Evan Verduin, owner and principal of Spokane-based MAKE Architecture LLC, says his firm is preparing for additional growth as the community moves into a busy period of design and development. 

“Spokane is usually a bit behind larger cities in terms of unique design and development, but that’s changing,” says Verduin. “We’re hitting a kind of stride right now. There’s just so much potential here, particularly downtown. MAKE’s focus will be on growing while still maintaining our nimble, intimate, studio setting.”

A Spokane native and Washington State University graduate, Verduin founded a Studio Called Make LLC, now operating under the MAKE Architecture name, in 2013. In the fall of 2015, Verduin also made an unsuccessful run for Spokane City Council, an experience he says taught him a lot. 

“I had a lot of ideas for improvement and a unique perspective on downtown development,” he says. “It was a good experience, but ultimately, I decided to focus on growing MAKE.” 

Verduin has more than 10 years of experience in the profession, having previously worked for Spokane-area firms like Uptic Studios Inc. and Nystrom+Olson Inc. 

“I always wanted to be an architect,” he says. “It was just this natural desire to solve problems through design. Creating my own firm just gave me a bit more freedom to do more of those unique, custom projects I wanted to focus on.”

The firm, which provides architectural and design work for residential, commercial, hospitality, and corporate construction, recently moved into a 750-square-foot office space at 122 S. Monroe. The office’s main entrance and windows face south toward the railroad tracks, offering occupants a view of trains as they pass by on the elevated rails above. 

Prior to moving into the new space, MAKE had offices in downtown’s Liberty Building at 203 N. Washington. Verduin attributes his decision to move in part to a need for more space, but also partly to a larger trend he’s been noticing here of property owners deciding to improve and repurpose downtown spaces. 

 “It seems like a combination of a good economy and the right timing, but people do seem to want to find spaces downtown to live and work,” he says. 

“Our new office is one example of a space within a larger building that’s sat empty for several years, but with new property managers it’s been remodeled and put to use,” he says. “This space just wasn’t actively marketed before, and we just happened to have a new vision for it. Improvements like this only seem to spur more improvement, so you’ll see more developers working on similar projects, I’m sure.”

He and fellow architect Henry Ho are MAKE’s only two employees so far, and Verduin says he doesn’t have plans to grow the firm much larger. 

“I’d hate to see us lose that sense of team collaboration and engagement with projects,” he says. “I don’t really see us growing beyond a five-person team, because I want us to still maintain that nimble, creative partnership.”

While Verduin is actively searching for a third architect to join the firm, he says he isn’t in any rush. 

“There’s a huge demand for talented people right now, so it’s a long recruitment process,” he says. “You have to be able to entice talented people who you know would be a good fit. Having a shortage of good architects is good for the industry and good for the economy, but a bit more difficult for employers.” 

Ho is a recent graduate of the University of Houston whom the studio helped relocate from Texas.

Verduin declines to disclose the firm’s annual revenues, but says that since hiring Ho, it has doubled the number of projects it’s working on, which has affected revenues accordingly.

“I’m expecting we’ll maintain that level of growth this year, but we could see things double again if we’re able to hire a third employee,” he says.

Verduin says MAKE currently has about seven projects in the works, including two multifamily projects in the South Perry District, two restaurants downtown, a new hotel resort property on Lake Coeur d’Alene, and several lakeside residences.

While the two restaurant projects will be improvements on existing buildings, Verduin says the rest of those mentioned will be new construction. 

“We’ve already broken ground on the multifamily projects in South Perry, and this fall will see the start of construction on the lakeside residences,” he says. 

Verduin wasn’t able to disclose details on the new hotel resort property planned for Lake Coeur d’Alene, other than to confirm it will involve new construction.

“When we started, we were a bit more heavily residential, but as we’ve grown, we’re slowly starting to do more commercial work,” he says. 

 Verduin says he prefers to be selective about projects, choosing clients who’re looking for one-on-one face time and some say in design ideas. 

“We’re not working just to work, or be able to put our name on something,” he says. “The idea of MAKE is to be able to build something as a team. Sure, sometimes that means we turn people down, but we want our clients to be able to get that personal attention they’re paying for.”

He says the personal touch seems to work, as the firm gets most of its clients through word-of-mouth advertising and referrals. 

“We don’t do any active advertising other than what we share on our website and Facebook pages,” Verduin says. “We get some repeat clients, but a lot of them are referrals from others who’ve worked with us and had a great experience.”

Verduin says the firm’s coverage area mostly encompasses the Inland Northwest, although it has done work on projects as far away as the Hawaiian Islands and a secondary school in East Africa.  

“The school in Africa is one we’re particularly proud of, because of both the client, a nonprofit ministry, and also the design freedom the client allowed us,” he says. “The school will serve nearly 700 students once it’s completed, and they’re currently building phase II that includes an amphitheater and library.”

Closer to home, Verduin says the company has seen a lot of interest in lake property remodels, which present their own challenges in regard to limited space, owner wish lists, and budgets. 

 “Sometimes, we have to get creative,” he says. “But I think that’s the real testament to success, the ability to solve those problems while staying within a budget.” 

Verduin says so far, most of the company’s work has been custom residential projects in the area, although it has completed a few commercial projects, one example being Craft Studio, a hair salon in Riverwalk Plaza, at 1003 E. Trent.

“We enjoy working on projects that are unique, use high quality materials, and that also work in some way to support the surrounding community,” he says. “Those are the goals we set out with, and when we can find clients that share that vision, it’s usually a good fit all around.”

Looking ahead, Verduin says he’d like to see MAKE become more involved in not just design, but also development of projects, including small scale, multifamily housing. 

“MAKE is currently developing its own four-unit townhouse project, and is actively pursuing other opportunities in urban areas,” he says. “Serving in a developer capacity provides certain creative flexibilities when it comes down to use of space and form that may be outside of the comfort of some of our clients.”

He adds, “It’s definitely a balancing act because you lose some of the “checks and balances” that come with the more traditional model of having a client. But at the end of the day, we want to improve the built environment with human-centered, innovative design.”

While the firm enjoys the scale of small, custom, multifamily projects, Verduin says it’s also looking to get involved in more mixed-use infill projects, both downtown and in other business districts.