Issuu

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issue no. 6 SUMMER 26

Q U A RT E R LY

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“Find out who you are and do it on purpose.” DOLLY PARTON

North Shore Country Club Glenview, IL Photograph by Wayne Cable

IN THIS ISSUE We share a retrospective on legacy from the inimitable Andy Koglin, sit down with our director of business development for a quick Q&A, shine a light on a new housing project on the West Side, and more.

CON TEN TS

From our CEO's desk

Galewood Residences

Reflections on 40 years

Leading with authenticity and integrity

JON TALTY AIA

RECENTLY COMPLETED

ANDY KOGLIN AIA

CORE VALUES

34 Meet Noel, our BD Director 38

Office updates STAFF NEWS

OKW Architects QUARTERLY | Issue No. 6 | Summer 2026 On the cover: North Shore Country Club, Wayne Cable Published September 3rd, 2026

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From our CEO's desk

As the summer draws to a close, change is imminent. Whether its kids returning to school, the Kennedy Expressway once again slowing to a crawl, or familiar faces leaving OKW for new life chapters, we soldier on and embrace a new normal. A month ago, we said goodbye to Andy Koglin. He retired after serving as a partner of 27 years, a mentor to countless OKW professionals, and as my good friend and confidant. The office is not quite the same, nor should it be. The ownership team of Cole Gagnon, Katie Lambert, Anders Rustin, and me (for a bit longer), has his back and has us pointed in a very positive direction. The future is bright thanks to our tremendous clients and an intentional, philosophical foundation rooted in unwavering core values. These values are our North Star, guiding leadership to remain aspirational and grounded at the same time. I for one will miss Andy’s engagement and expertise. But with his help, we long ago established a framework for success, one that is now carried out with new(er) faces, a continued desire to be great, and a willingness to do what it takes. In this issue, you’ll hear from Andy on what it means to say goodbye. We hope you enjoy his perspective.

Jon Talty AIA CEO

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Recently completed

Our multifamily portfolio spans sizes, types, and markets. Whether we're working in Chicago's many transit-oriented neighborhoods and suburbs or in our recent expansions to the Southeast, we understand how to build concensus around new housing developments. We want to share a project that we recently photographed on Chicago's West Side. It bridges the gap between dense, urban living, and the surrounding single-family homes. And it's a type of living that is not only very successful, it is in short supply in Chicago. 6

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HQ Residences 7 Mount Prospect, Illinois

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NEW PROJECT

GALEWOOD RESIDENCES On Chicago's far west side, the neighborhood of Galewood had historically not provided dense housing options for its diverse community, which includes new families. Our client, Novak Development, saw an opportunity to fill this need and reached out to OKW to create a compelling design that could address the area's housing shortage. The development comprises an L-shaped apartment building that includes 125 apartments and 25 adjacent townhomes. An outdoor shared space between apartments and townhomes serves as a communal resident area, ideal for grilling and gatherings. Galewood Residences opened its doors in late 2025, filling a need in the neighborhood for housing while providing the community with residences at different scales, from 1-bedroom apartments to townhomes. GENERAL CONTRACTING BY NOVAK EXTERIOR PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAL CIUREJ INTERIOR PHOTOGRAPHY BY KONSTANT KAPTURE 8

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Reflections on 40 years of practice PRINCIPAL SPOTLIGHT

RELATIONSHIPS, BUILDINGS, AND A BRIGHT FUTURE July 1st marked an important milestone for me. After more than forty years in practice, I transitioned into the role of Consulting Principal and began the next chapter of my professional life. The first step toward retirement began in 2019, when my partner Jon Talty and I started planning for the next generation of the firm’s leadership and established a process to guide that change. In 2020, we brought Cole Gagnon and Katie Lambert into ownership to help guide the firm's future, and I began gradually transitioning my operational responsibilities, client relationships, and projects to these talented leaders and several of our senior managers (including Anders Rustin, who joined the ownership ranks in early 2026).

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People photos OKW + Valenti

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It has been fifty-two years since I held my first drafting job at Karlson Home Center in Evanston. In that time, I’ve enjoyed a wonderful, fulfilling, sometimes frustrating, but never dull career. Before the OKW years, I was fortunate to be influenced by several notable architects. These include the acerbic Stanley Tigerman, an incredibly smart, creative, intensely curious architect who expected the same from those of us in the office. He demanded that we question ideas, think critically, but also to always remember: architecture is fun. While in graduate school at Yale, I had the privilege of working with César Pelli, the school’s Director. Cesar was an incredibly talented architect and great firm leader. The office followed a rigorous, collaborative studio system, which gave a talented group of studio leaders and their teams a great deal of responsibility, yet always guided by César. When I joined my father’s corporate interiors practice firm, Norman A. Koglin Associates, I began to understand an architecture practice as a business. As early as my pre-teen years, I remember being fascinated by my dad as he’d review thick sets of blueprints at our dining room table. Joining his firm and buying the practice four years later with Bob Wilson to create Koglin-Wilson Architects, was truly meaningful. Five years after we began Koglin-Wilson, a business colleague introduced us to the principals of the successful suburban firm, Otis Associates. I felt an immediate connection with their president, Jon Talty. Otis’ CEO Rob Walker was equally warm, smart, and cheerful; a person you couldn't help but like. After some months of conversations and information-sharing, we saw that our firms could be stronger together and officially merged on August 1st, 1999.

