Mickey Jacob, managing principal with
Urban Studio Architects in Tampa, Fla., will become president of the American Institute of Architects in 2013. In that role, he'll have an opportunity to set priorities for the AIA, increase its influence in Congress and elsewhere, and push architects, as he says, to "get politically involved."
Jacob sat down with Diane Egner, Publisher and Managing Editor of our sister publication in Tampa,
83 Degrees, to discuss his new role with AIA and the role of architects in creating livable cities.
83D: We're coming out of some tough economic times, when not a whole lot of building was going on. How would you describe the health of the architecture industry generally?MJ: From an intellectual stand, it's as healthy as ever. From a business point of view, we're hurting. There are parts of the country where unemployment among architects is 40 to 50 percent. Florida was hit particularly hard. Our firm (Urban Studio Architects) was hit particularly hard. We are positioned now where we can gain the tools and skill sets necessary to prepare for when the recession is over.
Right now we're preparing for a lost generation of architects, lost because of the loss of jobs and the fact that new architects aren't entering the field. We are finding from experience back in the '90s that 10 to 15 years from now there may not be enough architects to fill the need. We are struggling to compete with others in the design industry for new architects. In order to compete, we need to provide more mentoring and support for emerging professionals so they will stay in the profession and stay connected. That is one of our biggest challenges as an industry.
83D: What is the plan to overcome that challenge?MJ: We have to provide opportunities for emerging professionals to attain leadership positions and support their ability to do that. We need to create an environment within the industry in which activity and participation in the AIA becomes a lifelong habit. Emerging professionals are going to be part of driving what the profession of architects will become.
For instance, the advent of certain technologies is changing the practice of architecture in ways we couldn't envision. We are doing things now that five years ago we never could have thought to do. Take 3D imaging. Five years ago, we would have had to send a project out to an illustrator. Now we can knock it out in no time flat. Now, especially with the young talent we have, computer programs make us faster, quicker, more efficient. 3D is what the marketplace sees as architecture. The aesthetics of what they see is what people think of architecture. We're trying to explain the value of aesthetics in the context of design and from a financial perspective.
83D: In running for national office, you've visited lots of American cities. Where are the bright spots?MJ: Everywhere. We tend to look at big, glamorous projects that get the most notoriety, but good architecture is happening everywhere. Architects bring good architecture, good design to everything because it changes your life. One of our goals is to get people to understand sustainability beyond the environmental definition. For instance, Dr. Richard Jackson at UCLA, who served with me on the AIA national board and was second in command of the Center for Disease Control. His research revolves around how design affects your health. He's doing a documentary with PBS about this now that explains how a well-designed community can actually lower the incidence of childhood obesity. Everyone would be interested in sustainability if we can show how it affects their health. We know, too, that well-designed schools can increase test scores 10 to 15 percent. If you look at layout, colors, design and all that make students feel more comfortable to study -- now we're talking quality of life issues.
83D: Is that a hard sell?MJ: It's a hard sell only because the marketplace isn't demanding it. That's where our advocacy efforts come in. We need to get involved in our communities to talk about the importance of architecture and building communities.
83D: A young professional who works in construction was telling me about a project his firm is doing to build a new school. I asked him if it was being built to the latest sustainability standards and he said, no, because the school district uses plans for school construction that were conceived before sustainability became an issue. Why is that?MJ: He's talking about stock school plans. They've been used very successfully for a long time but stock plans don't always take into account our current needs in terms of education, technology, energy use. We as communities have to decide what is worth doing. How do we measure what's worth changing as an investment in the future of our country? How do we drive a political environment that will enhance our ability to change. That's where advocacy efforts come in. Architects have to get politically involved.
83D: Are there any architects in Congress?MJ: Only one since 1900, Dick Swett from New Hampshire. We had some success in the last election throughout the country. A couple of architects got elected to state houses. Florida has had only one architect in the Legislature: Charlie Clary of Destin.
83D: Why is it important that architects serve in public office?MJ: The biggest federal advocacy issue right now is that the Small Business Administration wants to raise the maximum requirement used to define a small business. The SBA want to raise the threshold definition of a small business from annual revenues of $4.5 million to $19 million. Even at $4.5 million, 90 percent of architects qualify as small businesses. But if you raise that to $19 million, even the big firms would be eligible for small business set-asides. It would make it much more difficult for a truly small business to compete. The whole point of SBA set-asides is to have small businesses get federal projects.
83D: How do you explain to non-architects the importance of architecture in creating livable cities?MJ: We're now looking at design being responsive to specific needs, more so than being stylistic. Good design can be the simplest of things. Good design is making walkable communities. If you walk into a building and feel good, you feel comfortable, that's good design. If you sit in a space and feel energized and happy, that's good design. If as you're walking down the street you have to hug the building to feel safe because of speeding traffic, that's not good design. Look around. There are all kinds of examples of good and bad.
83D: What are your top priorities as new president-elect of the AIA?MJ: To build a stronger communications network within AIA's component structure -- AIA local, state, national. AIA national's role is to support components' needs. To build leadership. We want to position our members to attain leadership roles in the industry and in their communities and to support the advocacy efforts of our local and state components. Advocacy is critically important.
83D: How so? Why does it matter?MJ: We are determined to become more politically active, to build relationships with elected representatives. We need to be well-positioned to react to issues that most affect our profession by building relationships, building trust. We want them to come to us as a key resource so that we can give them the right data to make informed decisions. For instance, over 80 percent of architectural firms qualify as small businesses. So concerns around small businesses are very important to us. The recent fight in Congress over 1099s (contract employees) was a huge one for small business. We're now working on a tax credit for greening issues. There is now a $1.80 a square foot credit for creating sustainable projects that fit certain criteria. Tax credits become an incentive for people to make projects green. We want such sustainable design to be an everyday demand of the marketplace. So it's critically important that our members be politically engaged.
83D: What are the biggest challenges architects face? MJ: How to make money. One of the biggest challenges we have is creating value for our services in the marketplace. How to make this profession desirable for young people to enter. Not just intellectually and creatively, but also financially. Our biggest competitor for young talent is the video game industry. Creative industries are competing for smart young professionals, the best and the brightest. We have to look at how to make architecture more desirable, more vibrant. No industry can survive without developing a base that makes it stronger in the future.
83D: Anything else that you want to highlight?MJ: Just that changing communities isn't about buildings, it's about community design. How do we make communities better? The national AIA just got an international award for sustainable design. That's big. Also, the national AIA is going into Tuscaloosa and other cities in Mississippi to create master plans for cities destroyed by tornadoes. We're going to show how to rebuild them. Watch what we do.
This interview has been edited and condensed.83 Degrees Publisher and Managing Editor Diane Egner of Tampa is a former content director in public broadcasting and a former newspaper editorial writer. She was also recently elected as the first non-architect to serve on the board of directors of the AIA-Tampa Bay chapter.To contact members of the American Institute of Architects in Southwest Michigan, please visit
this website.
Photos by Julie Busch.