Payto Architects

What Payto Architects does

Payto Architects, Inc. is a privately held architecture and interior design firm founded in 1985 by Jerry Payto and headquartered in The Bradley Building at 1220 W 6th St in Cleveland, Ohio. The firm delivers full-service architectural design, planning, and interior design services for institutional and commercial clients, with particular depth in higher education, healthcare, and parking structure design. Its technical foundation is Building Information Modeling (BIM), supplemented by LEED Accredited Professional credentials for sustainable design work across New Construction and Commercial Interiors rating systems. Service lines span programming, master planning, feasibility studies, design guidelines, construction documents, construction administration, and adaptive reuse of historic structures.

The firm operates a project-based professional services model, engaging directly with institutional clients including state universities, healthcare systems, and municipal entities across Ohio. Recurring client relationships include Kent State University (across multiple regional campuses), Cleveland Clinic Foundation, MetroHealth, The Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University, University of Akron, and the City of Salem. Distribution is exclusively direct enterprise field sales with no intermediary channels, and geographic scope is concentrated in Northeast Ohio with statewide Ohio extension. Marketing is driven by an award-heavy portfolio (multiple AIA, NAIOP, and Builders Exchange honors since 1979) and client referrals rather than paid acquisition.

The business is founder-aligned and independently operated, with Jeffery D. Foster serving as President & Principal. The firm operates with 11-50 employees and reports no external investment, parent company, or acquisition activity. Recent strategic activity centers on a public-private partnership with Premier Development Partners for the Kent State University Regional Academic Center, ongoing work on the Hattie Larlham Center for Children with Disabilities (2024-2026), and expansion into multifamily residential through the Jefferson Hill Townhomes project (2023-2026).

Name

Payto Architects

Legal name

Payto Architects, Inc.

Website

https://www.paytoarchitects.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Payto Architects is an architectural and interior design firm that offers planning, design, and construction administration services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (54131), Interior Design Services (54141)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAHAKAA

Architectural Design Services

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

SECONDARYBPAHAKAB

Interior Design Services

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

SECONDARYBPAHAKAI

Space Planning & Workplace Design

Business & Public Services/Professional Services (Legal, Accounting, Consulting)/Architecture, Design & Planning Services

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Master planning services
• Interior design services
• Construction administration
• LEED certification services

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Full-service architectural design including programming, estimating, fit plans, landscape design, specifications, construction documents, construction administration, equipment planning, code compliance studies, facilities assessment and documentation, and architectural renderings
2. Planning Services: Facility planning, master planning, space planning, urban planning and design, design guidelines, land use and zoning analysis, environmental analysis, site selection studies, and feasibility studies
3. Interior Design Services: Facility master planning, facility assessment, interior design, furniture fixtures and equipment, graphic design and signage systems

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Payto Architects provides full-service architectural design, planning, and interior design services for institutional, healthcare, corporate, governmental, and residential clients in Ohio. The firm's three core service lines include Architectural Design (programming, estimating, fit plans, construction documents, construction administration, BIM, LEED certification), Planning (facility planning, master planning, urban planning, feasibility studies), and Interiors (interior design, FF&E, signage). Projects span master planning engagements through to construction administration across multiple sectors.

Product overview

Payto Architects is an architecture firm offering comprehensive design services organized into three core service lines: Architectural Design Services, Planning Services, and Interiors Services. The firm operates across multiple project categories including Education, Science & Technology, Healthcare, Recreation, Retail & Workplace, Transportation, Planning & Public Spaces, and Residential & Adaptive Reuse. Their service offerings range from initial programming and master planning through construction administration, with specialized expertise in LEED certification, adaptive reuse, and sustainable design practices. The portfolio demonstrates experience across institutional, commercial, healthcare, recreational, and residential building types primarily in Northeast Ohio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architectural Design Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 75% of parking garage projects have won awards for architectural design excellence
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Premier Development PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic-private partnership for Kent State University Regional Academic Center in Twinsburg, Ohio. Payto Architects served as the architecture firm while Premier Development Partners handled the private sector development aspect. The partnership bridged protocols between public sector university requirements and private sector development practices.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Bostwick Design Partnership: Cleveland-based architecture and interior design firm serving healthcare, education, and corporate clients with comparable regional Midwestern institutional focus.
• Moody Nolan: Large Ohio-headquartered architecture firm with deep higher-education and healthcare practices; similar institutional client base in Ohio and the Midwest.
• BHDP Architecture: Cincinnati-based architecture firm with comparable higher education, healthcare, and workplace practices; similar institutional Midwestern focus.
• Legat Architects: Midwest-architecture firm with comparable higher education, healthcare, and adaptive reuse practices; competes for similar institutional contracts.
• DesignGroup: Columbus, Ohio-based architecture and planning firm focused on healthcare, education, and corporate clients with similar regional Midwest footprint.

Broad incumbents

• Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with strong higher-education and healthcare practices; competes for institutional clients in Ohio and beyond.
• HOK: Large global design firm with dedicated healthcare, education, and transportation practices that overlap with Payto's institutional focus.
• CannonDesign: National architecture firm with strong healthcare and education practices; competes for marquee institutional work in the Midwest.
• HGA Architects and Engineers: National firm with deep healthcare and higher-education expertise; comparable practice mix to Payto's institutional verticals.

Regional players

• Richard Fleischman & Architects: Historic adaptive-reuse specialist in Cleveland with comparable preservation and adaptive reuse expertise relevant to Payto's residential/business offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Payto Architects