Lauran E. Drown

Experience

Lauran Drown possesses expertise in the design and construction administration of commercial projects, including heritage conservation projects. Since joining WJE in 2018, Mrs. Drown has contributed to building enclosure projects involving forensic investigations, condition assessment reports, and repair design for existing buildings, as well as enclosure peer review and design for new construction projects. Her experience with roofing includes field investigation, reroofing and repair design, design for new construction, and construction phase observation.

Before joining WJE, Mrs. Drown owned her own practice, where she provided design and construction-related services for clients in the San Antonio region and beyond, with a focus on projects involving earthen construction. She continues to lead the way in this field as vice president of the nonprofit Earthen Construction Initiative (ECI), where she had a significant impact in changing the City of San Antonio’s building code to include provisions for earthen construction. Through ECI, her involvement includes technical research and developing codes and standards for earthen construction.

REPRESENTATIVE PROJECTS

Building Enclosure Consulting and Design

• University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), John Peace Library: Assessment and design to replace precast concrete panels with curtain wall in 1970s brutalist structure
• Texas DMV Camp, Hubbard Campus - Austin: Building enclosure assessment and peer review for renovations and new construction
• TXDOT Campus Consolidation - Austin: Building enclosure peer review and construction administration assistance
• Wasatch Peaks Resort - UT: Building enclosure peer review and construction period support for commercial and residential structures
• Ladera Elementary School - San Antonio, TX: Design of metal roof for new construction
• UTSA, Graduate Student Research Building and Recreation Complex: Roof coping renovation for watertightness
• Hurricane Harvey Recovery Projects - Rockport, TX: Construction phase observation for roof replacement and repair projects
• MUSC Children’s Hospital - Charleston, SC: Post-hurricane construction leak finding and roof repairs
• Linda Pace Foundation, Ruby City Museum - San Antonio, TX: Construction observation and performance testing of curtain walls

 

Historic Preservation

• Mission San Jose - San Antonio, TX: Programming and design for preservation of barracks building
• University of Texas Main Building – Austin Assessment and design for replacement of clay tile, copper, and waterproofing membranes at main tower
• Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park, Texas White House and Hangar - Stonewall : Assessment, design, and construction administration for roofing replacement and building envelope repairs
• Immaculate Heart of Mary Church - San Antonio, TX: Structural rehabilitation, roofing and waterproofing replacement, and masonry repairs for steeple rehabilitation
• Mission Espada - San Antonio, TX: Design and construction observation for in situ rotation of historic masonry site wall
• Terry Sanford Federal Building - Raleigh, NC: Building enclosure condition assessment of precast concrete structure
• U.S. Post Office-Courthouse - Charleston, SC: Building enclosure conditions assessment of historic masonry structure
• Centre Block Parliament Building - Ottawa, ON: Heritage envelope rehabilitation involving masonry, copper roofs, windows, and foundation stabilization *

 * Project with other firm

Professional Affiliations

American Institute of Architects
Association of Preservation Technology
Earthen Construction Initiative
Vernacular Architect Group

Registrations

Architect in TX

Education

University of Cincinnati
Bachelor of Science, Architecture, 2007

McGill University
Master of Architecture, 2012