AIA North Carolina announced the winners of its 2002 Design Awards competition at the chapter's annual Design Awards Banquet in Asheville, N.C., August 24. A record 14 winning projects were selected from a field of 109 entries submitted by AIA members in North Carolina.

The 2002 Awards Jury reviewed all entries and made its selections in a July meeting in Phildelphia. Serving on the jury were Bernard J. Cywinski, FAIA, Bohlin Cywinski Jackson; Daniela Holt Voith, AIA, Voith & MacTavish Architects; and James Winkler, AIA, Converse Winkler Architecture, all principal partners in Philadelphia firms.

Following are the award winners with jury comments.

Honor Awards

• Fletcher Opera Theater and Meymandi Concert Hall, BTI Center for the Performing Arts by Pearce Brinkley Cease + Lee, PA, Raleigh.
The jury initially received two submissions on this project: new wing additions to an existing auditorium. While these two additions were completed on different dates, the jury felt that the project needed to be judged as a single offering. There's a sophisticated balancing of masses, with beautifully integrated elements of old and new. The additions have a well-balanced and symmetrical composition. The height of the buildings was well-resolved with controlled massing. Overall, the projects were well-detailed, and the use of authentic materials created people-friendly environments. The drawings are comprehensive and totally complete to explain the project. A thoroughly professional job.

• Outdoor Classroom by Frank Harmon, Architect, Raleigh.
There is beautiful detail here. The project's siting and soft landing on the landscape are extraordinary. Visiting here would be a pleasure of the senses. What better way to teach than to inhabit this space. The elevation off the ground lends a wonderful quality. This is elegance on a stringent budget—neat, cleanly done, and environmentally friendly.

• Hayes Cucchiara Residence by Dixon Weinstein Architects, Chapel Hill.
We like the clarity of this project's parti; its restraint and simplicity. There's an almost Zen-like serenity of the regional vernacular forms. The initial rigidity falls away when you see how the connections work together. The detailing is wonderful as you go from open to closed in an episodic way.

• Plush by Kenneth Hobgood Architects, Raleigh.
We were taken by the restraint in this project. It has a clear, straightforward plan and an exciting yet calm environment. It's very sophisticated and clean. The recessed lights help to showcase the displays. A very "plush" project. The drawings are beautifully executed.

• Lord Corporation World Headquarters by The Freelon Group, Durham.
Care has been taken with the landscape and relationship to the building. There is a simple clarity of plan here, with very fine detailing and resolution. The whole plan was just beautiful.

• Scott + Stringfellow Office Fitup by Gomes + Staub PLLC, Raleigh.
A very elegant composition and a sophisticated space. We're impressed by the overall restraint of the project and the presentation given a limited budget. Beautiful drawings and photos. The jury was surprised and pleased by the black-and-white photo presentation. The detailing of the project was consistent throughout.

• Helios Coffee/Carson Medlin Building by Clearscapes, PA, Raleigh.
The architects used a mundane and pedestrian building and turned it into something inviting. The lighting is informed and thoughtful. We applaud the before and after pictures in the project submission. The drawings were great—consistent with the design result.

Merit Awards

• Biltmore Estate Winery Addition by Little & Associates Architects, Charlotte.
This project was seamless. It was resolved within the vocabulary of the historic building and done tastefully with a nod to the original architect, Richard Morris Hunt. The display space is very clear and the whole project is simply detailed. The submission was a testament to the power of architectural drawings.

• RDU Entrance Markers by Pearce Brinkley Cease + Lee, PA, Raleigh.
There is a real spirit to this project. The architects obviously are very deft with the handling and use of graphics. The sign is eminently legible and has substance. It speaks of the modernity that the airport thrives on. A sign you can find. It has a magical quality. The lighting is very successful. The fact that it is not a building holds a special place in our hearts. The consistency of the presentation matches the elegance with which the project is carried out.

• McColl Center for Visual Arts FMK Architects, Charlotte.
The project gains strength from the building envelope and the insertion of new activity within the skeleton. The way the old meets the new is very clear. The clerestory windows are a stroke of ingenuity. We appreciate the nitty-gritty of the creative process here. It looks like a dreamy place to work. The project allows for the historic building to once again give back to the community.

• The Honeymoon Cottage by Vincent Petrarca, Raleigh.
This project tugged at the jury's romantic sensibilities. We liked the siting and verticality set within the treed environment. Very simple detailing and massing. It's nice to see someone who has a great eye at the beginning of their career. The project almost has a Scandinavian and transcendent quality. There's a great deal of comprehensive geometry here, which did not become overdone. The jury is overall taken by great simplicity—less really is more.

• The Sourwood Inn by Samsel Architects, PA, Asheville.
We were taken with the color and tactility of the wall. A thoroughly appropriate response to topography where the building wraps the hill. It looks like a wonderful place to spend some time. The stylistic interpretation is appropriate for the area. The architects could have taken a Disneyland approach but instead chose to be very honest and non-ironic. The whole project works quite beautifully.

• United Church of Chapel Hill by Cherry Huffman Architects, Raleigh.
We appreciate the cleanliness and warmth that the materials are given. The way light comes into the sanctuary is beautiful. There is a simple pallet of materials that is comforting. This may be an example of traditional Modernism—if there is such a thing. Spirited elements within the window elevations animate the project. The planes that constitute the space, capture and add a generous amount of light. There is a sculptural quality to the brick walls. The fellowship hall is quite nice. The plan parti is again very clear.

• The Hill Center by The Freelon Group, Durham.
The massing was striking and the simplicity of geometry and materials worked well. The project is spatially rich because of the roof and its simplicity. The jury was taken with the linkage of discrete masses along a spine, which dealt with event and connection. The project creates a domestic scale in an institutional building. A wonderful place to learn and it would be good with or without the tower.

Copyright 2002 The American Institute of Architects. All rights reserved.