Kraus Fitch Architects, Inc.

I have enjoyed a meaningful and multi-faceted career in architecture, designing many building types from small additions to large municipal projects. Throughout this I have endeavored to integrate quality design with my keen interest in environmental and socio-economic issues. I first became aware of my interest in architecture as a young adult, when I simultaneously watched the construction of a particularly well-designed addition (utilizing lumber taken directly from the site) and the construction of an experimental passive/active solar house. As the 1970s “oil crisis” was in effect, I was acutely aware of the relevance of the latter, and chose to study at the School of Environmental Design at the University of Colorado in Boulder. The focus of my studies was on “appropriate technology”, solar architecture and urban planning.In 1981, I spent a semester in Denmark and toured many of their new housing approaches. Ten years later, one of these models would be imported to this country as “cohousing,” and I would be caught up in the enthusiasm. I participated in the planning and development of the first East Coast community, Pioneer Valley Cohousing in Amherst, and have been a resident there since its completion in 1994.

Following service in the Peace Corps (Mali, West Africa) in 1984, I have been practicing in the architectural field for more than 20 years. I received a second architectural degree at the Boston Architectural Center in 1991, and became licensed by the Architectural Registration Board in the same year.

Since that time, I have acted as project architect on many municipal buildings ranging from theater renovations, libraries, professional offices, and recreational facilities to elevator and handicap access projects, with a primary focus on elementary schools. I have been project architect for numerous housing projects, most notably a new 24-unit cohousing community in Northampton, Massachusetts.

As an outdoor enthusiast and environmentalist, I have successfully sought to integrate the site into the built environment, and to incorporate sustainable practices that reduce the environmental footprint of each intervention. I enjoy the process of working with clients, engaging them in dialog, and allowing the design to reflect their dreams and programmatic goals. My experience living in cohousing, combined with a professional practice working with large building committees, has afforded me much opportunity to develop group process and facilitation skills.

I am the mother of two young children. I enjoy being a working mother, and take both professions seriously, allowing them to inform each other where appropriate, such as the design of classroom environments and cohousing communities.