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16 WORKPLACE | Motorola, 2000

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Our very first OKW client was Motorola. They needed to convert hundreds of thousands of square feet of factory space to office to serve a growing need for in-house engineering at their Libertyville campus. We were competing against more accomplished interiors firms, so we chose to take a risk and present a radical concept departing from the rigid, white cubicle environment they had worked in for a generation. Fortunately, Motorola agreed and over the next decade, we transformed their offices at Libertyville and used it as a template for their other campuses. Motorola was a great start for us and while I am proud of many of our projects, there are a few others that stand out for me. We were an office of around eight folks when IKEA selected us to design their U.S. flagship store. We somehow managed to convince the client that we were the right choice. When it was completed, that gargantuan retail store gave our small company a boost in confidence and put us on the map in the retail development community. The large mixed-use development known as Uptown Park Ridge is meaningful because my wife Jackie and I raised our sons in Park Ridge, so this project became a labor of love. Although the approval process was sometimes contentious, the development ultimately helped change the trajectory of this rail line suburb’s sleepy downtown by bringing almost 200 housing units and 80,000 SF of high-quality retail to an underused site in the heart of the downtown. It created the momentum for retail and restaurant activity that has made the area a fun, vibrant destination in the northwest suburbs.

RETAIL | IKEA, 1999 O K W Q UART E R LY | S P R I NG 2026

18 MIXED-USE | Uptown Park Ridge, 2007

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NEWCITY in west Lincoln Park is the largest project we have ever completed with over 1.1 million square feet of retail, residential and parking. Like Motorola, we knew we were competing against formidable firms. We took a leap with a design concept, but what sold the Structured Development team was the quality and commitment of our talented team. This project tapped into the best of our planning, design, and technical skill. Most importantly, NEWCITY is about endurance, tenacity and resilience. The project was ready to build when the world shut down in the wake of the Great Recession of 2008 and, like hundreds of other projects, it ground to a halt. It cost us a lot of talented people but we kept on. Four years later, Structured Development resuscitated the project, restored the consulting team, and we brought back one key project manager to guide the renewed effort: Cole Gagnon, who is now OKW’s President. We were privileged to work on several meaningful projects for North Shore Congregation Israel located in Glencoe, IL, home of the extraordinary Yamasaki-designed sanctuary. We developed a master plan to update and expand the education wing, completed a thoughtful renovation of their small cylindrical Perlman Sanctuary, and created the Family Education Center. In each of these projects, as well as the hundreds not mentioned, it all started with building a trusting relationship with our client. Relationships have been at the heart of OKW’s DNA. Looking back, the common thread through every opportunity, every challenge, and every success was not technology, design software, or even great projects. It was relationships. 19

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MIXED-USE | NEWCITY, 2015

20 INSTITUTIONAL | North Shore Congregation Israel, 2007

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Relationships have underpinned the successes we have enjoyed as an architectural firm as well as those in my professional and personal life. The decision for me to apply to Yale for graduate school was the result of the influence and guidance of a great mentor. We were introduced to the IKEA client through a civil engineering relationship who thought highly enough of our small firm to take a risk with their reputation. The formation of OKW and my nearly 30-year friendship with Jon Talty is the result of an introduction from a relationship we shared with a small public relations company who thought we would be better as one firm (the Figels were right!). And so many of our best projects are the result of long-term relationships from which trust was built and ultimately transformed into even longer friendships. Relationships have inspired me to do great work at each stage of my career. But there’s no doubt that a lot has changed in that time. To state the obvious, the technology we use today couldn’t have been imagined forty years ago. When I began work after grad school, the thermal fax was the most miraculous machine in the office. Today, we can work from anywhere and communicate globally. We share BIM databases with contractors, owners and consultants, and create stunning AI-enhanced videos of our projects. But while technology has transformed how we draw, analyze and communicate, it doesn’t replace a phone call to a concerned client, an in-person meeting to resolve a complex issue, or the privilege of connecting existing clients with one another to share expertise, risk, or grow an opportunity.

