2008 and has 13 years of landscape architecture experience, including commercial, institutional, healthcare and senior living. He is currently providing landscape architecture services for City Foundry STL and SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital.
Corey Pinkley joined Lawrence Group in 2006 and has 15 years of experience. He specializes in residential and commercial project types and most recently has designed multiple historic renovations in the Skinker Debaliviere historic district.
Lawrence Group is a building design, development, and project delivery firm with offices in Austin, New York and St. Louis. With more than 160 employees, the firm offers architecture, interior design, furniture procurement, landscape architecture, graphic design, master planning, construction and real estate development services to healthcare, academic, commercial, hospitality, corporate and housing clients. Visit us at thelawrencegroup.com or connect with us on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
December 13, 2019
Oculus Inc. Grows Staff at St. Louis Headquarters
Oculus Inc., a full-service architecture and interior design firm, has hired Catherine Matthews and Charlene Masona to serve as an entry level intern architect and a marketing assistant, respectively. Both will work at Oculus’ headquarters in St. Louis.
“Catherine and Charlene both bring a variety of skills that will be essential to the growth of Oculus,” said Lisa Bell-Reim, Oculus Inc. president. “We look forward to seeing Catherine add to the talent of our architecture team and Charlene help market our award-winning work. Both are welcome additions to the firm.”
In Matthews’ role, she will work on a variety of projects with an emphasis in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries. This includes community-based outpatient clinics in Myrtle Beach, S.C. and Corpus Christi, Texas. Prior to joining Oculus, Matthews served as a student intern architect at Corgan and DHC Architects in Texas. She has a Master of Architecture from Kansas State University.
As a marketing assistant, Masona will support both marketing and business development efforts for the firm, specifically in the areas of digital marketing, print production and preparation of proposals, among other responsibilities. Previously, she worked as a social media strategist for the Brian Owens Soul musical brand. Masona possesses a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Oculus Inc. delivers comprehensive architecture, interior design, planning, and move management services with a driving aesthetic to Connect | Shape | Move people, experiences, sensibilities, and spaces. Oculus has offices in St. Louis, Dallas, and Portland, Ore., is WBE-certified and is regularly cited in top industry rankings for architecture and design. Oculusinc.com.
Spellman Brady & Company Hires Nicole Dutton, Artwork Consultant
Spellman Brady & Company, an award-winning interior design firm, is pleased to announce that Nicole Dutton has joined the firm as its Artwork Consultant & Project Manager. She will oversee managing the firm’s artwork master planning services for corporate, healthcare, senior living and higher education clients while managing the budget, schedule and installation of the firm’s multiple artwork projects across the country.
Ms. Dutton brings more than 12 years of professional experience focused on arts administration and curation. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from Greenville University and holds a Master of Fine Arts from Fontbonne University with a specialty in Painting. Prior to joining Spellman Brady, she was the curator of the William and Florence Schmidt Art Center at Southwestern Illinois College and worked at Chesterfield Arts as the associate director overseeing the public art master plan and art education.
Spellman Brady & Company is an award-winning interior design firm specializing in senior living, healthcare, and higher education environments. The firm maintains design excellence by delivering comprehensive interior design, furniture, artwork master planning, and procurement services. For more information about Spellman Brady & Company, please visit www.spellmanbrady.com.
December 6, 2019
S. M. Wilson Promotes Mike Ashley To Field Director
S.M. Wilson & Co. has promoted Mike Ashley to Field Director. His promotion comes with a recent restructuring of S. M. Wilson’s Field Operations department. The Field Director position will replace the Director of Field Operations to allow for more than one individual to provide direct support, oversight, and mentorship for the field aspects of projects from pre-construction to close-out including support of superintendents and tradespeople.
Ashley was brought into the Field Operations department to assist former Director of Operations, Mike Zick and Ashley has demonstrated great value in the field as well as the company.
Both Ashley and Zick will assume the title of Field Director. In their new roles, they will each be assigned to specific clients and project teams. This will allow every team the benefit of a dedicated Field Director with the resources available to provide guidance and support.
Ashley joined S. M. Wilson in 2004 and has worked on a variety of projects including Ladue Schools, Link in the Loop, City Foundry STL and Clarendale St. Peters. He is OSHA 30 certified and has more than 40 years of experience in the construction industry.