Service Areas — New York
Albany, NY Architecture & Interior Design
The Capital Region is where LEAP built its early portfolio, and Albany remains close to the studio's heart. Our built work here spans downtown row-house renovations, full-floor workplaces like the CapCity Coworks space at 11 North Pearl, and mission-driven projects including Capital Roots' Urban Grow Center in neighboring Troy.
Row houses and urban renovation
Albany's brick row houses — Center Square, Hudson/Park, the Mansion District — carry the same renovation logic as Brooklyn's brownstones at a friendlier price of entry. We reopen chopped floor plans, restore street-facing character, and bring building systems into this century.
Commercial and workplace design
From coworking floors to office fit-outs for major employers, our Capital Region commercial work is designed around measurable outcomes: attendance, collaboration, and operating costs. The 18th-floor workspace at 11 North Pearl remains one of our favorite proofs.
Mission-driven institutions
Albany's nonprofit and civic fabric fits LEAP's founding purpose. Capital Roots, Soul Fire Farm's education building, and healthcare projects like Core Physical Therapy all demonstrate the same conviction: community buildings deserve serious architecture.
Local knowledge that shapes the work
Building regulations in Albany
Albany projects run through the city's Division of Buildings & Regulatory Compliance, with zoning under the ReZone Albany code and historic-district work reviewed by the Historic Resources Commission. Commercial fit-outs add state code and, for assembly uses, tighter egress and accessibility review. It is a navigable system that rewards complete drawings — our standard practice.
Neighborhoods and building stock
Center Square, Hudson/Park, Washington Park, and the Mansion District carry Albany's historic row-house fabric; Pine Hills and Buckingham Lake its family neighborhoods; downtown its converted office and loft stock. Our years of Capital Region practice put built LEAP work — residential and commercial — within a short walk of most of them.
Design considerations we bring
Albany's row houses share Brooklyn's typology with their own accent: narrower lots, brick bearing walls, and winters that make envelope work non-negotiable. Commercial clients here get big-market design thinking scaled to Capital Region rents — which is exactly why projects like the 11 North Pearl coworking floor punch above their weight.
“Our team actually wants to be in the office now. The lounge Eric designed became the heart of the whole company.”
Questions we hear from Albany clients
Do you still work in the Capital Region now that you're NYC-based?
Actively. The studio's roots — and a large share of its built portfolio — are here, from Capital Roots to CapCity Coworks to residential work across the city's historic districts. Distance is a train ride; the relationships with Albany's builders, expeditors, and review boards never left.
What does a Center Square row-house renovation involve?
Typically: reopening a plan chopped by decades of apartment conversions, restoring the street facade to Historic Resources Commission standards, rebuilding rear additions that were never built well, and threading modern mechanicals through brick bearing construction. Budgets run well below the downstate equivalent for the same transformation — one of Albany's quiet advantages.
Can you handle commercial projects for Albany businesses?
Yes — office, retail, healthcare, and food service. Our Capital Region commercial work ranges from a physical therapy facility to a shared-workspace floor to restaurant permit sets. We design to your business metrics and manage code, health department, and landlord approvals as part of the job.
Is Albany's permit process difficult?
It's methodical rather than difficult. Complete, code-literate drawings move through Buildings & Regulatory Compliance steadily; historic-district work adds HRC review that favors well-argued, contextual submissions. We've been filing here for over a decade — the path is familiar.
Planning a project in Albany, NY?
Book a free, no-obligation consultation with Eric Davenport, AIA, NCARB. We'll listen first, ask the right questions, and show you exactly what's possible for your home, your budget, and your site.