RPGA is an award-winning architecture and interior design firm creating innovative and unique design solutions that are “outside-the-box” but still within budget. Founded in 1989, by twin brothers Rick and Robert Garza and later joined by Javier Lucio in 1995, RPGA has grown to a talented staff of 20 with over 150 years of combined experience. RPGA engages in a wide variety of project types including single family residential, multi family, commercial, municipal, institutional, religious, cultural and medical. Throughout RPGA’s existence historic preservation has maintained a special focus. Rick and Robert both live in North Oak Cliff in Conservation and Historic neighborhoods respectively and, through RPGA, have contributed significantly to the restoration and improvement of these neighborhoods through careful design and restoration of numerous existing multi-family and single family homes in both The Kings Highway Conservation District and The Lake Cliff Historical District. Fueled by their passion for historic architecture and with an insistence on design excellence they are driven to R ender practical solutions that only come from experience, P rovide continuous hands-on principal involvement, G oal establishments that are always creative…keep them challenged and never complacent,  A lways client-driven, not ego-driven

They listen and focus on designing a project that is true to the client’s vision. With their passion to solve design and building solutions, they successfully engage with clients early to create a shared vision for their program, and the most effective use of their project budget. They then prepare creative scenarios for efficient, yet effective initial project developments. The Garzas are proud to say that through all of their projects, RPGA has continued to demonstrate an unparalleled ability to deliver projects which possess tremendous character and warmth while maintaining architectural integrity.  RPGA works innovatively and strives to understand the big picture, but is also practical and will work within the budget. They go out of their way to listen, solicit input and pay attention to details. RPGA has the experience to know what works and doesn't, but are not afraid to try new things. 

 

RPGA's distinct client list includes homes in DFW neighborhoods such as Mira Vista, West Briar, Trinity Heights and Westover Hills, Highland Park, Turtle Creek, State Thomas, North Oak Cliff, and East Dallas, as well as a wide variety of other exclusive neighborhoods throughout Texas and the United States. RPGA's commercial portfolio includes space planning for Southlake Town Square, Municipal and Institutional portfolio includes numerous DISD and FWISD schools, Dallas, Irving, Fort Worth and New Braunfels Fire Stations as well as Southlake DPS Headquarters, North Training Facility, and Highland Park’s Town Hall, and DPS Headquarters. The firm has also won multiple Preservation Achievement Award from Preservation Dallas for their projects. Find out more about the firm go here.

Earlier this month at the AIA Dallas' Celebrate Architecture 2019, Preservation Dallas Executive Director David Preziosi was one of four to receive a Community Honors Award. Those awards are bestowed on persons, firms, corporations, or associations for meritorious work in their respective fields and that have contributed to the architectural and artistic quality of life in Dallas. In addition, several people with ties to preservation were also recognized including Preservation Dallas board member Norm Alston for receiving his Fellowship with the AIA, Cris Jordan received an Honorary AIA Membership, The Statler and Factory Six03 received honor awards for their rehabilitation, Heritage Oak Cliff received a Community Honors Award, and the Lifetime Achievement Award was given posthumously to Bryce Weigand, FAIA. To view the full list of awards and recognitions go here.

Congratulations to all those that attended our Historic House Specialist Seminar and Advanced Seminar this spring! It was a really great group of realtors and preservation-minded people. We hope to see many more faces at our next round of seminars in the fall!

The organizers of the 21 ^st Annual Legacies Dallas History Conference welcome proposals from both professional and lay historians on the theme, “Disasters: Natural and Man-made". Proposals should be accompanied with sample images if possible. Those interested in presenting papers should submit a brief summary of their proposal by July 31, 2019. The 21st Annual Legacies History Conference will be held on Saturday, January 25, 2020. More information can be found here .

The biggest news in the preservation world currently is the unimaginable damage caused by the fire that engulfed the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. As one of Paris’ and France’s most iconic historic buildings it has resulted in tremendous sadness for preservationists, architectural historians, the citizens of France, and even the general public from all over the world who visited the Cathedral. I was lucky enough to visit the Cathedral in college on my way through to the Netherlands, France and Spain to my study abroad program in Italy. As an architecture student I marveled at the structure’s construction and the incredible stained glass windows. I also remember climbing one of the two front towers and reveling in the amazing views of the city and the Cathedral’s gargoyles. Many people have similar memories and connections to the historic site which make it that much more unbelievable that something like that could happen to something so beloved by countless people. Thompson Mayes of the National Trust for Historic Preservation just released an article on “Why the Cathedral of Notre Dame Matters” which is an excellent piece on why historic places are so important to our sense of place and identity. You can view the article here .

Another terrible disaster for a historic place much closer to home, which didn’t make the main stream news, is the Caddo Mounds State Historic Site not too far from here in Alto, which is south of Tyler. A tornado ripped through the community on April 13th causing terrible damage to the historic site with one fatality and 30 to 40 people injured, including members of the Caddo Nation and Friends of Caddo Mounds who were meeting at the time in a replica of a Caddo grass house on the site. To find out more about the disaster go here .

Fire has always been an enemy of buildings with history littered with fires that have devastated landmarks and cites, such as the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 which devastated the city and spurred the construction of “fire-proof” buildings of masonry and steel after the fire. In Dallas, we have lost many historic buildings to fire including the Adair Home on Swiss Avenue in 1941, the Travis Elementary School in 1955, the Torch Restaurant in 1970, the Trinity Methodist Church in 1981 which was a City of Dallas Landmark, the Ross Avenue Baptist Church in 2002 which was also a City of Dallas Landmark, and the Dreyfuss Club in 2006.

Fire was such a threat that in 1866 the Sanborn Fire Insurance Map Company produced a map of Boston to help insurance companies assess the risks involved in underwriting policies. Since then over 1.2 million maps have been produced for over 12,000 cities in America, including Dallas. The maps included information on building foot prints, number of stories and construction material along with locations for water mains and hydrants. Maps were updated every few years and have proven to be an incredible resource for people studying the evolution of cities and individual building histories. The maps can be accessed through the Dallas Public Library – Dallas History and Archives Division. 

Disasters, like fire and tornadoes, are difficult to predict and in the preservation world we can only prepare for that by making sure historic buildings are as safe as possible. The recent disasters prove that historic places decades and even hundreds of years old are still fragile places that can be easily destroyed. We must cherish what we have and work as best we can to protect those places so that future generations get to enjoy and learn from them as we have done. 

Wednesday, May 8

3926 Potomac



Save the date! Join us at this beautiful 1921 Hal Thompson home which will receive a 2019 Preservation Achievement Award on May 15th! Wilson Fuqua, the preservation architect will speak about the work he did on this gorgeous home! Reservation information to follow soon!

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