Cooke Douglass Farr Lemons | Architects & Engineers PA
In the Press
In the Press
Best Places to Work 2009: Still rising to the demand of its clients
Mississippi Business Journal / May 2009
Jackson, MS "Architecture is sometimes termed the canary in the coal mine," said Robert E. Farr II, corporate president of Cooke Douglass Farr Lemons, Architects & Engineers PA. (CDFL). "We see trends first and respond to them early."
CDFL has been that canary since 1961 and today continues its work on the principal that an organization with many disciplines will be able to meet the demands of its client's vision. Using a simple formula of design excellence, functional efficiency and budgetary responsibility, Cooke Douglass Farr Lemons is a one-stop shop for the next Mississippi masterpiece whether it is a bank in Madison, a Boys and Girls Club in Copiah County or a casino in Biloxi. The firm has also been awarded design contracts outside of the Magnolia State ranging from a ballpark at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, to a $48-million brigade headquarters and complex at Fort Benning, Ga.
"We are all honored by the Best Places to Work designation," said Farr. "We enjoy our work together and we cherish the team work format that we practice our efforts in."
Farr said that the word "enjoyment" is what makes CDFL such a great place to work.
"We are focused on creativity, quality and responsiveness for our clients and the citizens we serve," he said. "Our growth is based on a regional practice, so in many ways we are an export business, exporting intellectual capital and importing commissions to support Mississippi."
CDFL's team of architects, engineers, interior designers, planners, landscape architects and graphic designers respond to each new challenge with technological expertise and innovative enthusiasm. Their work has earned them a wall full of awards from the American Institute of Architects, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the American Society of Interior Designers and numerous construction industry organizations. Probably the greatest proof of CDFL's professional expertise is a simple matter of percentages: more than 80 percent of its business is earned from satisfied repeat clients.
Farr said that his company's biggest challenge is finding the best way to use its skills to build an environment of creative solutions that will "house, protect and advance the conditions of humanity."
"Winning the commission, addressing the challenges of the commission and seeing the commission through to its completion is the challenge," Farr said. "The firm strives to have the best team concepts, the best team ideas, the best solution to the need at every level. We plan to continue this business model... keeping this focus in our collective efforts is our goal and we believe it will bode us well in these turbulent times."
Farr said that Mississippi brings CDFL lots of home grown talent, lots of folks with passion, creativity and commitment.
"Our community is a positive and progressive place when you looks at the trends," he said. "We are all engaged in making our home a better place to live and everyone is encouraged to be a giver of time and talent as well as treasure back to the economy."
Architect Jessica Warren said that one special way that CDFL is helping metro Jackson is by moving its headquarters to the heart of the Fondren Arts District, an area that is trying to bring citizens back to the city instead of enlarging to the sprawling neighborhood communities of Ridgeland, Madison, Pearl or Brandon.
"Our presence in this area supports this effort by bringing business to shops and restaurants with our 50+ employees." Warren said. She added CDFL is also giving back through its Green Building initiative.
"We have employees who are LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) accredited and many working on achieving this standard," she said.