A STEM leadership center, elementary school and restaurant-distillery are among nine developments that won awards from the Columbus branch of the world’s largest architect and designer network.
The American Institute of Architects’ Columbus chapter hosts an annual competition in which a three-person jury evaluates projects designed and submitted by Columbus architects. This year, nine winners were selected from a pool of 67 submissions. To be eligible, developments must have been completed within the past five years.
Six of the winning projects are located in central Ohio, while the other three can be found in New York City, Chicago and Springfield, Ohio, respectively. Winners were recognized at an awards ceremony Wednesday evening at The Ohio State University’s Hamilton Hall.
The 2025 jury was made up of Roberto de Leon, co-founder of de Leon & Primmer Architecture Workshop in Louisville; Amale Andraos, co-founder of architecture firm WORKac in New York City; and Anne Torney, a San Francisco-based architect specializing in affordable multi-family housing and transit-focused urban development.
Honor awards and merit awards were given across four categories: large projects, small projects, interior architecture and residential. Most winners were honored as Design Architect recipients, while one won as an Architect of Record.
Here are this year’s honorees, in no particular order.
Large project
- Honor award: Girl Scouts of Ohio’s Heartland – The AEP Foundation STEM Leadership Center
- Project: a $12 million, 24,000-square-foot workshop center and event space located at Camp Ken Jockety’s Battelle Science and Innovation Campus in Galloway
- Design architect: BBCO
- Jury comments: “Communal spaces are carefully articulated, with interiors flowing seamlessly outdoors to foster vibrant social interaction. The project’s inventive, yet restrained use of a pre-engineered metal building system demonstrates both efficiency and design ingenuity.”
- Honor award: Global Impact STEM Academy, Upper Academy
- Project: a $17 million, 30,000-square-foot expansion of the Springfield, Ohio STEM school on Clark State College’s Leffel Lane campus, with the new facility set to serve 10th- and 11th-grade students through new classrooms, maker spaces and direct connections to greenhouse and agricultural garden facilities
- Design architect: WSA Studio
- Jury comments: “Its industrial corrugated metal exterior is balanced by luminous, engaging interior spaces that foster collaboration and a sense of community…Characterized by precision, coherence, and restraint, the project stands as a model of forward-looking educational design that is at once functional, inspiring, and contextually aware.”
- Merit award: Astor Park Office Development
- Project: a $28 million, 140,000-square-foot office building in Downtown Columbus
- Architect of Record: Lupton Rausch Architecture + Interior Design
- Jury comments: “Astor Park Office Development exemplifies refined architectural expression and disciplined attention to detail within a broader urban complex…The project demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of proportion, materiality, and context, resulting in an office development that is both architecturally distinguished and inviting.”
- Merit award: 43 Green
- Project: a $32 million, 80,700-square-foot multifamily housing building in Chicago, also the first affordable and transit-oriented development on the South Side
- Design architect: Moody Nolan
- Jury comments: “Thoughtfully articulated communal spaces, coupled with proximity to public transit, reinforce the project’s commitment to sustainable urban living and a vibrant, connected neighborhood. The design demonstrates clarity, restraint, and a purposeful attention to both human experience and urban context.”
- Merit award: High Bank Distillery Co., Westerville
- Project: a $2.28 million, 6,400-square-foot repurposing of Westerville’s historic 1920s post office into a craft distillery and restaurant, featuring outdoor dining patios, ground-floor dining and bar spaces and lower-level speakeasy-inspired gathering areas
- Design architect: WSA Studio
- Jury comments: “The jury commends the project for amplifying the inherent qualities of its site — from the shade of mature trees to the vitality of sidewalk activity — integrating these features seamlessly into the overall spatial experience. Through the careful incorporation and elevation of existing elements, the design demonstrates how architecture can enrich any program while responding meaningfully to context.”
Small project
- Merit award: Scioto Mile Fountain Transformation
- Project: a $15 million, 15,000-square-foot fountain in the heart of Downtown Columbus, with a circular plaza and seating areas
- Design architect: AECOM
- Jury comments: “New interventions blend seamlessly with the original framework, avoiding any overt distinction between old and new. Attention to the nuances of user experience — such as the balance of sunny and shaded areas, and the variety of fountain interactions accommodating all ages — reflects a deep understanding of inclusivity and place-making.”
Interior architecture
- Merit award: Buck Mason Soho
- Project: a $2 million, 4,500-square-foot retail space with men’s and women’s clothing, vintage books, a coffee shop and furnished lounge spaces spread across two stories in New York City’s SoHo neighborhood
- Design architect: Greg Dutton Studio
- Jury comments: “A single material is thoughtfully carried throughout all levels, creating continuity and cohesion, while meticulous detailing reinforces a sense of elegance and consistency across the space.”
- Merit award: Minerva France Elementary School
- Project: a $17.1 million, 70,000-square-foot elementary school, situated on a former Westerville amusement park and golf course and named in honor of one of Westerville City Schools’ first Black graduates
- Design architect: Triad Architects
- Jury comments: “The jury commended the clever use of color to define spatial zones, extending seamlessly from floor to ceiling to create a cohesive and dynamic environment. By thoughtfully engaging both floor and ceiling surfaces, the design transforms the interior into a multidimensional experience.”
Residential
- Honor award: Dean-Haidet Residence
- Project: a 2,550-square-foot Wright-inspired Usonian home in Worthington’s Rush Creek Village
- Design architect: GRA+D Architects
- Jury comments: “Thoughtfully sited within its National Trust neighborhood context, the house achieves a measured and compact scale that redefines expectations for single-family living. The project is distinguished by its meticulous detailing and the seamless integration of interior and exterior spaces, creating a harmonious and deliberate relationship between architecture and site.”
Reporter Emma Wozniak can be reached at ewozniak@dispatch.com or @emma_wozniak_ on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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