We are PBDW Architects and we have been building on history for the last 60 years.
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1965
Charles Platt founds Smotrich & Platt, Architects and Planners
1968
Exodus House wins an AIA National Honor Award
1970
The Parker House wins an Architectural Record award and is exhibited at the World's Fair in Osaka
1975
The acclaimed multi-family apartment project in Haverstraw, NY, wins awards
1979
Sam White completes his first house commission
1980
Smotrich & Platt completes the 49th Precinct Building in the Bronx
1980
Charles Platt renovates Gracie Mansion (the home of New York City's mayor)
1980
Charles Platt founds Charles A. Platt Partners
1981
Sam White co-founds Buttrick White and Burtis
1982
Sam White starts work with Marymount, which continues for the next three decades
1985
Ray Dovell joins Charles A. Platt Partners
1985
Sam White begins a thirty-five year collaboration with Saint David's School
1987
BWB completes its first of 30 projects for Tower Records
1987
1150 5th Avenue, the Partnership's first contemporary addition to a landmarked building
1988
Charles Platt designs the Visitor's Center at the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Park in New Hampshire
1989
Paul Byard joins Charles Platt to form Platt & Byard
Byard begins his presidency at the Archtectural League
1989
Sam White connects the two buildings of the Chapin School to create a cohesive whole
1990
Ray Dovell joins the partnership to form Platt Byard Dovell (PBD)
1990
BWB begins work with Fordham University culminating in several projects over the coming years
1990
PBD's first new building in an historic district is approved in 15 minutes by the NYC Landmarks Preservation Committee
1990
PBD begins design work on the Baryshnikov guest house
1992
Anne Holford-Smith joins PBD
1993
BWB begins work with the Central Park Conservancy, including the new Charles A. Dana Discovery Center, the Ballplayers Refreshment Stand, and the renovation of the Pulitzer Fountain
1995
BWB wins an AIA New York State Design Award and a New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Design Award for the Charles A. Dana Discovery Center in Central Park
1995
Sam White's design for a residence in Bridgehampton, New York (the first of 5 East End houses) is completed
1995
PBD’s restoration of the Gothic Revival Gate begins an ongoing, 30-year relationship with Green-Wood Cemetery
1996
BWB completes All Saints Church façade restoration and receives a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
1996
Sam White completes the transformation of Casa Italiana at Columbia University in collaboration with Italo Roto and the project receives a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
1997
PBD completes the Chanel Headquarters on West 57th Street
1998
The Houses of McKim, Mead, & White by Sam White is published, the first of 4 books on the firm
1998
The Architecture of Additions, by Paul Byard is published
1998
Jim Seger joins BWB
1999
PBD begins restorations at Flushing Town Hall, an arts center in Queens
2000
Matthew Mueller joins PBD
2000
PBD completes The New 42 and wins an AIA New York Chapter Design Award and an AIA National Honor Award
2000
Paul Byard becomes the Director of Historic Preservation at Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation
2001
Scott Duenow joins BWB
2001
Charles Platt, Paul Byard, Ray Dovell and Sam White merge PBD and BWB to form Platt Byard Dovell White Architects PBDW
2001
New building projects at Green-Wood begin: the Hillside Mausoleum, Tranquility Garden Columbarium, and Modern Chapel Addition
2001
The Cooper Union Foundation Building restoration is completed. It wins an AIA New York Chapter Design Award and Preservation League of New York State: Excellence in Historic Preservation Award
2002
The Equinox Greenwich Village flagship building is completed and starts PBDW's longstanding collaboration with Equinox
2003
The adaptive reuse of the William Goadby Lowe mansion into the Spence Lower School is completed and receives a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
2004
The Saginaw Art Museum is completed. It wins an American Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum, an AIA Michigan Chapter Design Award and an AIA New York Chapter Design Award
2005
PBDW's decades-long relationship with The New York Historical begins
2006
The Reece School, PBDW’s first foray into special needs educational facilities, is completed.
2007
PBDW's first project of many with the Park Avenue Armory begins an ongoing relationship
2007
The Upper West Side multi-family condo building, Broadway + 110 is completed
2007
PBDW publishes Architecture on Architecture
2009
Poly Prep's addition and renovation, the first project to be certified under LEED for Schools in NYC, receives a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
2010
LearningSpring School is built and wins an AIA/CAE Educational Facility Design Award and an AIA New York Chapter Committee on the Environment (COTE) Award Honorable Mention
2011
The New York Historical's first-floor entry and galleries are completed and win an AIA New York Chapter Design Award
2012
Various renovations of Marymount School are completed after years of collaboration and wins a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
2013
Jim Seger and Scott Duenow are named Partners
2014
Renovations are completed for the Educational Alliance, a non-profit on the Lower East Side
2014
The Green-Wood Ft. Hamilton Gatehouse is honored with a Lucy G. Moses Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
2017
In 2017, the Paul S. Byard Memorial Lecture Program at the Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation is started in his honor
2017
The Park Avenue Armory Veterans Room restoration receives numerous preservation awards including a Palladio Award from Traditional Building Magazine and an Interior Restoration Award from Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts, among others
2017
Anne Holford-Smith is named Partner
2018
The new Aquatic Center and renovated Zambetti Athletic Center are completed at Riverdale Country School
2018
Renovations at Saint David’s School culminate with the completion of a major expansion and consolidation of their multi-building campus after a three-decade collaboration
2018
The exterior restoration of 462 Broadway is completed and wins several awards, including a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy and MASterworks Award for Best Restoration from the Municipal Art Society
2019
Williams College Fellows Hall, a Net Zero Energy residence hall, is built and wins a Green GOOD DESIGN Award and an American Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum
2019
The Moise Safra Center is completed and wins an American Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum and The Plan Award
2019
20 Times Square is completed, and the EDITION Hotel opens
2020
Matthew Mueller is named Partner.
2020
Cooke School and Institute is completed and wins an American Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum
2021
PBDW receives the Preservation League of New York State: 2021 Pillar of New York State Award
2021
The full renovation of the historic Park Lane Hotel is finished
2022
Powerhouse Arts is completed and goes on to win numerous awards and recognition including an American Architecture Award from The Chicago Athenaeum and an AIA New York State Design Honor Award
2023
Leonard Leung is named Partner
2024
Not-for-Profit Media Headquarters, a full broadcast operations center, is completed
2024
The lifting and restoration of the Palace Theatre at TSX Broadway is completed, and receives an AIA New York Chapter Design Award Citation for Innovation in Preservation and a Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy
2024
The Fifth Avenue Hotel opens to the public
2024
Residential units in the Dovecote, a boutique Passive House multi-family building in Harlem, go on the market
2025
Belden House & Mews, a restoration and adaptive reuse of a historic Connecticut property into a destination hotel, opens
2025 IN-PROGRESS
The New York Athletic Club guestroom and amenity renovations
2025 IN-PROGRESS
Transformation of Marcel Breuer’s Whitney Museum into an auction house and restaurant for Sotheby’s
2025 IN-PROGRESS
The New York Athletic Club Solarium improved access and interior renovation
2025 IN-PROGRESS
Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School master planning and phased renovations
2025 IN-PROGRESS
Hastings-on-Hudson School District continues work on Farragut Middle and High School master planning, following the completion of the Hillside Elementary School
2025 IN-PROGRESS
Regis High School master planning and phased renovations
