State Designer Selection Board forwards HGA and JLG to UMD for Large Lakes Observatory design

The State Designer Selection Board voted to forward two firms — HGA and JLG Architects — to the University of Minnesota Duluth for the design of project 2,604, the Large Lakes Observatory. Board members each named two firms during a roll-call-style round and staff announced that HGA received five votes, JLG received seven and Architecture Advantage received two.

Board members praised different strengths among the three finalist teams during an hour of discussion. One committee member said, “JLG did a really good job of proactively answering our questions before we even got to ask them,” and described JLG’s Seattle waterfront work as a distinguishing example. Scott White, who participated in the interviews, said HGA’s presentation tied the lake, Lot D facility and campus together in a clear four-part approach and that HGA’s attention to research “chain of custody” was useful for documenting scientific procedures.

Members also noted that an AMI Consulting representative appeared on all three teams, complicating direct comparisons but adding technical depth to each proposal. Architectural Advantage drew praise for intimate local knowledge of campus buildings, while some members said its presentations emphasized local familiarity more than the broader technical approaches shown by the other finalists.

The board’s formal selection will not be the university’s final decision: the two forwarded firms will be submitted to the University of Minnesota Duluth for that institution’s final choice. After the vote the chair said the next procedural step was for the university to make its selection and added that final design work could be several years away.