Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture

What Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture does

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture (HPA) is a Chicago-based architecture, interior design, and urban planning firm founded in 1987 by Ray Hartshorne and Jim Plunkard. The firm operates as a private partnership with 11–50 employees, practicing nationally from a single studio in Chicago's Near North neighborhood. Its service portfolio spans six integrated practice areas: architecture (mixed-use, high-rise residential, commercial), interior design, planning and urban design, preservation and adaptive reuse, mass timber design, and sustainable design. Notable technical specializations include CLT/DLT mass timber structural systems, AIA 2030 Commitment-aligned sustainability, and placemaking methodology rooted in contextual study of site history and urban patterns.

HPA serves enterprise B2B clients across real estate development, hospitality, and corporate end-markets. The firm generates revenue through project-based professional services fees covering design, entitlement, and construction administration. Key clients include Albion Residential, JDL Development, Google (1KFulton Midwest HQ), Soho House, Thompson Hotels, Graduate Hotels, Magnolia Hotels, Herman Miller, and Mondelez International, among others. Project acquisition is relationship-driven, with partner-led engagements from inception through completion and a high rate of repeat developer clients. The firm has accumulated a significant awards portfolio across AIA Chicago, ULI, WoodWorks, Boutique Design, and international design bodies, and has been instrumental in shaping Chicago's Fulton Market Landmark District. HPA holds no external funding, has no parent company, and is structured as a multi-partner firm with co-founders still active in leadership.

Name

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture

Legal name

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture

Website

https://hparchitecture.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is a Chicago-based architecture, interior design, and urban planning firm founded in 1987, serving real estate developers, hospitality operators, and corporate clients nationally with specialties in adaptive reuse, mass timber, and mixed-use design.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Architectural Services: Professional architectural services for mixed-use developments, adaptive reuse projects, new construction, and interior design. Revenue is generated through project-based fees for design, entitlement, and construction administration services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture (HPA) is a Chicago-based private architecture firm that provides architecture, planning, interior design, preservation, and sustainable design services for commercial and residential projects. The firm operates as a national practice delivering integrated design services for ground-up construction, adaptive reuse, and interior build-outs across diverse building typologies.

Product overview

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is a unified architecture, interior design, and urban planning practice rather than a modular software platform. The firm's core offering consists of five integrated service areas: Architecture Services (covering mixed-use, high-rise, commercial, hospitality, and adaptive reuse), Planning Design (urban placemaking and master planning), Preservation Design (historic adaptive reuse), Interior Design (residential and commercial interiors), Mass Timber Design (sustainable timber construction), and Sustainable Design (green building strategies). Projects are categorized under Commercial (office, retail, hospitality), Residential (multi-family, student living, renovations), Interiors, Planning, and Preservation portfolios. The firm practices nationally from its Chicago Near North studio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Services Full-service architectural design for new construction and renovation projects, serving commercial and residential clients on a national basis.
• Planning Design Urban planning and placemaking design services, supporting site planning, master planning, and place-making initiatives for developers and municipalities.
• Preservation Design Historic preservation and adaptive reuse design services, enabling clients to retain and repurpose existing structures in compliance with preservation standards.
• Interior Design Interior design services delivered alongside architectural projects, providing coordinated interior build-out and finish design for commercial and residential clients.
• Mass Timber Design Specialty structural design services for mass timber building projects, supporting clients pursuing wood-based structural systems in commercial and multi-family developments.
• Sustainable Design Sustainable and high-performance building design services, providing energy-efficient and environmentally responsible design strategies for new construction and renovation projects.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 25,000 residential units designed across career
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB): Chicago-based architecture and planning firm with strong overlap in mixed-use, high-rise residential, and urban infill projects. Closely comparable in size, scale, and Chicago-anchored practice serving similar developer and institutional clients.
• bKL Architecture: Chicago architecture firm focused on multi-family residential, mixed-use, and hospitality projects. Directly comparable in scale, Chicago base, and residential/mixed-use developer client base.
• Antunovich Associates: Long-established Chicago architecture firm with comparable practice in multi-family, mixed-use, and hospitality design. Similar Chicago base, scale, and developer client overlap with HPA.
• Studio Gang: Chicago-headquartered architecture and urban design practice known for mixed-use towers, sustainability, and place-driven work. Comparable in design philosophy and Chicago base, with similar focus on contextual, mixed-use urban projects.
• Pappageorge Haymes Partners: Chicago architecture firm specializing in mixed-use, multi-family residential, and adaptive reuse projects. Highly comparable in scale, Chicago base, and developer-focused practice serving similar urban infill clients.
• Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture: Chicago architecture firm known for supertall towers and large mixed-use developments. Comparable in Chicago base and high-rise/mixed-use focus, with substantially larger international project scale.
• Wight & Company: Chicago-area architecture, engineering, and construction firm with comparable mixed-use, education, and commercial work. Similar regional footprint and developer client base to HPA.

Emerging players

• LEVER Architecture: Portland-based architecture practice recognized as a US mass timber design pioneer. Comparable specialty expertise in CLT and timber construction with sustainability focus, though operating at a smaller, west-coast scale.

Broad incumbents

• Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM): Global architecture, engineering, and urban planning firm with deep Chicago roots and a long history in mixed-use, commercial, and adaptive reuse work. A much larger incumbent competing for many of the same major urban projects.
• Perkins&Will: Major global architecture practice headquartered in Chicago with deep mixed-use, healthcare, education, and commercial portfolios. Significantly larger and broader than HPA, but competes for similar developer-driven urban projects.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/hartshorne_plunkard
• Xx.com/hparchitecture
• Facebookfacebook.com/hartshorne-plunkard-architecture-108421029240152
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hartshorne-plunkard-architecture

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture