PARTNERS | PRINCIPALS | VIRGINIA OFFICE

Geoffrey Doban, AIA, Partner

Mr. Doban directs the design and management of the firm's K-12 Educational Facilities. With more than eighteen years of experience, he is familiar with conventional, fast track, and accelerated schedule delivery methods. His significant experience in all phases of design, management, and construction has enabled him to successfully oversee a number of large and complex projects through all phases to completion. Professional activities include: Director, NYC Chapter, American Institute of Architects 1994-1995; Chairman of the NYC/AIA Housing Committee, 1991; Organized Transitional Housing Workshop "Towards Home", 1991; Member: NYC/AIA Housing Committee, 1989-1991; Coordinated Design of Affordable Housing Exhibit at Urban Center Gallery, 1989; Wrote Program for AIA/WIN Housing Charrette, 1990. Educational background includes A.B. Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri - 1982; Master of Architecture, Columbia University, New York - 1985; Recipient of Lowenfish Memorial Prize, Columbia University, New York - 1985.

Jordan Gruzen, FAIA, Partner

Mr. Gruzen completed his Bachelor of Architecture degree at MIT in 1957 followed by a Fulbright Fellowship to study in Italy. He earned his Master of Architecture degree at the University of Pennsylvania in 1961. During his 40-year career, Mr. Gruzen has been involved with the planning and design of countless educational, residential, justice, commercial, and mixed-use projects. Bolstered by his leadership, the firm has executed buildings, which have won more than 100 local and national awards. As Principal-in-Charge, he has led the design and management of over 10,000 units of market rate residential apartment projects in New York City alone. Mr. Gruzen is an active member of the Architectural League of New York, the National Trust for Historical Preservation and the Urban Land Institute, as well as numerous other associations. He has also served as the Chairman of the Housing Committee, New York City AIA. He is currently Chairman of the Plan Review Committee of New York NewVisions. He is a Design Fellow of the American Institute of Architects.

Darko Hreljanovic, AIA, Partner

Mr. Hreljanovic is a transportation designer with unprecedented transportation design experience as a result of his focused career commitment to this building type for well over twenty years. His design talent and skills have enabled him to quickly distill the critical components of a project, to develop alternatives that are creative and efficient in meeting the clients' objectives, and which have resulted in award winning solutions. He has been involved in some of the largest transportation projects in New York City, involving the design of significant rail, airport, and ferry service facilities. Mr. Hreljanovic is an advocate of sustainable design. His innovative design solutions address significant components of the building design, including the MEP work, the selection of materials, air quality, use of daylight and natural ventilation, as integral components of the design solution. His objectives are not only to preserve the natural environment and improve the passenger experience, but also to conserve the use of energy and reduce the cost of building maintenance and operations. Mr. Hreljanovic has worked for the majority of local public agencies, including the MTA, NYCT, LIRR, PANY&NJ, and the EDC, gaining valuable experience and a good working relationship with them. He received his Bachelor of Architecture from Cornell University and his Bachelor of Arts in Art History from Fordham University.

Cathy Jackson, AIA, Partner

Ms. Daskalakis is a senior planner with special expertise in the comprehensive master planning of educational, judicial, and government campuses. Ms. Daskalakis graduated from Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science & Art in 1989 with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. Over the last thirteen years she has worked on a broad range of projects including school and university buildings, courthouses, renovation projects, and campus improvement projects. Ms. Daskalakis brings physical planning, architectural, and project management skills to her work. She has managed multi-disciplinary planning teams and has provided clients with a wide range of services including feasibility studies, zoning studies, site evaluations, programming, and design guidelines. She is actively involved in the AIA-NY Chapter Justice Committee, the Society of College and University Planning (SCUP), and the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).

Scott Keller, AIA, Partner

Mr. Keller has more than 20 years of architectural design and planning experience at Gruzen Samton Architects, with concentrations in cultural and educational facilities. His most recent projects include the master plan for the Horace Mann School in Riverdale, NY, followed by the design of an award winning middle school building and a new arts/dining/music building. Mr. Keller also created a master plan for Westchester Community College in Valhalla and designed the Virginia Marx Childcare Center on that campus. Mr. Keller has designed three projects at Columbia University, including Lenfest Hall, which is currently in construction on a fast-track schedule. In addition, he was the Design Partner-in Charge for the recently completed Tribeca Pointe Residential tower project, adjacent to Stuyvesant High School, that has received five design awards, including National, State, and City awards from the American Institute of Architects.
In 1965, Mr. Keller received a Bachelor of Science degree from Hobart College; in 1970 he received a Master of Architecture degree from Columbia University, when he was awarded the William Kinne Graduate Fellowship. Mr. Keller is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the Municipal Arts Society, and he has also served as visiting architecture critic at the Pratt Institute.

Peter Samton, FAIA, Partner

Peter Samton received his Bachelor of Architecture degree at MIT in 1957 and was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to study in France. He has served as Partner-in-Charge for many of the firm's most important projects, shepherding them through difficult approval processes and maintaining them on schedule and on budget. He spearheads the firm's commitment to producing architectural projects that contribute to urban life in a way that reinforces and reflects the uniqueness of individual communities and their lifestyles. Mr. Samton has substantial experience working with both the private sector and government agencies on complex client teams. His leadership has brought numerous design and civic awards to his firm, including those given by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), The Municipal Art Society, and The City Club's Bard Awards. He is a Fellow of the AIA, was President of the New York Chapter/AIA and of the City Club of New York, served for three years on the AIA's National Jury of Fellows, as well as many local and national architectural juries. Mr. Samton is a founder and director of Architects, Designers & Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR), and a trustee of the City Club of New York.

William Singer, AIA, LEED-AP, Partner

Mr. Singer's broad knowledge and experience designing, restoring, and building courthouses has contributed to the design and construction administration of many of Gruzen Samton's most challenging court projects, including the modernization of the Emanuel Celler U.S. Courthouse, Brooklyn, NY and the Queens Family Courthouse and City Agency Facility, Queens, NY. Mr. Singer is currently managing several major design projects: the Rehabilitation of the 71\ Continental Avenue and Union Turnpike Stations, Queens Boulevard Line for NYCT, Queensboro Public Library Corona Branch, and El Museo de Barrio.

Mr. Singer is a member of the American Institute of Architects, the Architectural League of New York and the New York City Municipal Arts Society. He is a graduate of Duke University and he holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and English, as well as a Master of Architecture from the School of Design at North Carolina State University, and a Master of Arts in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He was also awarded a Senior Fulbright Research Scholarship in Ljubljana, Republic of Slovenia.

Susan Wright, AIA, Partner

Susan Wright specializes in the design and management of multifamily residential projects at Gruzen Samton. With over 18 years of experience, Ms. Wright manages a range of architectural, planning and interiors projects, including a numerous developments primarily composed of affordable housing.

Ms. Wright's experience designing new multifamily units and renovating existing structures includes Touro College, NY, NY, Community Assisted Tenant Controlled Housing Inc., Central Harlem, Highbridge and Bradhurst, NY, Amsterdam Covent Realty, NY, NY and Urban Homestead Assistance Board, West Harlem, NY.

Ms. Wright sits on the boards of AIA/NY, including the Housing Task Force, Housing Committee and Boston Chapter's Women in Architecture and is a member of Mayor Bloomberg's IBC Model Code Residential Code Committee, NYS Association for Affordable Housing, and the AIA/NY Nominating Committee. She has a Bachelor of Environmental Design from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Masters of Architecture from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a Fulbright Scholar.