BNIM

BNIM is an American architecture and design practice based in Kansas City, Missouri. The firm was established in 1970 as Patty Berkebile Nelson Love Architects, commonly abbreviated PBNL, by R. Bruce Patty, Robert J. Berkebile, Thompson C. Nelson, and William Love. Its early identity was closely connected to Kansas City and to the idea that architecture could contribute to the renewal of urban cores through both built projects and civic participation by its professionals. The practice evolved through several organizational stages. In 1987, Patty, Berkebile, and Nelson formed PBNI Architects with David Immenschuh. The firm was associated with the design of One Kansas City Place, a major Kansas City office tower that became the tallest building in Missouri. In 1991, Steve McDowell joined Berkebile, Nelson, and Immenschuh, producing the name Berkebile Nelson Immenschuh McDowell, from which the BNIM name derives. BNIM’s work spans sustainable architecture, community redevelopment, urban planning and design, campus planning, educational buildings, civic and government facilities, residential projects, and corporate workplaces. Its portfolio includes work performed as architect of record, executive architect, consultant, or member of a consortium. This range has allowed the firm to work on both individual buildings and broader planning initiatives, including the post-tornado master plan for Greensburg, Kansas. Sustainability is a central part of BNIM’s public profile. The firm has worked on projects associated with high levels of environmental performance, including the Omega Center for Sustainable Living in Rhinebeck, New York, which was designed as a Living Building and achieved LEED Platinum certification. Other cited sustainable projects include the Iowa Utilities Board Office of Consumer Advocate Office Building in Des Moines, the School of Nursing and Student Community Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and the Lewis and Clark State Office Building in Jefferson City, Missouri. The Omega Center was described as one of the first two buildings certified as a living building by the International Living Building Institute. The firm’s notable cultural and institutional work includes the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City, where BNIM served as executive architect for Moshe Safdie; the Bloch Building addition to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, where it served as architect of record for Steven Holl; the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts addition, also as architect of record for Steven Holl; the Fort Osage Education Center; and the H. L. Hunley submarine museum. Its educational and research portfolio includes facilities at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston and the University of Missouri School of Music’s Sinquefield Music Center. BNIM has maintained offices in Kansas City, Des Moines, Iowa, and San Diego, California. The firm received the American Institute of Architects Architecture Firm Award in 2010. Its brand positioning combines design practice with environmental responsibility, civic engagement, and community-oriented planning rather than focusing on a single building type or consumer product.

BNIM traces its origins to 1970, when R. Bruce Patty, Robert J. Berkebile, Thompson C. Nelson, and William Love established Patty Berkebile Nelson Love Architects in Kansas City, Missouri. The practice’s early work and institutional culture emphasized strengthening the urban core. This objective extended beyond commissions: members of the firm also became involved in civic affairs and urban issues, linking architectural practice with the broader development of Kansas City. During its early history, the firm’s principals were connected with major Kansas City projects. Berkebile and Nelson were members of PBNDML, a joint venture that designed the Hyatt Regency Crown Center. The hotel’s 1981 walkway collapse became one of the most consequential structural failures in modern American construction history. Although the project involved several firms and architect Edward Larrabee Barnes was the formal master architect, the subsequent investigation determined that the structural engineer was responsible for the design failure. The event is part of the professional history surrounding BNIM’s predecessor firms, not an incident involving the later BNIM organization under its current name. In 1987, R. Bruce Patty, Robert J. Berkebile, and Thompson C. Nelson formed PBNI Architects with David Immenschuh. This organization was associated with the design of One Kansas City Place, a Kansas City skyscraper that became the tallest building in Missouri. In 1991, Steve McDowell joined Berkebile, Nelson, and Immenschuh. The resulting firm was named Berkebile Nelson Immenschuh McDowell, or BNIM. BNIM subsequently developed a broad multidisciplinary architecture and planning practice. Its stated areas of work include sustainable design, community redevelopment, urban planning and design, educational facilities, campus master planning, civic and government work, residential architecture, and corporate office environments. The firm has worked on projects throughout the United States and has also been involved in selected work in Canada. Its offices have included Kansas City, Des Moines, and San Diego. Sustainable design became one of the firm’s most visible areas of specialization. BNIM worked on the Omega Center for Sustainable Living at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, New York. The project was designed as a Living Building and achieved LEED Platinum certification; it was also identified as one of the first two buildings certified as a living building by the International Living Building Institute. Other environmentally focused work includes the Iowa Utilities Board Office of Consumer Advocate Office Building, the Lewis and Clark State Office Building in Jefferson City, and the School of Nursing and Student Community Center at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. The firm’s broader portfolio includes cultural, educational, scientific, and civic buildings. BNIM served as executive architect for the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City under architect Moshe Safdie, and as architect of record for Steven Holl on the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Bloch Building addition and the John F. Kennedy Center addition. Other listed projects include the Fort Osage Education Center, the H. L. Hunley submarine museum, the Science City addition at Kansas City’s Union Station, the C. K. Choi Building at the University of British Columbia as a consultant, and the University of Missouri School of Music’s Sinquefield Music Center. BNIM also undertook planning work after the May 2007 tornado outbreak devastated Greensburg, Kansas. The firm prepared a master plan for the community, an assignment consistent with its combination of urban planning, sustainable design, and civic redevelopment. In 2010, the American Institute of Architects gave BNIM its Architecture Firm Award. The documented record presents BNIM as an active professional-services practice whose identity rests on architecture, planning, environmental performance, and public-oriented design rather than on a consumer product line.

