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History

1991

The Beginning
  • Shane Coen meets Scott Frampton, lead foreman, during his brief employment at Holm and Olson.
  • Shane and Jon Stumpf meet in May of 1991.
  • Jon previously worked as a landscape architect at HGA under Tom Oslund.
  • Jon and Shane begin work on a business plan in September for coen + stumpf. Bill Stumpf, of William Stumpf & Associates, offers space and hardware for five years

1992

Coen + Stumpf, inc. is Incorporated in Minneapolis, MN
  • Jon and Shane design a brochure and postcard to promote their newly founded firm, targeting most architecture firms in Minnesota.
  • The first RFP response, for the Elliot Park Revitalization Project in Minneapolis, is successfully won. The Band Box diner and Elliott Park Community Gardens are highlights of the project.
  • Coen + Stumpf interviews and is awarded the design of the  St. Francis Peace Garden at St. Mary’s Hospital, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.

1993

The Firm Wins its First ASLA National Award for the Brochure & Mailer Designed in Previous Year
  • Elliot Park Revitalization Project completed.
  • Shane and Minneapolis City Councilperson Pat Scott complete an interview and walkthrough of Elliot Park, which airs on Public Television.
Jackson Meadow Before

1994

First Collaboration for David Salmela and Coen + Stumpf
  • David Salmela and Coen + Stumpf are selected to design Gooseberry Falls Visitor Center along Lake Superior’s north shore. This is the first project with David, and the first State Designer Selection Board awarded project for Coen + Stumpf.
  • Construction of St. Francis peace Garden is complete.
  • Coen + Stumpf wins Committee on Urban Environment (CUE) Award for St. Francis Peace Garden

1995

Firm Wins First ASLA-MN Award for the St. Francis Peace Garden, Rochester, MN
  • Coen + Stumpf continues to deepen relationship with David Salmela.
  • New projects with Cuningham Architects, and Partners & Sirny.
  • The first article about coen + Stumpf is published in Architecture Minnesota, which features St. Francis Peace Garden and the new firm.

1996

Firm Growth and Deepening Collaborations with Architects
  • The first employee, Vera Westrum, is hired.
  • The firm is selected as the landscape architect for the Duluth Aquarium with Holt Hinshaw architects from San Francisco and James Snow (Vincent James & Julie Snow).
  • Design begins for Type Variant house landscape, which is the first project with VJAA.

1997

The Firm's First AIA-MN Award with David Salmela is Won for Goosebury Falls Visitor Center
  • Shane and Jon meet Harold Teasdale, the future developer of Jackson Meadow.
  • The firm is hired to “re-do” the master plan for Jackson Meadow and restart both the design process and community engagement.
  • Projects in the office include: Jeffers Petroglyphs with Mulfinger Sasanka, Duluth Aquarium, Prairie Wetlands Environmental Learning Center, Jackson Meadow, and Type Variant house.
Jackson Meadow

1998

Construction Begins at Jackson Meadow in Fall of 1998
  • The firm begins working with Minneapolis Public Housing Authority on the Glendale Public Housing Masterplan.
  • Shane presents the budget and scope for a two-year phased implementation project to Hazelden and received unanimous approval for the project, far larger than anything completed prior.
  • Community meetings (42 held) in Marine on St. Croix begin with Marine approving final plat for Jackson Meadow in summer of 1998.
  • Projects include: Jackson Meadow, Salmela residences, Hazelden Master Plan, Glen Lake Elementary and Hopkins High School with Cuningham Architects.
Jackson Meadow

1999

ASLA MN Award | Jackson Meadow, Marine on St. Croix MN

AIA MN Award | Jackson Meadow, Marine on St. Croix MN
  • Projects in the office include: Jackson Meadow, Hazelden Master Plan, Minneapolis Public Housing Authority projects, Salmela residences, and school projects with Cuningham Architects.

2000

Firm Transitions Ownership to Shane Coen; Coen+Partners
  • The firm moves to Suite 710 in the Wyman Building.
  • Projects in the office include: Hi-Lake Area Plan with Peter Calthorpe Associates, Duluth Waterfront Baywalk, Jackson Meadow, Salmela residences, Hazelden Master Plan, and Hazelden Meditation Center, Albrecht Residence, Cannon Falls Community, Crosswinds Middle School, Wild Rice Restaurant.

