AIA Design Awards 2024

Table of Contents
President’s Message
Award Levels and Project Categories
Meet the Jurors
AIA Framework for Design Excellence
Awards of Excellence
Awards of Merit
Honorable Mentions
Collaboration Awards
Student Design Awards
Distinguished Entrants
Student Distinguished Entrants

 

Aloha,

AIA Honolulu celebrates the exceptional design accomplishments of our chapter members every year. Since 1958, we have been recognizing outstanding projects, and we continue to do so with our 66th Annual Design Awards. Our aim is to acknowledge and promote design excellence within our community, highlighting the significance of good design.

The judging process carefully evaluates how each project aligns with The American Institute of Architect’s (AIA) Framework for Design Excellence, which outlines 10 fundamental design principles focused on advancing towards a zero-carbon, healthy, just, resilient, and equitable built environment. By prioritizing these principles, architects actively contribute to the progression of the Hawai‘i Clean Energy Initiative, with the ultimate goal of achieving 100% clean energy by 2045, and the federal government’s strategy to achieve net-zero emissions from the buildings sector by 2050.

This year, we have seen a significant increase in the number of award submissions in the Unbuilt category, surpassing volumes from previous years. This trend clearly indicates the growing pride of our design community in their work and their eagerness to share their achievements with their colleagues.

Mahalo to all of our members and students who submitted projects for consideration. Special thanks to this year’s jury for taking on the challenging task of selecting the best of the best to receive awards. And finally, congratulations to the award recipients.

Wayne Goo, AIA
2024 AIA Honolulu President

 

 

Award Levels

• Award of Excellence – Requires unanimous vote of the jury that a project excels in all aspects. Reserved for those projects which stand out from all of the meritorious award winners. This highest honor recognizes projects which are deemed to exemplify excellence of architectural design on all levels of analysis, and exemplify the highest standards to which AIA members aspire.
• Award of Merit – Requires consensus from the jury that a project is deserving for a high quality of work overall. Granted to projects which display a high standard of architectural quality and design.
• Honorable Mention – Responds to notable achievements in one or more particular project aspects; area(s) that stood out, as agreed through consensus by the jury.

Project Categories

Projects are submitted and judged in one of our seven categories. The number of projects awarded in each category and the award level (Excellence, Merit, Honorable Mention) shall be determined by the jury.

• Residential – Completed projects including single-family residential, multi-family residential, residential housing community planning, and residential renovations, additions and historic preservation. Residential projects of various sizes and scope are welcome as long as the project involved substantial exterior alterations.
• Commercial/Industrial – Completed projects including public and private developments of a commercial nature comprising retail, industrial, manufacturing and hospitality. Commercial renovations, historic preservation, adaptive reuse as well as new construction projects are eligible.
• Institutional – Completed projects including public and private developments of an institutional nature: K-12 and higher education, recreational facilities/parks, hospitals and medical facilities, and utilities.
• Interior Architecture – Completed projects involving substantial interior and minimal exterior alterations. Examples of projects in this category include, but are not limited to, tenant improvements and new tenant spaces within an existing (or by others and/or previously completed) exterior shell/space. Also includes residential interior renovations with minimal exterior improvement.
• Unbuilt – Unbuilt entries may include any project that is commissioned (client sponsored) or intended for construction, purely theoretical work not intended for construction, submitted individually (by AIA or Assoc. AIA), as a team. The jury will review and select entries in this category based on creativity, originality, power and potential of the ideas presented.
• Community Impact Award – Recognizes projects that are designed to remove barriers and burdens, physical or abstract, empowering and enabling people to gather, connect, live and function to their highest potential, ultimately bringing a community together. This award is unique in that it relies on the experiences of end users. Entries must demonstrate significant social impact.