• 2020

  Sinquefield Music Center

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  BNIM was identified as the architect of the University of Missouri School of Music’s Sinquefield Music Center in Columbia, Missouri.

• 2013

  John F. Kennedy Center addition

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  BNIM served as architect of record for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts addition in collaboration with Steven Holl.

• 2010

  American Institute of Architects Architecture Firm Award

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  BNIM received the American Institute of Architects Architecture Firm Award.

• 2007

  Greensburg sustainable master plan

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  Following the May 2007 tornado devastation, BNIM prepared a master plan for Greensburg, Kansas.

• 1991

  BNIM name established

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  Steve McDowell joined Berkebile, Nelson, and Immenschuh, creating Berkebile Nelson Immenschuh McDowell, the source of the BNIM name.

• 1987

  Formation of PBNI Architects

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  Patty, Berkebile, and Nelson formed PBNI Architects with David Immenschuh.

• 1981

  Hyatt Regency Crown Center walkway collapse

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  A predecessor-firm joint venture associated with principals Robert Berkebile and Thompson Nelson was connected to the Hyatt Regency Crown Center project when its walkway collapsed. The investigation attributed the structural failure to the structural engineer.

• 1970

  Founding as Patty Berkebile Nelson Love Architects

  [1]BNIMen.wikipedia.org

  R. Bruce Patty, Robert J. Berkebile, Thompson C. Nelson, and William Love founded the Kansas City practice originally known as Patty Berkebile Nelson Love Architects, or PBNL.

A design-led architecture and planning practice positioned around sustainable buildings, civic engagement, community redevelopment, and complex institutional projects.

• Sustainable institutional architecture

  Omega Center for Sustainable Living

  A facility for the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, New York. The project was designed as a Living Building and achieved LEED Platinum certification. It became one of the most prominent examples associated with BNIM’s environmental design work.

• Performing arts architecture

  Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts

  A major Kansas City performing-arts venue for which BNIM served as executive architect while Moshe Safdie was the design architect. The project illustrates BNIM’s role in coordinating complex cultural buildings and large consultant teams.

• Museum architecture

  Nelson-Atkins Museum Bloch Building addition

  The addition to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri, for which BNIM served as architect of record for Steven Holl. It is part of the firm’s cultural-building portfolio.

• Urban planning and community redevelopment · 2007

  Greensburg master plan

  A community master-planning effort prepared after the May 2007 tornado outbreak devastated Greensburg, Kansas. The work reflects BNIM’s combination of planning, civic engagement, and sustainability-oriented redevelopment.

• Educational and healthcare architecture

  School of Nursing and Student Community Center

  A University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston project designed with Lake|Flato. The building received LEED Gold certification and represents BNIM’s work in educational, healthcare, and environmentally responsible institutional design.

• Government architecture

  Lewis and Clark State Office Building

  A state office building in Jefferson City, Missouri, cited among BNIM’s sustainable projects and associated with LEED Platinum certification.

• 1981

  Hyatt Regency walkway collapse involving predecessor-firm principals

  Robert Berkebile and Thompson Nelson were members of a joint venture associated with the design of the Hyatt Regency Crown Center before the BNIM name was established. The 1981 walkway collapse caused deaths and injuries. The investigation determined that the failure was attributable to the structural engineer. The event concerns predecessor-firm involvement and should not be characterized as a collapse of a BNIM-designed project under the later BNIM organization.

  Source

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• 1991

  Adoption of the BNIM partnership identityStrategy

  Background

  After the earlier PBNL and PBNI formations, Steve McDowell joined Berkebile, Nelson, and Immenschuh.

  Action taken

  The practice adopted the name Berkebile Nelson Immenschuh McDowell, abbreviated BNIM.

  Aftermath

  The new name became the firm’s enduring professional identity and was associated with a broad architecture and planning practice.

  Source

1. 1BNIMen.wikipedia.org