Working on the Great Falls Recreation and Aquatics Project was a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with great local consultants and @Opsis, a fellow architecture firm…

How are you friends? The last few weeks brought rapid change. We went from Early Spring fever (with daily new project calls) to radio silence…

Reprint from: AIA Montana Newsletter 3/17/2020 Strategies in the time of the Corona VirusSophia Sparklin, AIA – Immediate Past President  With Corona creating great…

Pay Scale As partof our process to become a Montana Public Benefit Corporation (B-Corp) in Spring 2020, Spark Architecture has fully transparent compensation guides…

Or better every day, sums up our “just cause”. But what comprises “Everyday (life)” ? And what makes it better? Given that our work is…

Let us know if you are interested in joining our team, so you are the first to know when we post a new position. As…

In my world, architecture projects tend to be split up into phases with obvious “starter” and “finisher” , and review/evaluation parts, as well as various…

How are you listening? For Gist, Rebuttal, Logic, Emotions, or Point of View? The latter aims for a deep understanding the other person’s world…

… should not stay in Vegas. As 2019 President of AIA Montana I had the pleasure to represent our state at our National Conference. This…

We love a good story, and depending on whether you prefer drama, action, or romance you’ll end up with a villain or a hero…

Yes! Don’t underestimate what your design team can do for you in the early early phases. Benefits for you include “pretty pictures” that can…

We love pocket neighborhoods for all ages, but recently explored more applications of them in the active adult and senior market. Baby Boomers have had…

Have you ever attempted to do a SWAT analysis of your site? We’re not talking about special weapons, but this is definitely entering the…

Zoning can have huge implications on your costs and the development potential of your site. You as the developer likely want to maintain decent relationships…

Unit types and count per acre are often the first questions entering the discussion. We recommend starting with these three steps: Review comprehensive market data…

Hi! It is the time of the year when we are getting quite a few inquiries. We would love to help everybody, but our current…

Spark Architecture is looking for an Architect who can finish projects exceptionally well:   “While you have some involvement in all phases,  you are a…

Learning: This one started out under the label “Evolution”, in the sense of we learn and change based on those experiences. However I found myself…

Excellence To clarify, this is not perfection. Rather the ability to synthesize many factors, finding an elegant simplicity and clarity out of complexity. An aspiration…

Clarity (and what it means for Authenticity, Simplicity, and Transparency) When I first described this value it was labeled “authenticity”. But something kept nagging me…

3. Responsibility A delivery principle in projects: It is an incredible honor and responsibility to be trusted with a project, and we take that seriously…

1. Health A design principle in projects. Health promoting  spaces, supporting the health of their users, their organizations, and the environment.   A driving force…

After finishing Ray Dalio’s “Principles” for the second time, I felt compelled to summarize my own principles for Spark. Call it a work in…

In Part 1 we shared why we believe that good project management is so important to good design and architecture. On to what we have…

The design process can look like a black box or a divine spark  of inspiration.  While the best projects depend on a good dose of…

This Friday, 11/02/2018, it is time for Harvest Howl, our annual fundraiser for Camp Rotary. Enjoy a double header concert with Sawyer Brown…

  Our new landlord Jason Madill at 410 Central graciously agreed to transform the biggest wall in our office into a 300 SF Whiteboard, and…

PART 3: More Hygge through Architecture: Architects like to use the phrase “Programming”: Taking a very close look at all your project must-haves, and…

Before going into some architectural ideas for your next project in Part 3, I’d like to share a few everyday things I experimented with…

Happy Thanksgiving! As we enter the Holiday Season, I would like to share a mini series about Hygge, the Danish Art of Cozyness with you…

During a recent Q&A session on Facebook we were asked about our opinion on solar. We love renewable energy sources, but can we…

Where are students before and after class? New teaching environments look at those transition times as windows of opportunity, and strive to offer opportunities for…

While a basic specification of a classroom still includes maximum occupancy counts and available technology, teaching and learning methods have moved away from a strict…

We pass these buildings many times, wondering what stories they hold. Next time you’re downtown, on River Edge Trail, or the Railroad district, check…

Always wanted to build a playground, school garden, add to your neighborhood park, or library? The MSU extension office painstakingly lists  available grant programs…

Earlier this week I visited Randy Hafer with High Plains Architects  in Billings to discuss opportunities to encourage additional Historic Development Downtown. Randy could…

Decision making dynamics are clearly defined in theory, but continue to be a major challenge in practice. Awareness of typical pitfalls will be an essential…

Architects study objective and subjective aspects of the built environment. Objective subjects are easily observed and quantified. A bridge structure collapses when subjected to a…

We are constantly on the lookout for local, regional, and national resources available to our community. Take a peak at our recent historic building blog…

IRS, National Parks, and State Historic Preservation office (SHPO) collaborate in the administration of federal historic tax credits. Current offerings include a federal tax credit…