LPA wins modernism in america award. UC San Diego's York Hall earned national recognition for a seismic rehabilitation project that balanced modernization with historic preservation. Now in its 13th year, Docomomo's Modernism in America Awards spotlight the people and projects helping to preserve historic sites across the United States and U.S. territories. The program recognizes the owners, designers, advocacy groups and preservation organizations working to protect and promote the cultural and architectural significance of these important places. This year, LPA Design Studios won an Award of Excellence for the York Hall Seismic Rehabilitation project at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD). The project offers a compelling example of how these structures can be thoughtfully adapted to meet modern performance demands. By addressing critical seismic challenges, the team has helped ensure the long-term future of a university campus landmark. Built in 1966, York Hall is a 122,000-square-foot mid-century modern complex made up of four structurally independent buildings. Anchoring the eastern edge of UCSD's historic Revelle College, the building is defined by its dramatic west wing, which stands atop a 300-foot-long column arcade, and by the distinctive precast concrete fins that shade exterior walkways on every level. As one of the university's original campus buildings, York Hall holds a special place in its history and has been described by administrators as the heart of the campus. Many of the features that make York Hall an architectural icon also contributed to its seismic vulnerabilities. To strengthen the building, the project team introduced new columns, interior shear walls and exterior ground-face CMU shear walls. Four columns were replaced, while the remaining ones were repaired and reinforced. Additional upgrades included new rock-salt concrete paving and the restoration of the distinctive fins, ensuring the building remains intact for future generations. "York Hall demonstrates that it's possible to extend the life of a significant building - even in a highly active seismic region - without compromising the architectural character that makes it special," says Matthew Porreca, Design Director at LPA's San Diego studio. "Every challenge required a solution that addressed multiple goals at once, and that was only possible because of the expertise and collaboration of an integrated design team."

LPA Design Studios takes on OC's biggest projects. Yuika Yoshida August 24, 2026 LPA Design Studios, Orange County's largest architectural firm by billings, is coming off one of its biggest projects yet - the completion of Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian's $1.2 billion Sun Family Campus - with more major work on the way. The firm was chosen as the lead architect of the six-building campus, which is being capped by four facilities dedicated to women's health and cancer and digestive health opening next month. The facilities feature outdoor courtyards designed by LPA to bring natural light and open air into patient areas. "Hoag is a huge project, so that has been something we've been working toward," Chief Executive Wendy Rogers told the Business Journal. "For the team and for us all to see that come to fruition is tremendous." LPA is now turning its attention to two projects at Irvine's $1.1 billion Great Park development: the upcoming Asian American Museum and the relocation of nonprofit Pretend City Children's Museum. Irvine-based LPA is the largest architectural firm in the region with $92.7 million in local billings, according to the Business Journal's annual list of architectural firms (see page 20). The firm, which celebrated its 60th anniversary last year, has seven offices in California and Texas. The firm's busy project pipeline has also earned national recognition with LPA receiving the American Institute of Architects' (AIA) 2025 Architecture Firm Award, the industry's highest honor, for its integrated model that brings multiple design disciplines and engineering under one roof. "I think the integrated firm makes a difference, but also the fact that we have eight different practice areas," Rogers said. Some of LPA's strongest markets have been commercial and workplace projects, along with healthcare, a sector the firm entered about a decade ago. Great Park Projects The Asian American Museum and Pretend City Children's Museum will be located at the Cultural Terrace area of the Great Park, home to a collection of new museums and a renovated community events center. Development is ongoing at the Asian American Museum while construction is underway at Pretend City. Initially greenlit by the City of Irvine in 2024, the Asian American Museum aims to preserve and share Asian American history and culture in a county with more than 750,000 Asian Americans. The 220,000-square-foot museum will include 94,000 square feet of potential exhibition space, along with a 400-seat auditorium and a performance venue and food hall featuring a range of Asian cuisines. The Cultural Terrace is also slated to become the new home of Pretend City, whose current 28,000-square-foot location in Irvine has reached capacity, prompting the nonprofit to look for more space in the past several years. Meanwhile, Pretend City is expanding from a warehouse to 72,000 total square feet at Great Park, with 56,000 square feet of indoor space and 16,000 square feet outdoors, giving the children's museum more room for customized learning spaces. Pretend City will bring its interactive play concept to the new facility, creating a child-sized city fit with a post office, doctor's office and café. Construction is expected to begin in October, with groundbreaking planned for winter 2026-27 and completion anticipated in spring 2028, according to LPA. The Cultural Terrace's museum lineup will also include the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, adding to aviation history in Orange County. The $63 million facility is slated to open in 2027 and will house several military planes that were previously stationed at the El Toro base. Nonprofit performing arts school Orange County Music & Dance had intended to relocate to the Great Park for more space, but abandoned the plans due to unforeseen delays and incurring debt. In June, the nonprofit announced a $10.8 million purchase of a 25,000-square-foot building for use as a second campus, along with the appointment of OCSA founder Ralph Opacic as CEO after Douglas Freeman stepped down. LPA Designs New Middle School, Gym For Sage Hill School Another recently completed project for LPA was Sage Hill School's new middle school and gymnasium building, which opened this month. The Newport Beach private high school launched a $25 million campaign in 2023 to fund the construction of a 38,658-square-foot middle school, adding two grade levels and making Sage Hill the only independent school in Orange County to serve grades 7-12. Rogers said that she attended the ribbon cutting ceremony on Aug. 17 where the school welcomed its inaugural class of approximately 140 middle school students. "It was a bit of a teary moment, if I'm being honest," she said. "It was 30 years ago I was walking across the snake ridden landscape, talking about what that school would be." The project marks another chapter in LPA's decades long relationship with Sage Hill, dating back to 1966 when the firm master-planned and designed the school's original campus. Rogers said that LPA helped the school's founders find leftover land from the Irvine Co. Since then, LPA has done additional projects for Sage Hill including an aquatic and tennis center with a 25-yard-by-33-meter competition pool and modernization of a 20-year old library. Want more from the best local business newspaper in the country? Sign-up for its FREE Daily eNews update to get the latest Orange County news delivered right to your inbox! 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LPA honored with AIA San Antonio design Awards. At the July 28 People & Place Awards, the Texas AIA chapter recognized LPA Design Studios with two distinctions for design excellence. The San Antonio chapter of the American Institute of Architects announced the winners of its 2026 People & Place Awards, recognizing impactful community leaders and outstanding projects across civic, commercial, education and residential design typologies. Harris Elementary School, designed by LPA's integrated team, won a Committee on the Environment (COTE) Award, given to work that exemplifies sustainable design excellence and supports ecological resilience, human health and community building. The project also won a Place Award in the Educational category, celebrating quality architecture, innovation and community impact. About Harris Elementary School Harris Elementary serves a community where many families face economic hardship, and roughly three-quarters of students are identified as being at risk of disengaging from school. The design responds directly to this by shaping learning environments that emphasize student wellbeing, safety and a sense of belonging. The school is arranged as a series of neighborhoods with intimate sub-communities within the larger campus. Each neighborhood includes a mix of nooks, small-group rooms and collaborative zones that support learning at multiple scales. Students also have immediate access to outdoor instructional areas, such as a plaza constructed with 10,000 reclaimed bricks. Inside, clerestory windows and light-colored finishes maximize natural daylight and reduce reliance on artificial lighting. This helps students maintain lower cortisol levels, supporting emotional regulation and building long-term resilience. Harris Elementary is pursuing LEED Gold certification and a Three Star rating from Austin Energy Green Building, reflecting the school's commitment to sustainability. Read more about the project in issue 32 of Catalyst