The Construction Source

where I left off.” “Of course, when you go out on your own, you have to prove yourself all over again,” he continues. “So that’s what we did.” In the early years, AMA took on a lot of overflow work from other architects. Eventually, some of the team’s old contacts came to them with some larger- scale opportunities, some of them located overseas – an early project was a tower in Dubai, for example. When the market crashed in 2009, those large-scale projects slowed down and AMA was forced to diversify, but in recent years the firm has been able to return to their original vision. They now regularly take on large- scale projects, some as large as 550,000 square feet. When evaluating projects and opportunities, AMA does not just look at size, however – they also look for design opportunities. They are drawn to jobs where the site is unusual, or that will require a unique architectural approach, or where municipalities are unsure about a form of development. “For us, those are the most interesting jobs,” Arno says. “We like to roll up our sleeves. We like to get to be creative. We like to negotiate.” “Also, on those jobs, the clients are usually more willing to be creative,” he adds. “They know they have this problem that they need to solve, and they know it’s not going to get solved without thinking outside the box. That’s our kind of client.” Those kinds of clients are drawn to AMA, in return, due to the firm’s aforementioned reputation as problem-solvers. Clients alsoappreciate thefirm’s history of delivering projects AUGUST 2021 Floating House 4,000 SF, Single-family Home, Vancouver, BC Photography: Michael Elkan + John Sinal