 

Meet the Jurors – Professional Categories

Laura Ayers, AIA, LEED AP (AIA Honolulu) Principal & Co-owner, Whitespace Architects

WhiteSpace Architects is a woman-owned architectural firm with offices on Oahu and the Big Island. Laura received a Bachelor degree from Georgia Tech and a Master’s in Architecture from the University of Michigan. She moved to Hawai‘i and joined Philip White Architects in 2001 and became licensed in Hawai‘i in 2006. She earned an ownership role in 2016 when she and Pip White became partners and re-branded the firm as WhiteSpace Architects. With over two decades of experience in architecture, she has led many of the firm’s most notable and award-winning commercial, educational, and residential projects. Laura spearheads two quarterly events for the local industry: a luncheon for female architects to encourage mentorship and a Small Firm Roundtable discussion. She is also on the AIA Board of Directors for 2024-25.

 

April Hughes, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C (AIA Chicago) President, HPZS

April is the President at HPZS. Since graduating from the University of Kansas, she has received recognitions like the 2014 AIA Chicago Dubin Family Young Architect of the Year and the AIA Illinois John Wellborn Root Award in 2013. She is dedicated to the firm’s mission as a woman-owned enterprise, and she advocates for a net-zero future, all while championing opportunities for women, ensuring their voices are heard and valued. She brings vast experience in sustainable design, with a track record of delivering platinum-rated LEED projects and pioneering net-zero energy designs. She served on AIA Wisconsin Design Excellence and was named a DuPont Emerging Leader at the Design Futures Council Sustainability Summit. She served as Board President of AIA Chicago in 2020, highlighting her emphasis on community enrichment and driving positive change within and beyond the industry.

 

Yasushi Ishida, AIA (AIA Honolulu) Architect & Assistant Professor, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa School of Architecture

Yasushi Ishida is a licensed architect and an Assistant Professor at University of Hawai’i at Mānoa School of Architecture. He received his MArch from the Southern California Institute of Architecture in 2004. He has over 15 years of professional experience, working for firms such as Atelier Hitoshi Abe, Gensler, Morphosis, and Michael Maltzan Architecture, serving a significant role in projects such as The Broad Museum (Los Angeles), Emerson College (Los Angeles) and Phare Tower (Paris, France). Previously, Ishida has been a visiting assistant professor at Woodbury School of Architecture from 2015 to 2018 and has taught at Cal Poly Pomona.

 

Brian Masuda, AIA, LEED AP, WELL AP (AIA New York) Design Principal, Ennead Architects

Brian is a Design Principal at Ennead Architects and an alum of the University of Hawai’i School of Architecture. With a portfolio including award-winning projects in higher education, visual and performing arts, commercial mixed-use, retail, research laboratories, and healthcare across the United States and Asia, he brings diverse experience and perspective to his collaborative design process. As a co-leader of Ennead’s Cultural and Performing Arts Center of Excellence, he serves as an offi ce resource focused on performing arts and cultural project metrics, trends, and innovations. Additionally, he has contributed his expertise as an educator, teaching integrated design at Cornell and Columbia Universities. Brian recently served as a distinguished member of the Urban Land Institute New York 2023 awards for Excellence in Development Jury.

 

Lorrin Matsunaga, AIA, LEED AP (AIA Honolulu) Founding Partner, Urban Works

Lorrin is a partner at Urban Works in Honolulu, which has focused on the design of educational, housing and community-related projects since its founding in 1984. Lorrin maintains active involvement on projects to provide design leadership and to foster dialogue between the client, stakeholders, and design team. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Design and Master of Architecture degrees from the University of Washington, Lorrin worked in smaller firms in Seattle, where he learned about the joy of creative design, mentorship and appropriate placemaking. He believes in the importance of reading, drawing and travel to help formulate ideas and intentions, and to experience architecture first-hand.

 

Meet the Jurors – Student Categories

Jason Davis, AIA, LEED AP (AIA Honolulu) Principal Architect, RIM | A GHD Company

As Principal, Jason is a leader and mentor to a new generation of young architects while serving as the company’s “go-to” creative designer and project manager. He is a tireless innovator who always pushes to adopt new technologies. He is inspired by Hawai‘i’s natural beauty, and strives to incorporate local history, culture, and art in his designs. He has 27 years of experience in architectural design and project management, and has spent more than eight years with RIM over two stints with the company. Specializing in creative and culturally inspired hospitality projects, he has worked on some of RIM’s most daring and recognizable projects including the Honolulu Design Center, UH Cancer Center, high-profile hotels and shopping centers across O‘ahu. He believes that having a complete understanding of a place – culture, climate, and community – is the key to a successful design.

