2025 AIA Tennessee Design Awards

Jury Comments: A model for infrastructure as civic amenity, this water reclamation facility was celebrated for its contextual design that blends vernacular brick and gabled forms with modern industrial materials. Jurors appreciated the project’s transparency both literally and figuratively in revealing typically hidden infrastructure elements. Public spaces like parks, dog runs, and transit stops further underscore the project’s community value and potential for national emulation.

Jury Comments: What appears simple in plan—a two-bar building with a modest gabled and shed roof design—becomes unexpectedly rich and playful in execution. Through smart use of color, light, murals, and furniture, the school creates a child-friendly, almost origami-like spatial experience. The jury admired how modest architectural moves, likely achieved on a tight budget, resulted in a joyful, imaginative learning environment enjoyed by both children and adults.

Jury Comments: This refined urban housing development offers a dynamic mix of public and private uses rooted in the site’s industrial past. The jury admired its clarity—retail and gathering spaces at street level, residences above as well as the elegant use of materiality, texture, and color. Landscape elements, significant and striking public art, and articulated trellises create an inviting street presence. Jurors noted that this project is the kind of project that creates a positive effect beyond the boundaries of its site.

Jury Comments: A disused car wash becomes a dynamic food hall in this inventive adaptive reuse project. The jury praised the design’s role in fostering local entrepreneurship by providing shared kitchen infrastructure—an asset often out of reach for emerging chefs. The transformation of the former parking lot into a shared, courtyard-style dining space was also lauded. Jurors admired the 100-foot streetside banquette and repurposed materials from the original car wash, calling it a well-executed and highly desirable neighborhood asset.

Jury Comments: This small interior project maximizes a narrow, irregular plan through rich material choices and spatial efficiency. Jurors praised the integration of existing concrete columns with a soft, curated color palette of pale greens, lilacs, and natural wood tones. Heavy drapery and curved wood detailing create a welcoming and serene environment. Despite its compact footprint, the space feels comfortable, inviting, and well-planned for a modern creative workspace.

Jury Comments: This adaptive reuse project brings new life to a mid-rise downtown Memphis building by converting it into a mixed-use hub of apartments, offices, and social spaces. The jury praised the balanced integration of restored historical elements with elevated contemporary interventions. Before-and-after imagery highlighted a dramatic transformation that honors the past while inviting future vitality into the urban core. A model for downtown rejuvenation.

Jury Comments: Transforming a 200,000-square-foot department store into a vibrant campus for over 1,200 students, this project overcame significant spatial and lighting challenges. The jury applauded the creative introduction of daylight into the deep floorplate via carved courtyards and atria, as well as the lively, student-focused design. What once was an uninviting commercial structure now feels purpose-built for education, an impressive feat in both concept and execution.

Jury Comments: This renovation redefines the college’s campus edge with a graceful new entry that is both functional and symbolic. Jurors admired the elegant use of weathering steel, which offers a rich contrast to the existing precast concrete structure. A new trellis system brings shadow play, solar screening, and spatial definition to the entry plaza, while steel detailing was described as particularly sophisticated. The result is a modern, inviting threshold that respects its context while adding architectural clarity and human scale.

Jury Comments: This Jewish worship space is modest in budget yet rich in meaning. The jury highlighted its clarity, restraint, and symbolic use of materials, particularly the black-and-white palette rooted in Judaic tradition. Smart massing, generous daylighting, and thoughtful material transitions make for a spiritual, functional space that feels grounded and welcoming.

Jury Comments: A series of three minimalist park pavilions thoughtfully inserted into the Knoxville landscape. Jurors applauded the low-profile structures for their quiet elegance, sensitive siting, and careful detailing. The use of a limited material palette and subtle textures reflects a deep understanding of budget and context. The result is a set of structures that enhance usability and harmonize beautifully with the natural environment.

Jury Comments: A new public library that blends homage to mid-century architecture with modern sensibilities. The project creatively uses site grade to lift the form above parking, celebrating utility as part of the design. Jurors admired the use of patterning and glazing to filter daylight, and noted the cohesive façade design that responds to sun exposure while protecting sensitive library functions. The result is a thoughtful, context-aware civic building.

Jury Comments: A thoughtful blend of biophilic design and technical rigor, this healthcare project stood out for its subtle aesthetic and environmental leadership. Interior and exterior spaces were seamlessly integrated through healing gardens, calming color palettes, and art, while sustainability measures included preserving heritage trees and raising the site to address 1000-year floodplain challenges. The jury commended the project’s ability to exceed code, demonstrating foresight and resilience amid climate uncertainties.

Jury Comments: Behind a restrained vernacular exterior lies a beautifully modern interior that showcases exposed mass timber. The jury applauded the warm, timeless quality of the wood structure and the effort it must have taken to guide the client through the challenges of mass timber design, including regulatory, fire, and cost hurdles. The contrast between the traditional exterior and the contemporary interior was particularly compelling, resulting in a space that feels both grounded and elevated.