Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects

What Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects does

Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects (operating as MCWB Architects) is a privately held architecture, planning, and historic preservation firm headquartered at 388 Broadway in Albany, New York, with a second office in Williamsburg, Virginia. Tracing its origins to 1941 and its current partnership name to 1995, the firm serves institutional clients — universities, state and local governments, cultural and historic institutions, religious organizations, and select high-end private residential clients — primarily across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Southeast United States. Its portfolio includes nationally significant landmarks such as Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, George Washington's Mount Vernon, James Madison's Montpelier, the New York State Capitol, the Maryland State House, and Frank Lloyd Wright's Florida Southern College campus.

The firm's core offering spans architecture (new building design, adaptive use, renovations, additions, conjectural reconstructions, interior/furniture/lighting/landscape design), historic preservation (restoration, conservation, reconstruction, building envelope and historic roofing, landmark applications, historic tax credit and grant assistance), building archaeology (systematic study of 17th–20th century structures supported by materials science, construction history, and archival research), planning (conditions surveys, master plans, campus heritage plans, feasibility studies, SEQR applications), and digital documentation. The digital documentation practice employs 3D laser scanning, drone and aerial photography, Matterport, photogrammetry, VR/AR, and Historic Building Information Modeling (HBIM) to produce accurate base drawings and 3D models for complex restoration work.

MCWB operates a project-based professional services model, engaging institutional clients directly through field/enterprise sales and delivering multi-year, quote-based engagements from concept through construction administration. Pricing is bespoke and not publicly disclosed. The firm is structured as a partnership currently led by three partners — Laurence F. Wilson, M. Jeffrey Baker, and Thomas A. Burgess — supported by a staff of roughly two-dozen senior managers, project managers, architects, architectural historians, building conservators, and digital documentation specialists. No external funding, institutional investment, or parent company is evidenced.

Name

Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects

Legal name

Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects

Website

https://mcwb-arch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1941

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

MCWB Architects is a privately held architecture, planning, and historic preservation firm in Albany, NY and Williamsburg, VA, serving universities, governments, and cultural institutions on landmark restoration projects including Monticello, Mount Vernon, and state capitols.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (54131), Architectural Services (541310)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Historic Preservation & Conservation Planning (BPAHAKAH), Landscape Architecture & Site Design (BPAHAKAC)

Keywords

• Historic preservation architecture
• Building archaeology services
• Adaptive reuse design
• Architectural conservation services
• Cultural facilities design

Headquarters

HQ city

Albany

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Architecture and Preservation Services: Professional architecture and historic preservation services including new building design, adaptive use, renovations, additions, conjectural reconstructions, interior design, furniture design, lighting design, site and landscape design, restoration, conservation, reconstruction, renovation, building envelope services, historic roofing, architectural studies, landmark applications, and historic preservation grants.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects provides professional architecture, historic preservation, building archaeology, planning, and digital documentation services for educational, cultural, religious, governmental, and private clients. The firm documents and designs interventions for historic buildings using 3D laser scanning, photogrammetry, and drone/aerial photography, and applies building archaeology analysis to interpret and conserve historic fabric. Projects typically encompass existing-conditions surveys, preservation planning, adaptive reuse design, and construction administration for institutional and heritage clients.

Product overview

MCWB Architects is an award-winning architecture and historic preservation firm offering a unified suite of services centered on architecture, historic preservation, building archaeology, planning, and digital documentation. The firm specializes in preserving and restoring significant historic structures, including state capitols, university campuses, presidential homes, and cultural landmarks. Their digital documentation services complement traditional architectural services, enabling precise restoration work on complex historic buildings. The firm operates from two offices in Albany, New York and Williamsburg, Virginia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Full architectural design, planning, and construction administration services for new construction, additions, and renovations across educational, cultural, religious, governmental, and private-sector projects, delivered from offices in Albany, NY and Williamsburg, VA.
• Historic Preservation Preservation planning, restoration, and adaptive reuse services for historically significant buildings, including work with State Historic Preservation Office review processes and stewardship clients.
• Building Archaeology Fabric-level investigation and analysis of historic structures, documenting phasing, construction history, and material evolution to inform preservation and adaptive reuse design decisions.
• Planning Master planning, feasibility studies, and pre-design planning services supporting institutional, campus, and cultural clients preparing capital projects and stewardship strategies for historic and contemporary facilities.
• Digital Documentation Digital existing-conditions documentation of historic buildings using 3D laser scanning, drone and aerial photography, and photogrammetry, producing records suitable for preservation planning, design, and heritage stewardship.