 

Hazel Go, AIA (AIA Honolulu) Associate and Project Architect, WCIT Architecture

A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Hazel is an architect with design and architectural expertise gained from working on local, national, and international projects in New York City, Washington, D.C. and now in Honolulu with WCIT Architecture. Her experience working on a broad range of project typologies and scales over the last 18 years has contributed to her attention to detail, efficiency, forward thinking and flexible management style, and a design process grounded in the outdoor environment, the human experience of place, and story-telling; while her love of nature – animals, plants, and the ocean – provides a constant source of inspiration.

 

Hale Takazawa, AIA (AIA Honolulu) Senior Project Architect and Researcher, Ferraro Choi & Associates, LTD.

Driven by extreme climate design, Hale champions net-positive, resilient buildings and communities both in urban and remote areas. He delves into the critical intersections of place, energy, water, equity, culture, infrastructure, climate change, and local vulnerabilities, empowering green design with the goal of building and community self-sufficiency. At Ferraro Choi, Hale leads preplanning, vulnerability studies, green and regenerative design processes while spearheading FCA Research with a mission of innovation and sharing.

 

AIA Framework for Design Excellence

The world today is facing broad and complex challenges that threaten every aspect of our lives. The architect’s call to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public has a new and broader meaning amid challenges such as increasing climate extremes and social inequity.

Every project can be used as a platform for addressing big problems and providing creative solutions. Every line drawn should be a source of good in the world.

The Framework for Design Excellence represents the defining principles of good design in the 21st century. Comprised of 10 principles and accompanied by searching questions, the Framework seeks to inform progress toward a zero-carbon, equitable, resilient, and healthy built environment. These are to be thoughtfully considered by designer and client at the initiation of every project and incorporated into the work as appropriate to the project scope. The Framework is intended to be accessible and relevant for every architect, every client, and every project, regardless of size, typology, or aspiration.

The Framework for Design Excellence challenges architects with a vision the profession strives to achieve.

 

 

Awards of Excellence

Kūlanihāko‘i High School – Award of Excellence, Institutional | Hawai’i Energy Award for Excellence in Energy-Efficient Design |  The Mayor’s Choice Award

Firm: G70
Client: State of Hawai‘i Department of Education
Contractor: Nordic PCL Construction, Inc. 
Location: Kihei, Maui, Hawai‘i

Buildings can have an impact on our consciousness, whether we realize it or not. With that in mind, Kūlanihāko‘i High School, in Kihei, was designed with “forward thinking,” says Charles Kaneshiro, AIA, President, G70 Design, in Honolulu. “We wanted to build something special for the students.”

The result is a LEED certified building, pursuing a Living Building Futures – Net Zero Building certification. “It’s like LEED on steroids.” Kaneshiro says.

The 50-acre campus operates completely off-grid, with net-zero energy. It is integrated into the surrounding environment from the landscaping to the aluminum trellises over 2-story classroom buildings to reduce temperatures. It’s even designed with awareness to where the sun rises and sets, and to provide shade from the warm Kihei sun, to naturally reduce heat in the buildings.

“You’ll notice a 10-degree drop in temperature,” Kaneshiro says. “You’ll see the students hanging outdoors, because it’s quite comfortable, like being under the shade of a tree.”

Other features of the campus include a stormwater retention system that prevents the school from flooding by using a large retention basin.

The state-of-the-art, multi-million-dollar campus opened in 2023 and currently has about 800 students. The master plan allows for double that, with each classroom building able to accommodate about 400 students.

Though it may look expensive, the campus was not designed beyond any other high school Department of Education budgets, says Kaneshiro.

“That was the mantra. We have to do it within a standard high school design budget. (The DOE) didn’t spend any more money (on this campus) than if they built any standard concrete block school.”

