James McDonald Associate Architects, PC

James McDonald

Lynne McDonald

James McDonald dates his love of the built environment back to a childhood spent around construction sites, and to early exposure to great European architecture. He founded James McDonald Associate Architects in 2009 and now heads an architectural staff of 14, shepherding clients through the design-and-build process.

“We rely on extensive experience and an understanding of the real estate market and trends in leading clients towards the right solutions,” McDonald says. “Our design strength and expertise is balanced with the flexibility to listen to our clients and design a project that perfectly fits their wishes for their new home.”

McDonald and his team start every project by holding a design charrette with the client, putting pen to paper in the first meeting. In this way, the client can explore multiple ideas with the design team, responding and expanding the discussion in real time. “We walk out of the meeting with a design direction everyone is happy about,” McDonald explains.

In 2021, JMAA was named a top resid- ential architecture firm in Virginia by homebuilderdigest.com. The firm regularly wins local and regional awards for custom home design through the Northern Virginia Building Industry Association’s GALA Awards and the Southeast Building Conference’s Aurora Awards.

 

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