Engineering News-Record has selected Felder & Associates, a Savannah architecture and design firm, and West Construction Co. to receive its Southeast Region Award of Merit for the Bouhan Falligant building at 1 West Park Ave. Considered the design and construction industry’s leading publication since the late 1800s, ENR is a weekly magazine that provides engineering and construction news.

Felder served as the design firm for the structure that now anchors the south end of Savannah’s Forsyth Park and is the new home for Savannah’s oldest law firm. ENR recognized the $4.65 million project for being completed ahead of schedule in just nine months despite being impacted by Hurricane Matthew in 2016 during construction.

“As you can imagine, there are at least dozens of entries from all over the region," said Brian Felder, founder and managing principal. "This is a huge recognition in our world as ENR has been the design and construction industry’s leading publication dating back to the late eighteen-hundreds.”

ENR Southeast selects an independent group of judges to review submitted projects and determine final winners based on the size and scope of the project. This year’s judges reviewed over 90 projects before selecting winners which also includes SunTrust Park (the new Atlanta Braves Stadium), the Clemson University Football Complex, and the University of South Carolina School of Law Building.

West Construction Co. served as the Bouhan Falligant building project’s general contractor with Thomas and Hutton as the civil and structural engineer and Chatham Engineering as the MEP engineer, along with approximately 40 team members representing many trades and professions from across the local region. Working with Felder & Associates, this team helped deliver the project in a timely fashion.

“Receiving recognition from a respected publication like ENR is very rewarding for us, as well as for the team of subcontractors and vendors who worked tirelessly to meet the project’s challenging schedule,” said West Construction Company President Matt West. “We are very proud of the hard work the entire team put into this project, but most importantly we are proud of a successful project and a satisfied client.”

The awards were broken down by geographic region as well as by category. The team’s Award of Merit fell under the “Small Projects” category for construction projects under $10 million.

ENR also acknowledged Felder & Associates’ efforts to work within the constraints of Savannah’s height ordinance and design guidelines in its Landmark Historic District in the building’s design aspects: “Project team members opted for a detailed masonry exterior of brick and cast stone, with an interior featuring energy-efficient HVAC, LED lighting, impact-rated stainless steel entry door, structural steel framing and permeable pavers for parking.”

“One West Park has proven to be the perfect fit for our needs. It offers exceptional office and meeting spaces with state-of-the-art technology, all while fitting in with the surrounding historic neighborhood,” said Lea Holliday, managing partner, Bouhan Falligant. “We look forward to many years serving our clients in this building.”

Featuring Chicago-style architecture, the Bouhan Falligant building was completed one percent under budget and two weeks ahead of schedule.

“We’re really excited about this recognition, and it solidifies what we already knew — that this was a great project for a great client with a great team,” Felder said. “It was important to us to create a building that suited our image of the law firm. The building needed to fit the firm and its prominent location on the southern end of Forsyth Park. We are also very thankful for this client. They were a pleasure to work with, and helped us by making critical decisions in a timely manner, which made it easier for us to navigate the local regulatory processes.”