2024 Recognition Award WInners

• 

  Gold Medal / Dorian Moore, FAIA

  Vice President | Archive DS

  With over 35 years of experience as an urbanist architect, educator, and entrepreneur, Dorian Moore, FAIA, is dedicated to improving cities through investigation, documentation, and implementation. His expertise spans architecture, planning, and urban design on an international scale, having travelled to and documented urban conditions in more than 400 cities globally. As Vice President of Archive DS, Dorian has played a pivotal role in shaping the built environment through innovative design and strategic city planning with projects in both the US and Canada.
  
  Dorian's academic journey in architecture began at the University of Michigan, followed by the Technische Universität in Vienna. Early in his career, he gained valuable experience through internships with local firms Sims Varner Associates and Smith Hinchman and Grylls, eventually becoming a partner at Archive DS in 1995.
  
  He has taught at numerous universities, including the University of Windsor, University of Detroit Mercy, Lawrence Technological University, and Wayne State University, focusing on urban environment.
  
  Dorian is an Affiliate Member and professional advisor to the University of Windsor’s Center 4 Cities and a Fellow of the Canadian Urban Institute, and as a civic leader, has also been a member of multiple municipal and arts boards.
  
  He is also a retail entrepreneur with the Pure Detroit brand.
  
  Dorian's passion for city building is driven by his extensive travels and firsthand study of urban environments around the world. His mission is to create environments that offer long-lasting value and appeal, contributing to the sustainable and strategic revitalization of urban areas.
• 

  Charles Blessing Award / Gregory Moots

  Lead Planner of Design and Development Innovation | Detroit Planning and Development Department

  Gregory Moots has been the lead planner with the Planning and Development Department’s (PDD) Office of Design and Development Innovation for eight years, where he leads PDD’s zoning activities. These include both supervising staff who perform and personally performing reviews for other City agencies and leading zoning ordinance amendments. He previously was a planner with the City Planning Commission (CPC) for 20 years and a business analyst with the Assessor’s Office for one year, totaling almost 30 years with the City of Detroit. Mr. Moots is a graduate of Michigan State University, earning a B.A. degree with dual majors in Political Economy and Economics, and of the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, where he graduated with honors with a Masters degree in Urban Planning. Two of Mr. Moots’ accomplishments are the development of several new zoning districts, including two new mixed-use zoning districts, while with the CPC, and the recent creation and implementation of MKT zoning in Eastern Market. Mr. Moots led these expansive, multi-year efforts while working with many internal and external stakeholders.
  
  Mr. Moots always seeks to improve City processes and is never satisfied with “That’s that way that it's always been done.”. His goal is to make processes and regulations equitable, efficient, and understandable to all users. Zoning is a tool he specializes in that, when used properly, guides development and incentivizes the types of development that are needed in a specific area and disincentivizes or prohibits what is not appropriate.
  
  Mr. Moots has been married for 29 years, has two adult children, and lives in Detroit. He enjoys reading, going to concerts, bike riding, and blacksmithing. He and his wife are involved in their church and especially work with the married and new member ministries in Detroit and their sister church in Lansing.
• 

  Young Architect Award / Brian Moore, AIA, LEED Green Associate

  Architect & Senior Designer | ROSSETTI

  Brian Moore, AIA, LEED Green Associate is a Detroit architect leading nationwide medium-to-large scale sports and hospitality projects as a senior designer at ROSSETTI, with a previous background in mixed-use, multi-family residential, and adaptive reuse projects over his ten years of experience. Brian is also the founder of Curios Design, a freelance architecture firm focused on local restaurant and retail projects for grassroots clients in the Detroit area. In addition to the practice of architecture, Brian is the creator, producer, and co-host of the Forming Function Podcast, a narrative educational podcast that promotes the role and impact of design in everyday life with approachable and humorous storytelling.
  
  Brian holds a Master of Architecture from the University of Detroit Mercy. He is an active member of AIA Detroit, currently leading and coordinating the building tours program. He is currently the chairperson of the Michigan and Church Corktown Neighborhood Advisory Council. And has been a featured artist at Grand Rapids ArtPrize and a featured designer on multiple occasions for the Detroit Month of Design Festival.
• 

  Associate Member Award / Andrea Marquez, Associate AIA, WELL AP

  Architectural Designer | Albert Kahn Associates, Inc.