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As I look at the future, I believe that regardless of the sophistication of the technology, the value OKW brings to clients will always come back to the human element: curiosity, problem-solving, and a shared enthusiasm for creating meaningful buildings and spaces. We will always thrive by continuing to build trust through authentic relationships with clients, communities, contractors, and consultants. As Consulting Principal, I will stay connected to a select group of client relationships and projects, provide a little mentoring, and continue to look for new opportunities for the firm. I will also continue to provide guidance on our retail, residential, mixed-use, and country club projects. Closer to home, I am grateful to be in a position to volunteer my time and experience to support faith-based and social service organizations, including our church, that are near and dear to Jackie and me. I also look forward to a more flexible schedule, spending time with my wife, making trouble with the grandkids, golfing, and traveling. While my role will be changing, my admiration for this firm and the people who make it special has never been stronger. Thank you to our clients, colleagues, consultants, contractors, and community partners who have trusted us over the years. Most importantly, thank you to the remarkable people of OKW. It has been the privilege of a lifetime to build, learn, and grow alongside you. I look forward to watching the firm continue to thrive under its next generation of leadership. Andy Koglin September 2026 22

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FAMILY LEGACY | (left to right) Jon Talty, Norman Koglin, Andy Koglin 2017

23 NEXT GENERATION | (left to right) Andy, Jon, Katie, Anders, and Cole 2026

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What do we value?

CORE VALUES FEATURE

AUTHENTICITY AND INTEGRITY As we continue to share our core values, we're examining what it means to lead, as a firm and as individuals, with authenticity and integrity. We examine the qualities needed in a person when challenges arise — when there is no clear path forward or when we find ourselves in uncharted territory. To illustrate this value, we've chosen a project that took us on a tour across the nation — and the project manager that rose to the challenge.

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OKW'S CORE V

Work with th the best in y

Lead with au and integrity

Strive for ev quality

Be rooted in and curiosity

Nurture our r for excellenc

Atlanta | K Garey Gomez P

VALUES

hose who bring out you

uthenticity y

ver-increasing

n joy, passion, y

reputation ce

Krog District Photography

Long before she worked as a Project Manager at OKW, Joan Russick fixed and sold bikes. So it was no surprise that we added her to the project team for Specialized Bicycle Components' new retail concept. Joan's joint talents in architecture and interior design, her attention to detail as an aspiring project manager, and her unique background working in bike shops through college and graduate school made her the right fit. But her passion for the cycling community, its health benefits, and a bike's ability to connect you with the broader world in a very tangible way meant that Joan would bring an authenticity to this project beyond her professional credentials. The opportunity, a retail location in Lincoln Park, was intriguing, fun, and the first of its kind in Chicago. To create a brand-owned retail experience in the cycling community was not just unusual, it was game-changing. Prior to this model, anyone interested in buying a bike would visit the type of bike shop that Joan used to work in. Specialized wanted something different, experiential, and reflective of their brand. From the beginning, their goal was to evolve the standard and transactional experience of buying a bike into something more community-driven and hospitalityminded. In other words, they were looking for an authentic expression of their brand, built with integrity. 27

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Chicago | Lincoln Park Tom Harris Photography

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C O R E VA L U E S

These values translated into the design of the project itself. Because a major component of the project's design was a direct connection to the city. Specialized wanted the interior design for their Chicago retail store to clearly reflect the city's environment. We found inspiration in the winding path of Chicago’s lakefront path, an amenity that we enjoy every day. Our designers translated the way the running and cycling trail hugs the shoreline into a floor-to-ceiling millwork installation. The wood slats also mirror the rhythm of biking under the 'L' tracks. This approach resonated with our client. Before the Lincoln Park location had opened, Specialized asked us to design a new store in the Domain, a mixed-use development in Austin. Much like in Lincoln Park, the design for the new retail location in Austin would draw inspiration from the city and its culture. The store's centerpiece light fixture became a dramatic spoke suspended from the ceiling. In addition to resembling a bike spoke, it is also a callout to guitar strings, a direct nod to Austin’s famous music scene. Authenticity and integrity meant respecting the brand’s signature product, and not just in presentation. The materials used in both stores were honest expressions of those materials: wood was wood, stone was stone, and nothing was faked or approximated. In Joan’s words, “there’s truth in materiality because the client was committed to authenticity.

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As we progressed through Austin, two new projects emerged on the horizon: Bentonville and Atlanta. Specialized trusted OKW to continue experimenting with their brand guidelines and try something new. This was our first project in Bentonville but that didn’t stop us from sticking to our tried-and-true approach: walking the site and taking in Bentonville’s surprises, absorbing its qualities and character to see what would catch our attention. Inspiration came quickly. We learned that Bentonville had developed a reputation for having a very active mountain biking culture as well as a vibrant and growing creative scene. This led to a series of millwork installations inspired by undulating terrain, evoking the ups and downs of wooded trails. These projects were successful because our client valued good design and chose to make each project an authentic expression of its environment. But Joan's wholehearted commitment to understanding Specialized's needs played an equally important role. The experience has reinforced in Joan a virtue that succinctly frames the idea of leading with authenticity and integrity: “It’s always the best time to do your best work.”

