Luce Architects

g collaboration. Even more impressive is the fact the LUCE Architects are so versatile in their talents, equally capable of designing compelling spaces for residential and commercial alike-from luxury homes, upscale restaurants and churches worthy of glossy magazine covers to ambitious townhome villages and 500-unit apartment communities-on both sides of the Delaware River and beyond. Luce attributes his unique skill set to his artistic side and, in some ways, his DNA, “I always wanted to be an artist,” he says, through his father, who worked for a regional builder, suggested his son follow a career path toward architectural design. He pursued hid Bachelor of Architecture degree through the nighttime program at Drexel University while working full time to support his growing family. The experience taught him discipline and the value of hard work, while honing his ability to look at things differently than most architects might.

“When I’m designing a space, I’m thinking about the engineering in the back of my head at the same time,” he says. “It’s a matter of blending art and function. I might go through someone’s house 100 times in my mind throughout the design process just so I know what it’s like to be in their shoes. I want to make sure that I get every angle just right in the design. Our goal is to exceed every client’s expectations.”

Clients aren’t the only ones who have noticed the firm’s skill. The Home Builders Association of Chester and Delaware Counties bestowed Luce Architects with the 2011 Custom Home of the year Award for a ground-up home in Thornbury. In fact, the firm’s trophy case is getting crowded, having won Best Original House Plan awards in 2006 and 2008 from the House Builders Association of Bucks/Montgomery Counties. The most recent winning design, in Chester County, references the French Manor style with a modern flair that Luce describes as “gracious” and “stately.”