The Agriculture and Natural Resources Building is mission-critical to the Institute of Agriculture’s key functions: it supports discovery research across multiple departments. It houses offices for Extension specialists and outreach conducted by the Smith Center for International Sustainable Agriculture, and the building provides state-of-the-art facilities for teaching and learning. The 10,000-sf green roof, with Tennessee native plant colonies modeling four distinct ecological horticultures, provides outdoor learning spaces and research plots while managing stormwater within its soil matrix. Informal learning spaces distributed on all floors adjacent to classrooms, class laboratories, and research laboratories enhance interdisciplinary, peer-to-peer learning.
RHD Award Year: 2025
Braselton Library
The rapidly growing Town of Braselton had outgrown its 7,420 sf public library. The library is situated one block from the primary intersection in the heart of the small historic downtown. The crossroads include the historic farmhouse of the town founder, John Oliver Braselton. The design of the existing one-story library is said to have been inspired by the historic home and its Colonial Revival style. Surrounding the historic farmhouse and neighboring the library site are numerous agricultural outbuildings.
The Braselton Library children’s wing and community room addition is a modern, gabled, two-story “outbuilding” that serves as a foil to the residential-inspired existing library. Responsive to the addition’s program, the simplistic pentagonal form is also reminiscent of a child’s interpretation of building form.
Biophilic design principles are employed through the integration of natural light, bold, nature-inspired color, and visual and physical connections to the outdoors. Vaulted two-story spaces allow natural light to spill deep into the library interior, while high-efficiency, low-iron-coated glass and shading devices on the south- and east-facing facades control it. The west wall of the building is swung open, revealing the contents inside through a north-facing curtain wall opening onto the new children’s garden and story walk. Storytime tiered seating extends from the building interior into the garden and is integrated into the staircase to the second-level community meeting room.
The new wing provides spaces that inspire education, exploration, and community activity through cohesive strategies that interconnect the building’s exterior design with its interior spaces.
Moreira Guest House
The Moreira Guest House is a retreat immersed in nature, located just minutes from downtown Athens, Georgia. Nestled within a mature hardwood forest along Barber Creek, the site’s ecological and topographic constraints shaped every design decision. Riparian buffers, the 100-year floodplain, and steep slopes required a light touch, and the building footprint was carefully placed to minimize disturbance, balance cut and fill, and preserve the watershed.
The result is a compact, 26’ x 26’ structure with a low-sloped shed roof—the simplest form found in southern vernacular. A narrow open-grate bridge crosses the terrain to create a dramatic entry sequence without blocking daylight or water flow beneath.
Material selections reinforce the connection to place: dark-stained cypress siding harmonizes with the vertical rhythm of the forest, while locally harvested poplar ceilings extend continuously from the exterior soffits into the interior rooms, blurring the boundaries between inside and out. Corner windows expand into a double-height volume with panoramic views of Downs Creek.
The guest house reduces its footprint at the lower level, where a suite opens directly onto the forest floor. By embracing simplicity, natural materials, and biophilic design principles, this modest retreat achieves a powerful presence—celebrating its ecological context while offering a contemplative refuge.
Newberry Customer Service Center
The project is driven by the vision to create a state-of-the-art facility that demonstrates Michigan’s commitment to sustainable building practices and its rich forest resources. It represents a significant leap forward in construction, embracing innovation and sustainability to meet the needs of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and align with its commitment to sustainable forest management. The key design considerations focus on creating a functional space that supports both Customer Service and Field Office operations. The project is dedicated to incorporating sustainable practices, exemplified by the use of mass timber, thereby showcasing the area’s natural resources.
Palm House
After being shuttered for 17 years, Palm House in Palm Beach, Florida, reopened in November 2024. The owner, London & Regional Group Hotel Holdings, took on the mission of renovating and reopening it as the first US property in their Iconic Luxury Hotels collection.
A breeding ground for weeds, saplings, and wildlife, the abandoned hotel was covered in mildew and mold. It had nonfunctional electrical systems, a nonfunctional fire sprinkler system, incomplete plumbing, unsound columns, and numerous half-constructed features that were illegal in Palm Beach. By and large, almost everything had to be redone.
The hotel now offers 58 guestrooms and 21 suites. Room amenities include floor-to-ceiling windows and private terraces. New event spaces include a ballroom, garden terrace, and poolside lawn. The lobby-and-bar area features custom Murano glass chandeliers and seashell installations by local artist Christa Wilm. There’s also a chic dining room and a palm tree-fringed pool courtyard, which many of the hotel’s 79 rooms and suites overlook.
The backdrop of Palm Beach’s Mediterranean-inspired architecture, rich colors, and lavish landscape is reflected in this hotel’s identity and distinctiveness. Signature features such as the coral façade, carved cypress arbors, and limestone arches were carefully maintained to honor the hotel’s character.
Stella at Star Metals
Stella at Star Metals brings elegance and energy to the heart of West Midtown, Atlanta. Its curved exterior design and copper cladding catch the light with every hour, creating a warm, sculptural presence on the skyline. Inside, 327 thoughtfully designed apartments offer refined materials, soaring ceilings, and deep, garden-style balconies. A rooftop pool, botanical bar, and underground jazz lounge turn everyday living into a curated experience. From the street to the skyline, Stella is built to be seen, lived in, and remembered. With 25,000 square feet of local restaurants, independent shops, and neighborhood favorites, the street level hums with activity, bringing familiar faces and fresh energy right to your doorstep. Every detail is tuned to the tempo of modern Atlanta.
Alleghany County House
This project includes two related houses designed for a large family on a North Carolina mountain estate. Our work began with a careful study of a 40+ acre mountaintop property, resulting in a site selection that balanced views, solar gain, and protection from prevailing winds. Viewed at large, the initial challenge of the project was in situating the houses relative to one another. The houses were designed for two different generations of the same family, one with younger kids and the other in retirement. As such, it was important to locate the houses in a way that allowed for connectedness and shared amenities while taking into account each family’s need for privacy and autonomy. We achieved this balance by pulling the two houses apart and bridging between them with a modern glazed structure, the roof of which extends to cover a shared exterior gathering area.
The curtainwall of glass and the large multi-slide door opening onto the views on the north side of the building begin to dematerialize the walls, blurring the distinction between interior and exterior spaces and making the landscape central to the experience of the house. As a gesture toward the natural surroundings, we commissioned Brooklyn furniture maker Mattias Pliessnig to create a wooden sculpture to hang in the double-height space of the rear entry of the house. Lastly, the forms are oriented in a way that promotes porosity rather than obstruction, allowing views through the site to the landscape beyond.
Andalusia Interpretive Center at Georgia College & State University
Located on the Andalusia homestead of author Flannery O’Connor, the new Interpretive Center is a modern reinterpretation of the agrarian vernacular of the historic farm site. Inside, a spacious exhibit room features permanent and rotating displays, complemented by a bookstore, collections storage, and administrative office space. The center serves as an educational and cultural resource that supports the historic site and preserves O’Connor’s legacy through campus programs and public events. Designed for scholarly research and visitor engagement, the interpretive center will celebrate literature, history, and the legacy of Flannery O’Connor, underscoring Andalusia as a cherished destination for enthusiasts worldwide.