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Atlanta | Krog District Garey Gomez Photography

Austin | The Domain Leonid Furmansky Photography

Bentonville | The Ledger Mark Jackson Photography

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Q&A: Meet Noel!

In mid-May, we hired our first ever Director of Business Development, Noel Abbott. Noel has been at OKW for a few months, but in that short time, he has made a big impact, whether he’s spreading the word about OKW, finding new opportunities for us, or simply adding a jolt to our company culture with his curious and compassionate personality. If you haven’t met him yet, you will soon.

OKW: Tell us a little about yourself. Noel Abbott: My main loves are my family and soccer. My wife and I will celebrate 32 years of marriage this year and we have two wonderful boys in their 20s. I’m grew up in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, but I’ve lived in Evanston for the last thirty-one years. I went to Ohio Wesleyan University, where I majored in History, with a minor in English and Religious Studies. I’ve been playing soccer since 1977, and I’ve used it not only as a wonderful athletic thing to do, but as a way to meet people from all over the world.

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ON SITE | Noel with Anders, Michal, Sydney, Olena, Vera, and Grace visiting One Winnetka under construction

WITH 34 OKW | Noel with Anders, Melissa, and Rachel on a pre-opening visit to the Obama Presidential Center, sponsored by AIA Chicago

WITH OKW | With OKW partners Katie Lambert AIA and C at the Chicago Architecture Center Industry networking event hosted by the LondonHou

Cole Gagnon AIA Council use hotel

What can people expect when they meet you? My wife jokes that I should have my own talk show because I will ask a lot of questions. I love learning about people and don’t really like talking about myself. Professionally, I like to unearth what people’s needs are, what has worked just as much as what hasn’t. What excites you about OKW? Our incredible present. We have a thriving practice with so much work not only locally, but across the country. I love diversity in the world and in an architectural practice. The economy will ebb and flow, socioeconomic issues will fluctuate, which means that diversity allows you to thrive in good times and survive during challenging periods. I love what Jon and Andy have created here; building both a foundation and a machine. With Katie, Cole, and Anders as the main leaders, we have an opportunity to really enhance this practice. There is enormous growth potential for us in the civic realm as well, and we are poised to capitalize on it. What’s on the horizon? I’m still learning. Getting to know everyone, becoming an expert in our marquee projects, studying the sectors where we thrive, and identifying opportunities for growth. I've already joined the partners at many presentations, events, and chasing new pursuits. I'm looking forward to building our brand and getting the name out there. The sky is the limit.

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STAFF NEWS

[1] JANELLE IS OUR NEWEST JOB CAPTAIN Janelle Zola has worked in California, Texas, and now her home state of Illinois. She has picked up new typologies and market sectors in each state and now she brings her self-described "Big Kid" energy and experience to OKW.

[2] DONOVAN IS BACK (FULL TIME)! We met Donovan Sandoval in 2019 thanks to our support of ACE Mentor Chicago program. Between 2019 and 2022, she interned at our office three times. As of this summer, she is officially a full-time associate.

[3] ALEX STARTS AT OKW Another ACE graduate, Alex Flojo is back in her home city with a degree from Washington University in St. Louis, starting her career at OKW as a full-time associate.

[4] PHASE 3 IS LIVE ON DECEMBER 1 Chicago's Department of Buildings has released details for Phase 3 of their Construction Code Modernization initiative. It updates several components of Chicago's construction codes and becomes mandatory on December 1 of this year. If you have any questions, reach out to your go-to OKW project manager or send us a question to hello@okwarchitects.com. We're here to help! PHOTOGRAPHY (1-3) BY BEN LIPOWITZ 36

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We wouldn’t be able to put together this newsletter without our amazing clients, who trust us with their valuable projects, our collaborators in the construction industry who bring our designs to life, and our awesome OKWers who make it all happen. WE ARE HIRING

We are currently looking for talented and engaging people to join the team as Project Architects. Visit our careers page for details on the position and how to apply. C O N TA CT U S

If OKW would be a good fit for your next opportunity or idea, please reach out to our partners directly: Jon Talty AIA Cole Gagnon AIA Katie Lambert AIA Anders Rustin AIA 38

jtalty@okwarchitects.com cgagnon@okwarchitects.com klambert@okwarchitects.com arustin@okwarchitects.com

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39 Mixed-use residential conceptual study

OKW QUA RT E RLY | SUMME R 2 0 2 6 600 W Jackson Blvd, Suite 250 Chicago IL 60605 hello@okwarchitects.com