Background

With my experience in hotels, restaurants, and residences, I constantly seek ways to enhance comfort, livability, and visual inspiration. My experience also includes retail, commercial office, higher education, K-12, industrial, and government projects. Through my three plus decades of architecture, I’ve managed projects and people in firms, spent five years in a primary role for a developer, and helmed my own practice for more than a decade. Wanting to emphasize the overall positive effect of space on people, I have also included interior furnishings and landscape planting selection as ways to further the impact of my work. Having grown up and practiced in the Pacific Northwest prior relocating to Southern California a decade ago, I naturally think about outdoor connections and emphasis on surrounding environments when designing spaces.

Job experience

• January 2008 - present
  Principal
  David Kennedy Architect
  

  Los Angeles, CA, USA

  During my private practice, I completed a variety of projects including hotel renovations, office and retail improvements, new and renovated federal utility support facilities and residential structures/landscape/furnishings. Having spent a decade practicing in Southern California, I'm very familiar with California codes and local jurisdictions including the City of Los Angeles and LA County. Also, during this time period, my firm held several multi-year, open end contracts with government agencies including the US Department of Energy. I've maintained a small office with employees as support.

• December 2003 - January 2008
  Project Manager
  Provenance Hotels
  

  Portland, OR, USA

  For five years, I worked directly for a hotel owner and operator as the company’s project manager and architect for hotel renovations. During this period the company expanded significantly from having one independently branded property to five. My work included developing and managing the budgets for the entire renovation and rebranding process. Design work included lighting, furnishings, integration of curated art collections and development of brand identity.

• December 2002 - December 2003
  Architect
  DLR Group
  

  Portland, OR, USA

  While working at the Portland office of this large A&E firm, I was able to complete a number of public school and other government agency projects. The largest of these was the conversion of a 100,000 sq ft industrial R&D building into the State of Oregon’s new forensic laboratories and medical examiner’s facility for which I was architect-of-record. Because of the project complexity, a complete redesign was needed to meet the state’s budget goals. Despite this the project was hugely successful.

• May 1990 - October 2002
  Associate Principal
  Soderstrom Architects
  

  Portland, OR, USA

  While being an associate principal at this mid-size Portland firm, I completed many higher education, retail, public school, government utility and retirement housing projects.

Education

• University of Oregon
  Bachelor of Architecture
  

  1982 - 1987

• California Registered Architect
  California Architects Board
  C36849
  

  January 2018 - present
• Washington Registered Architect
  Washington State Department of Licensing
  8723
  

  October 2004 - February 2026
• NCARB Certification
  National Council of Architectural Registration Boards
  46316
  

  June 1995 - May 2026
• Oregon Registered Architect
  Oregon State Board of Architect Examiners
  3517
  

  September 1994 - December 2025
• LEED AP Building Design + Construction
  US Green Building Council
  10242911-AP-BD+C
  

  June 2011 - October 2025
• American Institute of Architects Member
  The American Institute of Architects
  30512032
  

  October 2008 - December 2025