2001

Several Projects with David Salmela are Published Locally and Nationally
  • Bryan Kramer and Stephanie Grotta join the firm.
  • Firm selected to design Red Wing Peace and Healing Garden.
  • Construction complete on Albrecht Residence with David Salmela.
  • Begin working with the Mayo Family on the Mayo Barns project.
  • Begin working on Bradshaw Columbarium and Celebration of Life center with SALA.
  • Projects include: Crosswinds Middle School, Hazelden Meditation Center, Mayo Farm, Wild Rice Restaurant, Red Wing Peace and Healing Garden, Thompson Park, and Stillwater Public Works.
Mayo Woodlands

2002

Mayo Woodlands Design Begins
  • Mayo Woodlands starts early in 2002. Bryan develops winning framework late one evening.
  • Coen+Partners selected to design United Theological Seminary landscape with HGA (soranno/cook)
  • Coen+Partners selected to design Minneapolis Central Library with Caesar Pelli.
  • Coen+Partners submits Mayo Plan #1 (Mayo Woodlands) for a P/A award.
  • Projects include: Philhopfer residence, St. John’s University community, Bradshaw, Central Library, UTS, Winona University Community, Mayo Woodlands, Steven Streeter residence, Skogmo Residence, Baumgarten residences, Thompson Park, Red Wing Peace and Healing Garden, Stillwater Public Works.

2003

Coen+Partners Wins Progressive Architecture Award
  • Linda Mack profiles Coen+Partners in Star Tribune Sunday A/E Section
  • The firm has visioning session with David Francis to help establish firm goals, identity, and direction.
  • The firm’s work is presented at University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and the Institute of Urban Design
  • Projects include: Oakridge Country Club, Tulane University, Central Library, MacPhail Residence, Nyberg Residence, Dewey Residence, Ventrudo Residence, Skogmo Residence, Yingst Residence, Bradshaw Residence, and DiLorenzo Residence

2004

NYT Profiles C+P: "Rancor in the Grass: The Battle for the Architectural Soul of Mid-America"
  • C+P installs exhibition at CALA
  • Lectures are held at UMass, CALA, and Clemson University
  • Firm interviews and wins Franconia Sculpture Park master plan project
  • Projects Include: VanHevulen, Francis Residence, Levy Residence, Smith Residence, Morgenstern Residence, Doar Residence, Larson Residence, Minneapolis Central Library, Yingst Residence, Mayo Woodlands, Sculpture Park, and Promise Hill

2005

Coen+Partners Expands to New York City
  • Architectural Record features Jackson Meadow
  • Lectures are held at NDSU, Shrinking Cities Conference, “Sustainable Waterfronts’” presentation
  • The firm is selected to design Dickerman Park in St. Paul, MN and Trollwood Performing Arts Center in Fargo, ND
  • The firm is selected by Cesar Pelli’s office to collaborate on IAS in Princeton
  • First international project begins with Le Cerrine in Palaia, Italy
  • Projects Include: Excel Energy Plaza, Targets (Roseville + Indiana), Target Atlantic Station, White Residence Streeter Residence, Epic Systems, Promise Hill, Le Cerrine, Depot Hill, Biltmore Residence, Fitzmaurice Residence, Tulane University (Lavin Bernick), Lazadaris Residence

2006

Minneapolis Central Library Construction Complete
  • The firm is profiled in Dwell magazine
  • The first GSA commission is awarded: Warroad Land Port of Entry
  • The firm receives the “Special Award for Collaboration” from AIA Minnesota
  • Projects Include: Sawtooth Residence, La Cerrine, Whittington, Sullivan Residence, Schifman Residence, Chambers Hotel, Dickerman Park, Excel Plaza, Trollood, Pohlad Residence, Pohlad Memorial, Depot Hill, Muscolino, Bellone Smith, Target, Goldman Residence, Warroad Land Port of Entry, Westminster, Sorrano Residence
Lavin Bernick Center, Tulane University

2007

Tulane University + Excel Energy Plaza Construction Complete
  • Projects Include: Pohlad residences, Hotel D’Assoufid, Sawtooth, Westminster, Soranno, Target Atlanta, Polsky Residence, Sullivan Residence, Soskin Residence, Trollwood Prior, Christakos Residence, Red Wing Park, Wacouta Trails, Van Bellinger Residence, Goldman Residence, Warroad Land Port of Entry, Lowertown, Butte Heritage Project

2008

Financial Markets Collapse
  • The firm secures Dubai Island Villas Project, wins Fort Snelling Masterplan and visitor center project and Qatar project: Doha Education City with Antoine Predock Architect, Dubai Jebel Race Track
  • Mayo Plan #1 featured in “Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes” at Walker Art Center
  • Construction complete at Soranno Residence, Westminster, and Bde Maka Ska Residence
  • Dubai markets crash, all projects terminated
  • Projects Include: Dubai Villas, Gallatin Residence, Butte Heritage, Christakos Residence, Christakos Cabin, Lowertown, Mudd Residence, Bill and Michele Pohlad Residence, Polsky Residence, Washburn, Schifman Residence, Speckmann Residence, Westminster, Soskin Residence, Warroad Land Port of Entry

