Edward A. Feiner, FAIA, whose 35-year federal career includes serving for the past nine as chief architect of the General Services Administration Public Buildings Service (GSA PBS), retires from that post January 31. Effective February 1, Feiner—well-known among his AIA colleagues for his exuberant defense of design excellence, as well as his signature Western boots—will take on a new position in the private sector as director of office operations for the Washington, D.C., office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

“Ed has been a passionate and effective advocate for design excellence in the public realm,” said GSA PBS Commissioner F. Joseph Moravec. “His commitment to the proposition that our public buildings should reflect America’s highest ideals has helped GSA become one of the nation’s premier patrons of architecture.”

“Ed Feiner has done an excellent job of raising the bar on architecture in the public realm,” agreed AIA President Douglas L Steidl, FAIA.

Still with an eye to the future
“The decision to retire from federal service was very difficult since there is so much more to do to foster a more positive relationship between the American people and our government,” Feiner says. “Architecture and design play important roles in quality of life issues and truly affect how we live, work, play, and conduct ourselves as part of a democratic community. Giving physical form and communicating, through architecture, the values, hopes, and aspirations of our society is the ‘legacy’ of great public buildings.

“Everything is about timing. Periodically it is important to change leadership so that new people can innovate, expand, and give new life to important efforts. I felt that the current political and career leadership of GSA, as strong advocates, would ensure the continuation and expansion of the Design and Construction Excellence Programs. As Bob Peck and others helped get this program started, Joe Moravec and Steve Perry have helped it flourish.

“It was also time for me to try something new in my own career. By joining the internationally renowned architectural practice of SOM, I felt that my ‘canvas’ could be expanded well beyond the limits of federal construction. I see my participation in architectural practice as another opportunity to help more clearly establish our profession’s leadership role in providing a creative and responsible ‘vision’ for a fantastic future for ourselves and our children.

“So, in the end, it was the right time to make a move. I am confident that GSA’s leadership role in quality public architecture will endure and I hope that I will continue to contribute in a positive way to the profession that I love.”

Feiner is a 1995 recipient of the AIA Thomas Jefferson Award for Public Architecture. A graduate of New York City’s Cooper Union and the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., he has received countless other professional honors, including the 1997 Cooper Union Presidential Award for Advancement of American Architecture and the 2003 National Design Award from the Cooper-Hewitt Design Museum for his achievements with the GSA Design Excellence Program. In 2004, he was the first recipient of the Society for Marketing Professional Services Client of the Year award.

The American Architectural Foundation honored GSA PBS with the 2004 Keystone Award, recognizing its remarkable contribution to design that enhances the quality of life and community identity and making particular note of its Construction and Design Excellence programs. Feiner was instrumental in creation of those programs, which strive to bring landmark status back to federal buildings across the country, most notably courthouses, and help bring communities closer together by acting as civic centers. Among the many examples of the Design Excellence program’s success are the Sandra Day O’Connor Federal Courthouse in Phoenix, by Richard Meier & Partners with Langdon Wilson Architects, and the environmentally sensitive design for the San Francisco Federal Building by Morphosis. Feiner has commissioned with other such notable architects as Ross Barney-Jankowski, Pei Cobb Freed, Michael Graves, Charles Gwathmey, Cesar Pelli, Antoine Predock, and Moshe Safdie.

GSA PBS has begun a national search for a new chief architect who will continue GSA’s commitment to design and construction excellence and best value for the American taxpayer, Moravec says. “We will bring the best talent we can to GSA to continue the strong work that has become the hallmark of our Design Excellence program,” he says. “We have created a state-of-the-art federal program at GSA and are determined to stay at the head of the pack.”

New direction, same values at SOM
In his new role at SOM, Feiner will oversee the operations of the firm’s Washington, D.C., office and work on large-scale projects. With his experience in upholding the design standards and overseeing project delivery for the GSA Design and Construction Program, which currently has more than $12 billion of work in progress in all 50 states, Feiner’s experience is an excellent fit for SOM, says Gary Haney, AIA, SOM partner-in-charge of the Washington, D.C. office. “His priorities are consistent with the values of SOM. We asked him to join us when we heard he was planning to retire from government service,” Haney says.

“After 30 years of working in the public sector, I am very excited to work for such a distinguished firm,” Feiner says. “I could not imagine a better opportunity—I will be working with some of the leading designers in the nation, if not the world.”

To avoid conflicts of interest, Feiner will not be responsible for marketing to the GSA, given the prominence of his role there, an SOM release clarifies.

—Douglas E. Gordon, Hon. AIA

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