Christopher Alker is a New York City-based Architect registered in New York and Florida with a focus on contingent architecture. He studied urban design and theory while attending the University of Texas at Austin, and immediately followed his studies with an apprenticeship to a master carpenter in the San Francisco Bay Area. He moved to New York City in 2004 to work for Handel Architects on large scale ground up residential and hospitality projects. He subsequently worked with 2plus3 Architects, Delson or Sherman, Atema Architecture, and Marmol Radziner on two coasts simultaneously before joining AKAM Associates, Inc. as their Director of Building Operations in 2020.
His experience includes the co-design and execution of several luxury single-family apartment and townhouse gut renovation/additions, both The Nature Conservancy & AKAM’s New York City’s corporate headquarters, Lucid Motors’ Miami & West Palm Beach showrooms, countless zoning feasibility & capital reserve studies, code compliance, life safety awareness, landmarks preservation consulting, project management, client relations, business development, staff training, and construction administration.
His interest in architecture includes design, theory, branding, detailing, construction, programming, maintenance, life-cycle assessment, adaptive reuse, and post-occupancy evaluation. He is committed to both the art and science of buildings from cradle to grave.
Removing the Scaffolding of Architecture, Wed, Jan 3 '18
When I think of architecture I think of the Salk Institute in La Jolla by Louis Kahn, Fallingwater in Pennsylvania by Frank Lloyd Wright, the Florence Cathedral by Brunelleschi, The Yamanashi building in Kofu by Kenzo Tange... there are so many great buildings by so many great architects.
AKAM, New York, NY, US, Senior Vice President of Building Operations
I am the sole architect at NYC's second largest third-party property management company specializing in multi-family condos/coops/condops. I evaluate existing buildings and make recommendations for capital improvements, compliance, energy, and cost savings. I conduct building walkthroughs, reserve studies, facilitate new business, maintain a master vendor database, space plan, consult on life safety, project management, building emergencies, building codes, zoning, landmarks preservation, and compliance.
Marmol Radziner, New York, NY, US, Senior Project Manager
I was a senior project manager at the NY office of this award winning LA-based architecture firm. I am currently working on high-end commercial office and retail projects in New York City, Los Angeles, West Palm Beach, and Miami.
Atema Architecture, New York, Senior Architect
I was the XO at this boutique architecture firm focused on commercial office build-outs & high end residential townhouse/apartment renovations with a heavy emphasis on deep dive research and flexible solutions for future growth. I overaw all active projects in the office and am involved in every phase for the project from soup to nuts. The most recent being an 18K sq.ft. build out for The Nature Conservancy’s new headquarters on 8th Avenue in Manhattan. I am responsible for design, client communications, space planning, construction detailing, test fits, construction documents, zoning analysis, code research, & regulatory filing packages. Office projects included overhauling the existing office CAD standards, redesigning the office website, creating a new office policy manual, preparing property development feasibility packages, maintaining vendor relationships, hiring and mentoring junior staff.
Delson or Sherman Architects, New York, Project Manager
I was the most experienced project manager at this mid-sized architecture firm specializing in high end single-family residential apartment & townhouse projects. My projects included gut renovation/additions to five townhouses in landmarked preservation districts, an apartment renovation on the UES, and CA for the in-house office build-out. Office projects included updating the office CAD standards, introducing the office to 3D modeling & Instagram, creating a project programming guide, establishing a project archive, zoning analysis, code review, and mentoring junior staff. Here I honed my understanding of finishes and building rehabilitation.
Freelance, New York, NY, US, Designer
I worked as a designer on a number of high end residential projects in Brooklyn for a boutique residential architecture firm based in the financial district.
2 plus 3 Architects p.c., Brooklyn, NY, US, Intermediate Architect
I was mentored by A.J. Loeffler, the late principal of this boutique firm in Williamsburg. I grew from a green junior architect to an experienced and confident project manager. The work included a wide range of projects included multi-family residential apartment buildings, hospitality building development studies, apartment renovations, property remediation, zoning feasibility studies for numerous mid-sized projects in the West Village and Meatpacking District, concept development for a traveling 9-11 firefighter memorial, litigation support for a major family-owned property management company, and prototype research solutions for high density mixed-use properties.
Handel Architects, New York, NY, US, Junior Architect
I began my New York City architecture career at this mid-sized skyscraper firm that grew from 37 to 110 employees during my tenure. Working on small teams under a dedicated project manager, I cut my teeth on large-scale multi-family residential apartments, hospitality, and mixed-use developments. I provided design and production support, made custom physical models, prepared construction documents, learned foundation & wall detailing skills, and coordinated with consultants.
Doug Stott Contracting, Santa Barbara, CA, US, Apprentice Carpenter
Immediately following college, I moved to Santa Barbara, CA to work on single-family residential wood-framed houses and a commercial restaurant space for a master carpenter in the San Francisco Bay Area. The work included a wide range of hands-on construction work including: rough carpentry, custom interior trim, custom concrete work, roof repair, light electrical, tiling, window replacement, flashing installation, stucco repair, & wood framing.
Clayton & Little Architects, Austin, TX, US, Summer Intern
The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, US, BArch, Architecture
Urban design and theory.
