Dorek Rusin

Biography: Jamie Rusin Principal ELS Architecture and Urban Design Berkeley, CA D. JAMIE RUSIN, AIA, is a Principal with Berkeley-based ELS Architecture and Urban Design. Mr. Rusin joined ELS in 1984 and has directed many of the retail, mixed-use and urban-design projects that have sustained ELS' national reputation for successful design and sensitive, context-based planning. His work reflects the firm's vision and underlying philosophy of design solutions that respect their environmental and cultural context, achieve architectural and technical excellence, and create places that celebrate and enhance the experience of urban life. For Mueller in Austin, Texas, Mr. Rusin is currently master planning the core of the airport redevelopment into a locally inspired, mixed-use town center. His current work also includes renovating and expanding retail properties throughout the western United States by adding new uses, converting interior mall space to exterior shopping, and integrating formerly isolated projects with their surrounding communities. The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) has recognized three of Mr. Rusin's projects - Park Place in Tucson, Eastridge in San Jose, and Denver Pavilions - in the International Design and Development Awards program. In addition, he led the design for Sundance Kabuki Cinemas, a widely recognized and innovative project integrating hospitality with cinemas, and for the renovation of the mixed-use Embarcadero Center, both in San Francisco. His urban design work includes the Downtown Plan for Sunnyvale, California, which revitalizes a historic main street and a failing mall into a mixed-use, transit-oriented district. Mr. Rusin graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture in 1980. He returned to receive a Master of Architecture in 1984, and upon graduation was awarded the Eisner Prize for Architecture for design excellence. Mr. Rusin is an active member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Entertainment Development Council, ICSC, and the Congress for the New Urbanism. He recently assisted the ULI with its publication, "Ten Principles for Rethinking the Mall," and presents at the ULI Real Estate School and the University of California, Berkeley. A member of the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), Mr. Rusin is licensed to practice in several states. (June 09)