Clockwise from top left: Barkley Regional Airport Terminal, Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health Building, Luminary Arts Center, the V3 Center, Southeast Community College Health Sciences Building, and Peregrine.

For high-resolution images of individual projects, contact Chris Hudson.

MINNEAPOLIS, June 25, 2024 — AIA Minneapolis announces six recipients of the 2024 Merit Awards, an honor bestowed on projects designed by AIA Minneapolis architects that tell a story of excellence beyond design, emphasize public-interest design, and embrace the varied forces that shape a building. Unique in its approach to awards jury composition, the AIA Minneapolis Merit Awards program is judged each year by a business owner, a real estate professional, a community advocate, an academic leader, and an architect.

The six AIA Minneapolis Merit Awards recipients are:

  • Barkley Regional Airport Terminal in West Paducah, Kentucky, designed by Alliiance. As a gateway to the region, the new terminal serves critical economic needs by facilitating travel and tourism and exemplifies how small terminals can have big impacts by embodying the values of hospitality, community pride, and connection to nature.
  • Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health Building in Bismarck, North Dakota, designed by Leo A Daly. The first permanent home for Bismarck-Burleigh Public Health, this facility combines with the neighboring Bismarck Public Works Facility to form a new visually unified public campus to connect the community to public services.
  • Luminary Arts Center in Minneapolis, designed by Shelter Architecture. This newly rebranded performance space with 30-foot-high ceilings is carved out of the foundation of a historic warehouse. Its new owner, the Minnesota Opera, and other groups present an eclectic mix of thought-provoking productions in the space.
  • Peregrine in Minneapolis, designed by UrbanWorks Architecture. This sustainable, mixed-use, affordable housing project aims to repurpose its high-profile riverfront location into a community asset. Its 163 units, ranging in size from one to four bedrooms, serve diverse household types and address a significant housing need within the city.
  • Southeast Community College (SCC) Health Sciences Building in Lincoln, Nebraska, designed by Perkins&Will. This building has had an enormous impact on the SCC community and the region by increasing the school’s capacity to provide highly trained professionals in fields currently experiencing workforce shortages, including nursing, radiography, and respiratory therapy.
  • The V3 Center in Minneapolis, designed by LSE Architects. Fulfilling V3 Sports’ mission to elevate its community through wellness, fitness, and education, this new 40,000-square-foot facility serves as a gateway to North Minneapolis with a dynamic façade that opens the five-lane, 25-yard pool to the street and a “main street” lobby with a dynamic blue stair and a community mural.

Each year, one of the Merit Awards recipients is named the winner of the Michael L. Schrock Merit Award, an honor created in memory of the architect who helped develop the Merit Awards. The special honor is awarded to the winning project that most embodies Michael’s Seven Rules of Architecture:

  1. Know where you are from.
  2. Know who you are.
  3. Know why you are.
  4. Respect your benefactors.
  5. Honor the environment.
  6. Architecture must serve those who occupy it.
  7. There is beauty in functional, economical, safe, environmentally responsible, owner-driven architecture.

This year, the jury bestowed the Michael L. Schrock Merit Award on the V3 Center.

The 2024 Merit Awards jury included Dagmara Larsen, AIA, of MSR Design, Sara St. Louis, Assoc. AIA, of MG2 Design, David Washburn of White Oaks Savanna, and James Wheeler, Assoc. AIA, of Dunwoody College of Technology. The jury reviewed the entries for how well the projects support the health and well-being of occupants; address critical social, economic, and/or environmental needs of the community; reduce burdens on the environment; promote economic development; and utilize innovation.

The 2024 Merit Awards will be presented to recipients at the AIA Minneapolis Mid-Summer Social & Merit Awards Celebration at the offices of Ryan Companies on July 18, 2024, at 4:30pm. Learn more about the Merit Awards here.

AIA Minneapolis is the largest chapter in Minnesota with more than 1,600 members. Centered in Minneapolis, the chapter territory includes the southwestern portion of the state. As a large chapter, AIA Minneapolis participates with other large AIA chapters nationwide to focus attention on significant issues facing AIA members. The chapter provides leadership, networking, and outreach opportunities for its members.