HRACRE 2009
Excellence in Development Design Awards
Inside Business
10/23/2009

The 13th annual Hampton Roads Association for Commercial Real Estate's Excellence in Development Design Awards gala was held at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott in downtown Norfolk Thursday, Oct. 22. Candi James, director of business development and marketing for HBA Architecture & Interior Design in Virginia Beach, took to the stage for one last time to serve as mistress of ceremonies. This was James' fifth and final year to host this event, as well as serve on the awards committee of which she's been a member for the past eight years.

This year, James served as co-chair of the awards program with Kim Rivers, associate/ marketing manager of the LandMark Design Group in Virginia Beach.
“I'm delighted we had 40 submissions for this year's competition, given the economic concerns that we are all facing,” James said. “So many people's jobs have been affected by the downturn in the construction industry and it's inspiring to know that so many firms are still maintaining excellence in their work and putting their best foot forward.”

James pointed out the program is fortunate to have a unique combination of judges whose talents make for the most deserving entrants to be named winners. “We have a cohesive group of judges who work together on this project while we phase one out every five years and add a new one to the mix every year. It's a setup that works for us,” she said.

“Although they all have different backgrounds and areas of expertise, they are able to come together with their varying viewpoints and collectively spot and agree on the most noteworthy projects that were submitted.” And, she added, Hampton Roads is certainly blessed to have such a large pool of talent in its local architecture and engineering firms.

In addition to the judges' dedication to the program, James said it would not be the success it is without the able guidance of Dana Walker. “Her title says she's HRACRE's executive administrator but she is so much more. She's such a remarkable woman.

She's the glue that holds HRACRE together. I'd like to extend a special thank you to her for running the show with so much grace and style.”

The panel of judges

MARK S. HASSINGER
President, WestDulles Properties Inc.
Dulles

With more than 30 years of real estate development and management experience, Mark Hassinger joined WestDulles Properties in December 2004 and became president in 2005. His responsibilities focus on land acquisition, master planning, financing and construction for new office and industrial projects.

Prior to joining the Dulles-based firm, he served as development director for Lerner Enterprises, where for a decade he oversaw the firm's Northern Virginia land holdings.
Prior to that, Hassinger was the development director for Lee Sammis Associates.

His expertise and experience include land-use entitlements, master planning,
coordinating design, the permitting and construction process, lease and land sale negotiations, office and industrial park infrastructure design, and land search and acquisition.

Currently, Hassinger serves on the Executive Committee of Northern Virginia NAIOP.
He's a practitioner faculty member of the Johns Hopkins University master's program in real estate, an associate member of the Urban Land Institute and a member of Lambda Alpha, an honorary land economics society. He has a master's degree in community planning from the University of Rhode Island. He also has been instrumental in launching the new Master's in Real Estate Development Program at George Mason University.

This is Hassinger's fifth and final year as a judge in this program.

ALAN L. HANSEN, AIA, LEED AP

Director of Architecture, DBI Architects Inc.

Reston

Alan Hansen has been director of architecture at DBI Architects in Reston since 1999. His decades of experience as a design professional include commercial, office, ecclesiastical, educational, retail and health care facilities. The award-winning architect, who holds a bachelor of architecture degree with honors from the University of Maryland College Park, has been active in the American Institute of Architects for 30-plus years.

A longtime resident of Northern Virginia, Hansen spent much of the 1980s serving on Arlington County's Planning Commission and Site Plan Review Committee. Moving to Loudoun County in the late '80s, he went on to serve on the boards of the Committee for Dulles, the county's Affordable Dwelling Unit Advisory and Leesburg's Downtown Improvement Association.

Hansen founded and currently chairs the Design Cabinet of the county's department of economic development. In addition to facilitating the Signatures of Loudoun Exceptional Design Awards Program, cabinet members collaborate with property owners and town governments to create appropriate, conceptual design solutions to a variety of planning, transportation, land-use, architectural and interior design problems.

In 2009, Hansen became accredited with the U.S. Green Building Council.

This is Hansen's fourth year as a judge in this program.

J. ERIC MOSS

Principal, Ayers/Saint/Gross

Baltimore, Md.

Eric Moss, a principal of Ayers/Saint/Gross, has established himself as a leader in the design of facilities for higher educational institutions across the nation, including West Texas A&M, Minnesota State University and the University of South Florida. Currently, he is a studio director and serves on his firm's board of directors. For more than 20 years he has led the design of college and university academic and student life facilities.

Current projects range from collaborating with fellow judge Randy Holmes on Radford University's College of Business and Economics to five new residence halls at the University of Virginia.

Moss has been working continuously with Emory University during the last four years to replace all of its on-campus, first-year housing with eight new residence halls. The first, Turman Hall, opened for the fall 2007 semester and achieved LEED Silver certification.
The second and third hall, which opened last fall, are themed for sustainability and are seeking LEED Gold certification. The fourth hall is under design and is targeting LEED Silver certification.

Moss completed a five-year term as an HRACRE judge several years ago. This is his second year serving in that capacity again.

H. Randolph Holmes Jr., AIA

Senior Principal and President, Glavé & Holmes Associates

Richmond

Randy Holmes is the president and senior principal at Glavé & Holmes Associates in Richmond. For more than 25 years, he has specialized in the design, renovation and adaptive reuse of historic buildings or projects in historic settings.

His expertise allows him to work on a number of project types including cultural
facilities, academic buildings, private residences and hospitality venues throughout Virginia and the Southeast. He has greatly influenced several prominent Virginia structures, including the William Smith Morton Library at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, the Winmill Carriage Museum at Morven Park in Leesburg, and buildings on the campuses of the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond and the Jamestown Settlement. His enduring designs have been credited to aspire from a contextual understanding that celebrates the human spirit.

An award-winning architect, Holmes has received recognition for many of his designs from several prominent sources, including Architectural Digest, the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects and American School & University.

Holmes completed a five-year term as an HRACRE judge several years ago. This is his first year serving in that capacity again.