ABOVE: AIA Florida bestowed its Honor Award of Excellence on Scott Merrill, of Merrill and Pastor Architects in Vero Beach, who designed the Seaside Meeting House in Seaside.

ABOVE: Roney Mateu, of Coral Gables, received a Merit Award of Excellence for his design of “Casa Gator,” a private residence for university students in Gainesville.

ABOVE: For his design of a single-family house in Atlantic Beach, Fla., William Morgan, of William Morgan Architects, P.A., in Jacksonville, garnered a Merit Award of Excellence.

Architects from Florida and beyond attended AIA Florida’s annual convention, which was held at the Ritz-Carlton Sarasota this year. The four-day event offered continuing education programs, recreational activities, a trade show, an awards dinner and presentation, and more.
The Design Awards are given each year to encourage excellence in architecture, to elevate the public’s awareness of good design and to recognize the exceptional work of designers and contractors.
Sponsors of the conference included The Florida Natural Gas Association, PGT Industries, Pella Windows, The Beck Group, Suncoast Insurance/DPIC Cos. and Turner Construction.
Following is a complete list of AIA Florida 2003 winners:

Excellence AWARDS
Honor Award: Scott Merrill, Merrill and Pastor Architects, Vero Beach
Merit Award: David Peterson, Cooper Johnson Smith Architects, Inc., Tampa
Merit Award: William Morgan, William Morgan Architects, P.A., Jacksonville
Merit Award: Bernardo Fort-Brescia, Arquitectonica, Miami
Merit Award: Roney Mateu,
Coral Gables
Merit Award: KBJ Architects, Inc., Jacksonville
Merit Award: Richard Heisenbottle, RJ Heisenbottle Architects, P.A.,
Coral Gables
UNBUILT AWARDS
Honor Award: Michael Kuenstle, Clark & Kuenstle Associates, Inc., Gainesville
Merit Award: Carlos Betancourt, Agrait Betancourt Arquitects, San Juan, Puerto Rico
Merit Award: David Corban, Architectural Network, Inc., Naples
Merit Award: Peter Magyar, Florida Atlantic University, Fort Lauderdale
Merit Award: Maria Blanco, Delphi Architecture and Town Planner, Coconut Grove
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Hillard T. Smith Community Service Award - Silver Medal: Vivian Salaga, Atelier AEC, Inc., Tampa
Anthony L. Pullara Individual Honor Award: Mike Rodriguez,
Coral Gables
Charles W. Clary Government Service Award: Larry Schneider, Miami
Firm of the Year Award: Alfonso Architects, Inc., Tampa
Photographer of the Year Award: Antony Rieck, Jacksonville
Builder of the Year Award: The Beck Group, Tampa