 

Hale Kiawe – Award of Excellence, Residential

Firm: Walker Warner
Additional Design Firms: Philpotts Interiors (Interior Design); David Y. Tamura Associates (Landscape Design)
Client: Withheld per owners’ request
Contractor: Metzler Contracting Co. LLC. 
Location: Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i Island, Hawai‘i

Simplicity is at the essence of  Hale Kiawe. Living symbiotically with island culture and environment was the inspiration behind designing this residential project, and the result embodies that intention.

When creating the property within the Kūki‘o Resort on the Kona Coast, special attention was given to organizing the entire space, thinking pretty much about “what we can do without,” says Gregory Warner, AIA, architect, founder & partner at Walker Warner, the architectural firm behind the design.

The residence sits above a forest of Kiawe trees, hence the name. It reflects a minimalist approach, in keeping with values of quietness and simplicity.

The inspiration for the residence stems from the owners’ point of view: what’s needed, and also what is not needed, keeping the design as simple as possible, based on their environmental and cultural values.

The site was developed with attention to “what the land wants,” and the design firm worked closely with the landscape architects to create an idyllic living space in accordance with the island’s environment, Warner says.

The residence is also reflective of local, agricultural designs, in keeping with where the residence is located within the islands. There is a “pico,” or center, of the project, around which other buildings reside. The architecture is practical, simple, with light coming in from two sides, with cross-ventilation.

This design reflects something new in residential resort design, Warner says.

 

Awards of Merit

806 Iwilei Affordable Housing & Resource Center – Award of Merit | Community Impact Award, Residential

Firm: G70
Client: City and County of Honolulu, Department of Land Management 
Contractor: Allied Builders System
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

This adaptive reuse affordable housing project showcases a blend of design sensibility and sustainability. The four-story mixed-use building integrates 27 apartments with essential community services and resources. Notable features such as natural ventilation, solar tube skylights, and biofilter planters highlight the project’s responsible and thoughtful approach to sustainability

 

Beachfront Sea Level Rise Adaptation – Award of Merit, Unbuilt

Firms: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Architecture, Sea Grant, and School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology
Location: Waikīkī, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

This design research project is an excellent example of how architects can play a crucial role in informing and influencing the public in making key decisions for the future. By providing site-specific architectural renderings of the impact of sea level rise on Waikīkī and illustrating potential adaptation strategies, the team successfully prompted input from the community and influenced government-led adaptation planning.

 

Civil Beat Plaza – Award of Merit, Commercial/Industrial

Firm: G70
Client: Withheld per owner’s request
Contractor: Nordic PCL Construction, Inc
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

Located in the walkable community of Kaimukī, this build incorporates retail, restaurant, and office spaces as well as ample parking, a shaded plaza, and safe loading zones for vehicular circulation.

 

Līlia Waikīkī – Award of Merit, Residential

Firms: Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB); Benjamin Woo Architects (Architect of Record)
Additional Design Firm: Jules Wilson Design Studio (Interior Design)
Client: Brookfield Properties; OliverMcMillan
Contractor: Nordic PCL Construction, Inc.
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

Līlia Waikīkī redeveloped 2.5 acres of Ali’i Trust land in the Heart of Waikīkī into a commercial mixed-use rental project including the only full-service grocer in the area. The 28-story tower, which includes 91 affordable housing units, is part of the revitalization of the Kūhiō Avenue Corridor. The preservation of heritage trees and iwi kūpuna demonstrates a deep respect for local culture and natural heritage.

 

The Mānoa Agricultural Innovation & Learning Exchange Project – Award of Merit, Unbuilt

Firm: AMA A/E
Additional Design Firm: Sasaki
Client: College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

The Mānoa Agricultural Innovation & Learning Exchange Project (Maile) is a conceptual design for the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR). The design proposes an integrated relationship between agricultural landscape, institutional research, and community to illustrate the principles of sustainable agriculture employed centuries prior in this valley neighborhood, creating a meaningful whole of both past and present.

