DULUTH, Min.—DSGW Architects has expanded its staff, adding three professionals to its Duluth office and one to its Virginia office.
Jarrid Houston is a specification writer and cost estimator based in Duluth and writing specifications for projects managed there as well as at DSGW’s offices in Virginia, Grand Rapids and Lake Elmo. With his background and education in construction management, Houston also will assist with the construction administration process.
He has more than a decade of construction management and labor experience and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Construction Management from Bemidji State University.
“I was raised in a family of construction workers, and I love building and creating,” Houston said. “My position at DSGW is unique because I get to be involved in many projects, with an opportunity to play a role in lots of the work we do.”
Matt Smith joins the firm as an architecture intern. He is a 2013 graduate of North Dakota State University with a Master’s Degree in Architecture. He also holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Environmental Design from NDSU.
Smith is working on the Y Store retail project on the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa reservation near Tower and also a drug and alcohol treatment center project in Virginia. He is based in the Virginia office.
“I like the creative and problem-solving aspects of architecture,” Smith said. “My goal is to create environments that have a positive effect on the people who occupy our buildings.”
Peter Stauduhar has been hired as an architecture intern. He graduated in 2013 with a Master’s Degree in Architecture from the University of Minnesota and also holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Physics from Gustavus Adolphus College.
Stauduhar is from Duluth and wanted to work in his hometown after college. He is currently involved in a project that will transform the former Lincoln Park School in Duluth into apartments.
“I especially like adaptive reuse architecture,” Stauduhar said. “Interesting possibilities come from taking a space designed for one purpose and making it useful for an entirely different purpose.”
Jacob Zikmund also joins DSGW as an architecture intern. He graduated in 2012 from North Dakota State University with a Master’s Degree in Architecture and also holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Environmental Design from NDSU.
Zikmund has two years of experience in the industry, having worked as a designer and an architectural project manager at firms in North Dakota and Colorado. He moved to Duluth from Denver to accept the position at DSGW. He is working on a project to renovate and expand the Itasca County Family YMCA in Grand Rapids.
“I love being able to create something in my mind and then working to make it real,” Zikmund said. “That is why I chose architecture for my career.”
“We’re pleased to have such a strong group of young professionals joining DSGW at a time of growth and opportunity for us and our clients,” said John Scott, the firm’s CEO. “Our new employees reflect the high skills and values that our clients have come to expect from DSGW. We welcome them to our team.”