  Andrea Marquez is an associate and architectural design professional at Albert Kahn Associates, Inc. She gained a unique perspective as a minority student, navigating the academic landscape as a first-generation American and becoming the first in her family to graduate from college. After she graduated with her M.Arch from the University of Michigan in 2020, she dedicated herself to volunteer opportunities that leveraged participatory design approaches. Through AmeriCorps, she was introduced to a nonprofit community developer, Communities First, Inc., where her passion for health and equity thrived. Her commitment to these principles led her to become actively involved in her local chapter, AIA Detroit. She served on the Board as an Associate Director for two years, and in 2024, reactivated the Emerging Professionals Committee as Chair. Currently, she is pursuing licensure and is committed to projects that foster wellness, resilience, and happiness.
• 

  Associate Member Award / Allyza Danica Valino, Associate AIA

  Associate Designer | Fielding International

  Allyza Danica Valino is a young designer focused on creating spaces that promote social change. Having graduated from Lawrence Technological University in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture, and in 2024 with a Master of Architecture, she aims to progress her career through community-based engagement and design impact. During her undergraduate degree, she discovered her passion for urban design and architecture, learning that her skills as a designer could be used to benefit surrounding communities. She was able to serve as a teaching assistant for several classes and led her school’s AIAS chapter as the Freedom by Design Director in 2020-2021, and as Vice President in 2021-2022. When pursuing her master's, Allyza was admitted into the Integrated Path to Licensure (IPAL) program, where she was able to complete four exams while taking courses at LTU - one of which being her architectural thesis, where she focused on the effects of gentrification and displacement, and how the profession of architecture can alleviate the pressures of revitalization on underrepresented communities. Learn more about Allyza’s thesis here.
  
  In the summer of 2023, Allyza was fortunate to volunteer in the design and construction of the Penguin Learn and Play Centre in Port Elizabeth, South Africa through the International Design Clinic (IDC), a non-profit organization focused on providing well-needed design services to underserved communities all over the world. Shortly after her volunteer work, she was appointed to the IDC’s board of directors in March of 2024, where she currently provides insight as a designer and previous volunteer.
  
  Since 2022, Allyza has worked as a full-time associate designer at Fielding International, a global architectural and educational design firm specializing in school designs that encourage holistic teaching and learning pedagogies, involving efforts that actively engage school staff, students, and community members to provide local and specialized expertise to the design process. Allyza’s work at Fielding International has allowed her to connect to students, educators, and families locally in Michigan and all over the world.
  
  Her upbringing as a Filipino-American has greatly shaped her interests as an architectural designer. Coming from a culture of selflessness, unity and understanding, she has brought Filipino values to her practice, which has flourished in her socially inclusive and holistic work. As a young woman of color with a passion for social change and equity, Allyza intends to impact and diversify the field of architecture and beyond by empowering others with agency and design.
• 

  Honorary Allied Member Award / Neil Barclay

  President, CEO | The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History

  In January 2019, Neil A. Barclay was appointed President and CEO of the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Formerly an attorney, he previously served as President and CEO of the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans, where he increased the budget by over 40%. Neil also worked as associate director of the Performing Arts Center at the University of Texas at Austin and was the founding president and CEO of Pittsburgh’s August Wilson Center. He played a key role in the renovation planning for Los Angeles' Vision Theater. A respected figure in contemporary arts, Barclay served on the Board of Directors of the Association of Arts Professionals for nine years, including four as Vice President, and currently chairs the board of South Arts. Since 2018, he has been a member of the College of Communications and Fine Arts Advisory Board for Loyola Marymount University, his alma mater.
• 

  Honorary Allied Member Award / Jeffrey Anderson

  Executive VP, COO | The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History

  Jeffrey J. Anderson has a robust background in operations management across art, health, education, cultural, and human services sectors. As the Executive Vice President and COO at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, he leads strategic planning and large-scale projects, including COVID-19 protocol development and major renovations. Jeffrey's role as Executive VP and COO at Hill House Association & Economic Development Corp., optimized resource allocation, ensured culturally sensitive program execution, and collaborated on fundraising strategies. His time at the August Wilson Center included managing complex construction projects and developing comprehensive HR systems.
  
  Jeffrey holds an MBA from the University of Pittsburgh and a BA from LaRoche College. He is recognized as one of Allegheny County’s 50 Men of Excellence and has a Leadership & Management Certification from the University of Pittsburgh's Katz School of Business.