2009

Westminster + Speckman Win ASLA National Award
  • The NYC branch office is closed and team members move back to MN
  • Greenwich South Visioning project begins
  • Construction Completed: Bde Maka Ska Residences, Verijsen Residence, Washburn Residence, Schifman Residence, Soskin Residence
  • Substantial Completion: Warroad Land Port of Entry
  • Residential projects are awarded in New York, Wisconsin, and Texas, including Bull Creek, a collaboration with Michael Maltzan, and the firm’s largest project to date
  • The C+P Walker exhibition continues tour in Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and elsewhere
  • Lectures are held at USC and UC Berkeley and Princeton
  • The firm is invited to Future of Design conference at University of Michigan, hosted by Monica Ponce de Leon
  • Projects Include: Bull Creek Residence, Minarovic Residence, Tarica Residence, Lacey Residence, Dock Residence, Van Buren Land Port of Entry, Thiss Residence, Washburn Residence, Vjerisen Residence, Polsky Residence, Warroad Land Port of Entry
Warroad Land Port of Entry

2010

Shane Inducted to CEO Roundtable
  • Shane teaches visiting studio at Harvard GSD
  • Shane is voted and inducted into the CEO Roundtable, started by Peter Walker and Joe Brown. Firms include, SWA, Andrea Cochran, James Corner, Ken Smith, OJB, Design Workshop, GGN, Reed Hildebrand, Hargreaves, Civitas, Mia Lehrer, Olin, Martha Schwartz, Peter Walker
  • The firm is awarded Wood House in collaboration with Brininstool+Lynch Architects
  • Lectures are held at Architalx Lecture Series at Portland Museum of Art in Portland, Maine
  • Projects Include: Ferndale Residence in collaboration with ARO, Cocoran Residence, Sky Habitat Bishan in collaboration with Safdie Architects

2011

Shane Inducted Into ASLA Council of Fellows
  • Office is highlighted at ASLA National Conference at session titled “Inside the LA Studio with Coen+Partners”
  • Shane inducted into GSA’s National Registry of Peer Professionals
  • Shane teaches visiting options studio at Harvard GSD
  • Projects Include: Wood House, Lacey Residence, Hawthorne Eco-Village, Luwan Mixed-Use Development in collaboration with Safdie Architects, Writers’ Theater in collaboration with Studio Gang, Van Buren Land Port of Entry in collaboration with Snow Kreilich

2012

Robin Ganser + Wanjing Ji Join C+P
  • Presentations are held at Mayor’s Institute on City Design Summit in Lexington, KY
  • Lectures are held at Target Corporation in Minneapolis
  • The firm begins relationship with El Dorado Architects, collaborating on a Master Plan at Wichita State University
  • Lexington Town Brand Commons design competition complete, C+P takes 2nd place
  • Projects Include: Tulsa Residence, Hendrickson Residence, Paradise Valley Residence, and Pompano Beach Civic Master Plan in collaboration with Monica Ponce de Leon
Speckmann Residence

2013

Speckmann Residence Featured in Landscape Architecture Magazine
  • The firm presents at ASLA Conference Small Business Roundup and AIA Wisconsin
  • Town Branch Commons wins ASLA-MN Award
  • C+P wins Washington Square Park in Kansas City, pursues and wins Nicollet Mall with James Corner Field Operations
  • Projects Include: Austin Residence, Marshall Service Center for MPRB, Nelson Residence in Bemidji, Prospect Park Station Master Plan, John Street Residences in Brooklyn, Washington Square Park, Nicollet Mall, Lawrence University Master Plan, Arden Drive Residence, Southern Utah University, Anytime Fitness Corporate Headquarters

2014

The Firm is Invited to Saudi Arabia to Compete for KAFD Environs Study
  • The firm invited to Saudi Arabia by the Riyadh Development Authority to compete in the KAFD Environs Study. Shane and Robin present to the high commission and win the project in collaboration with Shubin+Donaldson Architects
  • C+P begins three Los Angeles residences with Shubin+Donaldson
  • Projects Include: Harrington Road Residence, Lake Marion Residence, Hillcrest Residence, Brownsboro Road, and Higher Ground homeless shelter in collaboration with Cermak Rhoades Architects

2015

Coen+Partners Wins Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt National Design Award
  • Woodhouse is featured in Landscape Architecture Magazine
  • Lectures on Business Transparency are presented at ASLA Conference as well as the “Innovative Use of Metal and Stone in the Contemporary Landscape” with Katherine Gustafson + Mikyoung Kim at ASLA National Conference
  • Robin and Shane begin collaboration with United Properties and First Avenue Productions on Upper Harbor Terminal
  • Beverly Hills Residence completes construction
  • Projects Include: Straight River Rest Area in collaboration with Snow Kreilich Architects and 9th Street Corridor in Lawrence, KS