 

Honorable Mentions

Hawaii State FCU Headquarters – Honorable Mention, Commercial/Industrial

Firm: hi•arch•y llp (Lead Architect / Architect of Record)
Additional Design Firm: ZGF (Interior Architect)
Client: Hawaii State Federal Credit Union
Contractor: Nordic PCL Construction, Inc.
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Lavaflow 8 – Honorable Mention, Residential

Firm: Craig Steely Architecture
Client: Françoise Bourzat and Aharon Grossbard 
Contractor: Hilo Coast Construction 
Location: Pāhoa, Hawai‘i Island, Hawai‘i 

 

Wailuku Civic Complex Parking Garage – Honorable Mention, Commercial/Industrial

Firm: Ferraro Choi And Associates
Client: County of Maui
Contractor: Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company
Location: Wailuku, Maui, Hawai‘i

 

Collaboration Awards

Slice of Paradise – USGBC Hawaii Sustainability Award, Residential

Firm: Peter Vincent Architects
Additional Design Firm: Star Pierce Design (Interior Design) Aloha ‘Āina Landscaping (Landscape Design)
Client: Withheld per owner’s request
Contractor: Mokulua High Performance Builder
Location: Kahuku, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Hale Le’ahi – Hawaii Home+Remodeling Editor’s Choice Award, Residential

Firm: ADM Architecture + Interior
Client: Withheld per owner’s request 
Contractor: Barker Kappelle Construction 
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i 

 

Hawaiian Airlines Air Operations Support Space – People’s Choice Award, Interior Architecture

Firm: HDR, Inc.
Client: Hawaiian Airlines
Contractor: Hensel Phelps
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Student Design Awards

The Student Design Awards honor student achievements in the design studio and provide a forum for student design excellence to be celebrated beyond the academic setting.

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Mauna Kea Residence – Award of Excellence | People’s Choice Award, Undergraduate

Student: Michael Griffin
School: Honolulu Community College

 

CMU Park – Award of Excellence, Graduate

Student: Siwei Su / Jiaqi Xu
School: Chaminade University of Honolulu

 

Stacked Housing Complex – Honorable Mention, Undergraduate

Student: Edwin Sun
School: Chaminade University of Honolulu

 

Distinguished Entrants

PBS Hawai‘i New Home – Institutional

Firm: G70
Client: PBS Hawai‘i
Contractor: Allied Builders System
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Daniel Kahikina Akaka Veterans Affairs Clinic – Institutional

Firm: Ferraro Choi And Associates
Client: Hunt Companies Hawaii 
Contractor: Nan Inc.
Location: Kapolei, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Kaulana Mahina – Residential

Firm: Ethos Architects LLC 
Client: BIT Wailuku 
Contractor: Moss Construction 
Location: Wailuku, Maui, Hawai‘i

 

Ala Wai Bridge – Unbuilt

Firm: HDR, Inc
Additional Design Firms: Yogi Kwong Engineers (Geotechnical Engineer); V+M Structural (Bridge Structural Engineer); KAI Hawaii (Structural Engineer); PBR Hawaii (Landscape Design)
Client: Department of Transportation Services, City and County of Honolulu
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Volcano Residence – Unbuilt

Firm: Mork-Ulnes Architects
Client: Withheld per owner’s request
Location: Volcano, Hawai‘i Island, Hawai‘i

 

American Samoa Specialized Hospital – Unbuilt

Firm: AHL 
Client: LBJ Tropical Medical Center, American Samoa Government
Location: Tāfuna, American Samoa

 

Senia – Interior Architecture

Firm: FWRNS Studio
Client: Anthony Rush & Katherine Nomura
Contractor: JBA Construction
Location: Honolulu, O‘ahu, Hawai‘i

 

Student Distinguished Entrants

Lē‘ahi Home & Lapa‘au Park – Graduate

Student: Beau Nakamori / Hunter Wells
School: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Architecture

 

Community Nexus – Undergraduate

Student: Jingsong Zhou
School: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Architecture

 

Hala Learning Center – Undergraduate

Student: Sophia Abe
School: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Architecture

 

Da Crater Spa’t – Undergraduate

Student: Katherine Liu / Jazylnne Williamson / Soraya Ortiz
School: Chaminade University of Honolulu

 

‘Kaka‘ako Cocoon’ – Undergraduate

Student: Jennifer Rodriguez Flores
School: University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa School of Architecture