About the Award
In 1979, the chapter created the LMR medal, the first of which was presented to Lutah Maria Riggs and it was the boards intention to honor her further by granting others the medal, which represents recognition of a lifetime of love and pursuit of architecture.
In 2007, AIASB minted more Lutah Maria Riggs medals and now it is an annual community award.
The Lutah Maria Riggs Presidents Award recognizes an AIA Santa Barbara member or firm whose work, community service and civic engagement have had a lasting influence for the betterment of Santa Barbara’s built environment. Recipients must have both a body of distinguished architectural design and a history of advocacy for community architectural engagement in the area.
Recipients
2023 Robert Ooley, FAIA
Robert is an award-winning public-sector architect and writer. He was elevated into the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects for his distinctive accomplishments as County Architect in Santa Barbara. Regionally recognized as a historic preservation professional and advocate, his leadership efforts for the Santa Barbara Courthouse Conservation earned the 2019 Preservation Design Award for Craftsmanship by the prestigious California Preservation Foundation and the California Governor’s Preservation Award in 2012, 2015. and 2018. Robert recently published a book titled ‘Butterfly Wood – Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie House West’ and is an acknowledged regional expert on Frank Lloyd Wright.
2022 Detlev Peikert
Over the past 40 years of professional practice as an architect in Santa Barbara, Detlev—or Detty, as he’s known—has been dedicated to serving the community by advocating for sustainable design, affordable housing, livable communities, and a vision for the future of Santa Barbara’s downtown. As a natural addition to his architecture roots, Mr. Peikert has also acted as general partner in developing a number of affordable housing projects for low-income families. This strength of experience significantly enhances the services he provides for his clients and in advocating for the Santa Barbara community. Detty’s growing legacy involves many local residential, commercial, and civic projects that will benefit residents and visitors for decades to come.
2021 William “Bill” T. Mahan
As President of the Chapter in 1979, Bill established the first permanent office that included part-time staff; providing a vital link between the community, membership, contractors, potential clients, and the Institute. Also, as a past-president and board member he helped establish a permanent AIA Architectural Archive where all existing County permitted plans are stored, making them available to architects and citizens. He is a co-founder of the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara (AFSB), a tax-exempt community organization. His central involvement in the Foundation allowed him to participate in identifying and purchasing the historic Acheson House with contributions given to the AFSB. It is the permanent home of the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara and the AIA Santa Barbara Chapter. He has served as representative of AIASB to the California Council-AIA and State Board of Architectural Examiners. In 2008 he was given the Citizen Architect Award by AIA National.
2020 Cassandra Ensberg, FAIA
Cassandra has been a resident and leader in the Santa Barbara design, art, and architectural community for over 30 years. She and her architect husband Tom Jacobs, AIA, work together at their firm Ensberg Jacobs Design Inc with a focus on art, design, sustainability, the environment, and our community. In 1987 she founded the Kids Draw Architecture Program during formation of the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara (AFSB) and to fulfill the Foundation’s mission of increasing public awareness about the built environment and the importance of design, art, and architecture. In 2016 Cassandra was recognized by AIA nationally and elevated to Fellow of the American Institute of Architects for her work focused on the art of architecture.
2019 Ellen Bildsten, AIA
The AIASB is proud to honor Ellen Bildsten, AIA with the Lutah Maria Riggs Metal. Ellen’s work on and in support of the AIA Santa Barbara’s Advocacy Committee is simply inspiring. While managing a thriving architectural practice, she has devoted countless hours tracking, motivating, and leading a very active Advocacy Committee working on a myriad of issues from Housing to Permitting. She is a past president of AIASB, has served on the state board of AIA California, and an active mentor to the women and emerging professionals of the chapter.
2018 Carl Palmer
In light of the tragic events of the Thomas Fire and resulting debris flow the Lutah Maria Riggs President Award is being conveyed this year for outstanding community service. In doing so AIA Santa Barbara recognizes the community’s extensive response to assist those effected by this unprecedented disaster. The American Institute of Architects, Santa Barbara is proud to have selected Carl Palmer, whose leadership, compassion and dedication have contributed significantly to community healing and recovery in the wake of the catastrophe. Carl is the founder of LegacyWorks Group and has led innovative community impact initiatives for the past 17 years.
2017 Brian Cearnal, AIA
The American Institute of Architects, Santa Barbara is proud to have selected to local architect and community leader, Brian Cearnal, AIA, LEED AP for the Lutah Maria Riggs Award. Cearnal, founding partner of The Cearnal Collective, a local and distinguished architectural firm, has been an integral part of the Santa Barbara architectural community since 1980; demonstrating consistently throughout this time a strong dedication to beautiful and significant architecture and community leadership.
1988 Jeanne Gaffy
1986 David Gebhard
1982 Fred Noel, AIA
1980 Architectural Firm of Edwards and Pitman
1979 Lutah Maria Riggs, FAIA