Quantifiable outcome

• Williams College Fort Bradshaw achieved LEED Gold and Living Building Challenge Petal Certification
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Nelson Byrd WoltzminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLandscape architecture firm collaborating on the Mount Vernon landscape plan project alongside MCWB Architects and Beyer Blinder Belle.
• Beyer Blinder BelleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture firm collaborating with MCWB Architects on landscape plan for Mount Vernon.
• Barge Waggoner Sumner & Cannon, Inc.minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLocal Nashville architecture firm collaborated with MCWB for the renovation and restoration of Davidson County Courthouse.
• The George Washington FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMCWB collaborated with The George Washington Foundation to research and reconstruct George Washington's childhood home at Ferry Farm, informed by archaeological evidence and historical research.
• Frank Lloyd Wright Archives at Taliesin WestcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMCWB utilized original records from Frank Lloyd Wright Archives at Taliesin West and Getty Research Institute for creating comprehensive heritage plans for Florida Southern College campus.
• Getty Research InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMCWB utilized collections from Getty Research Institute for researching original Frank Lloyd Wright designs for Florida Southern College campus heritage planning.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Consigli Construction Co., Inc. Northeast construction management firm with a substantial cultural-institution and higher-education portfolio. Operates on the same Eastern US institutional client base and competes indirectly as construction partner or alternative delivery lead.

Direct peers

• Schwartz/Silver Architects: Boston-based firm specializing in preservation, restoration, and adaptive reuse of historic buildings. Closely comparable in scale and portfolio scope (campuses, religious and civic structures) to MCWB.
• Ann Beha Architects: Boston preservation and contemporary architecture firm focused on cultural, civic, and educational institutions. Direct head-to-head competitor for the same Ivy League and heritage campus work MCWB pursues in the Northeast.
• Page & Turnbull: San Francisco preservation architecture firm serving cultural institutions, universities, and government clients. Comparable vertical mix (education, government, cultural heritage) and similar scope of restoration, conservation, and adaptive reuse services.
• Beyer Blinder Belle: New York-based architecture firm specializing in preservation, adaptive reuse, and restoration of landmark buildings. A current MCWB collaborator on the Mount Vernon landscape plan, BBB directly competes for the same institutional and government restoration commissions.
• Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates: Engineering and architecture firm with deep historic preservation and building-envelope practices. Frequently engaged on the same universities, state capitols, and house museums as MCWB and overlaps significantly on envelope and roofing restoration work.
• Quinn Evans Architects: Mid-Atlantic and Midwest preservation architecture firm with strong cultural-institution and government portfolio. Direct rival for state capitol, university, and heritage restoration commissions beyond MCWB's primary Eastern footprint.
• EverGreene Architectural Heritage: Specialty firm in architectural conservation, decorative finishes, and historic restoration. Often subcontracted or paired on the same preservation projects as MCWB and competes for the conservation line item on landmark interiors.
• John G. Waite Associates, Architects: New York preservation architecture firm founded by John G. Waite, a former name partner at MCWB's predecessor (Mendel Mesick Cohen Waite). Operates in the same niche of restoring national-significance landmarks and competes head-to-head with MCWB.

Emerging players

• Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects: Landscape architecture firm specializing in culturally significant and historic landscapes, with projects at Monticello and Mount Vernon. Frequently co-appears on the same heritage commissions as MCWB and competes for design-of-record on integrated site/building landmark work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/mcwbarchitecture
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mcwbarchitects

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Mesick Cohen Wilson Baker Architects