2016

Begins to Reimagine Future from Private to Public Work
  • “The Craft of Residential Landscapes through Personal Narratives” with Andrea Cochran and Michal Boucher is presented at ASLA National
  • Additional presentations include ASLA Oklahoma, AIA Minnesota, “Extreme LA” Lecture and Workshop with Peter Schaudt at University of Kansas and at the Nature Conservancy
  • Shane is asked to be on the Landscape Forms board
  • The firm wins DMC Public Realm Project, later dubbed “Heart of the City,” with RSP Architects in Rochester, MN
  • Robin begins work on University of Minnesota, East Gateway with United Properties
  • Sara Czerwinski joins firm and implements comprehensive financial systems reform, directing the firm toward a recession-proof model of growth
  • The firm wins five-year contract with Department of State Overseas Building Operations (OBO) with Jacobs Engineering and Beyer Blinder Belle
  • Projects include: Sun Valley, new Jackson Meadow residences, SC Johnson Master Plan, Burnet Residence, Rosewood Townhomes in collaboration with Olson Kundig

2017

Shane Presents at TEDx

 

  • Shane presents “Contextual Design is a Vehicle for Change” at TEDx Wilmington Delaware, AIA Arkansas, and the “The Process of Design: Making Meaning and Method. Where Do Ideas Come From?” with Katherine Gustafson and Mikyoung Kim at ASLA National Conference
  • Sara Czerwinski and Robin Ganser become partners
  • Collaboration on L I N E begins with Landscape Forms
  • The firm wins DMC Public Realm Project, Discovery Walk, in Rochester, MN and Peavey Plaza Revitalization with the City of Minneapolis
  • The firm organizes an architecture competition for Upper Harbor Terminal, which includes BIG Architects, Marlon Blackwell, and SHOP Architects
  • Projects include: Peavey Plaza, Belvedere Avenue, Fulbright University, Ward Commons and Ward Village collaboration with Studio Gang, Tampa Block E in collaboration with Olson Kundig Architects, Mayo Bioscience, Tree Toad Farm, Daytons Building Rooftop, Landscape Forms Modular Fence, Minneapolis Consolidated Office Building, Mt. Curve Residence, and the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library

2018

Contextual Minimalism, Coen+Partners’ Monograph Book is Published and Distributed Internationally
  • C+P Wins Master Plan for Sports Boulevard
  • After renovating the third floor of the oldest building in Minneapolis’ North Loop, Coen+Partners moves its office to 200 N. Washington Avenue
  • Lake Marion wins and lectures at LiLA Landezine International Awards
  • The firm wins four OBO Design Excellence contracts for new embassies worldwide
  • A Peavey Plaza preview is published in Architecture MN Magazine
  • Projects include: Parcel42 Residences in Washington DC, Rice Creek Commons, Loyola Performing Arts Center, Six Square House, Loll/Epicurean Headquarters, Heart of the City, Upper Harbor Terminal, Riyadh Cycling Corridor

2019

Coen+Partners Wins Contract for Sports Boulevard
  • C+P begins a “Fridays at Four” salon-style series to encourage discussions around health and equity, storytelling, art, landscape in the Anthropocene era, sustainability, and other pressing issues facing the design disciplines. Community members, colleagues, and students are welcomed into the new studio for food and conversation.
  • Shane juries LILA Landezine Awards
  • The firm wins design contract for a wellness retreat in Virginia and begins work on Crystal Bridges expansion in collaboration with Safdie Architects

2020

C+P wins ALSA-MN Award of Excellence for the Historic "Revitalization" of Peavey Plaza
  • In March 2020, COVID-19 sweeps the globe and C+P begins working remotely
  • The Destination Medical Center (DMC) breaks ground on Heart of the City project in Rochester, MN
  • C+P continues to grow and push forward in Sports Boulevard project and exploring opportunities in Saudi Arabia to promote wellness, social equity, transformation, and ecological restoration
  • As of August 2020, we had grown to 38 employees, 1 intern, and hired our first Coen+Partners employee in Riyadh
  • C+P wins project for MONA (Museum of Nebraska Art) in collaboration with BVH Architects
Heart of the City: Community Engagement

2021

Rethinking Landscape Architecture in a Shifting World
  • We embrace the unexpected opportunities that COVID-19 presents: we recruit talent from around the United States through a hybrid working model
  • Our international staff count continues to grow
  • Societal unrest in the United States and beyond further cements our commitment to public realm design that is accessible and equitable

2022

Coen+Partners Opens Office in Riyadh
  • C+P opens office in Riyadh in the JAX District—a brand new cultural and arts destination comprised of retrofitted warehouses and home to the most compelling contemporary artists and creatives in the city
1991