Welcome…

If you have already read Dave’s first post, you know something about what I do. As is the case with everyone, there have been many challenges along the way to get to where I am now.  Looking back, I can recall graduating from Cal in 1970 with a Bachelor of Architecture degree, having an idealistic perspective about the future, and believing that there was plenty of room for improvement on many fronts.  Whether it was political, social or cultural aspects of our society, major shifts were beginning to emerge. 

After working for architectural firms for 12 years, I started my own firm in 1983.

I have served on various professional and community organizations, most notably as the chairman and coordinator for the AIA Regional / Urban Design Assistance Team (R/UDAT) for Santa Rosa’s City Vision and served on the City of Santa Rosa’s Design Review Board for ten years. 

In 1991, I decided to change the name of the firm to Archumana to reflect why architecture is important to me.  The genesis of the name is derived from the fusion of “architecture serving humanity”.  The name embodies why I remain idealistic and optimistic about the future.  

We can’t go back, and we can’t stand still and do nothing!  Rather than dwell on what’s gone wrong over the past years and become cynical, I choose instead to learn from the past and think about positive ways to change and improve the built environment and ultimately, the quality of our lives.   

That is the conversation that I look forward to having with you and others.   

Submitted by: Tony Battaglia, AIA (tony@archumana.com)