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18 n e w h a v e n B I Z | A u g u s t 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m E xecutives of New Haven-based architectural firm Pickard Chilton like to say the company "punches above its weight." at may be one reason the firm not only weathered the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it thrived during that time. From March 2020 through May of this year, Pickard Chilton added contracts to design new headquarters or redevelop existing buildings totaling almost 11 million square feet. at's in addition to the approximately 19 million square feet of projects it already had under contract. To put that in context, the company calculated there is about 10 million square feet of office space in Hartford, so Pickard Chilton's contracts equal three Hartford's worth of space. e projects include designing a new headquarters for Sherwin-Williams in Cleveland (about 1 million square feet); redeveloping the nearly 2 million-square- foot former PG&E headquarters in downtown San Francisco that is now owned by Hines Atlas U.S. LP; and designing a nearly 1.5 million-square-foot, mixed-use development for Boston Properties in Cambridge, Mass. By David Krechevsky Jon Pickard, a principal in the privately- held firm, declined to disclose revenue figures. He said Pickard Chilton typically sees revenue growth of 5% to 10% annually, but over the past year it saw 15% to 20% growth. A perfect storm Such a strong revenue increase runs counter to what the rest of the industry experienced. e pandemic hit the archi- tectural services industry like a perfect storm in 2020, shutting down most of the U.S. economy and halting construction projects nationwide. According to the Architecture Billings Index produced monthly by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), firms report- ed a decline in billings for 11 consecutive months — from March 2020 through January 2021. In April 2020, AIA reported that more than eight in 10 architectural firms nation- wide had applied for loans through the U.S. Small Business Administration's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). at included Pickard Chilton, which received a $1.23 million loan to retain its then-51 jobs. Pickard said his firm applied for the loan out of an abundance of caution, seeking to ensure it could continue to meet its financial obligations and the needs of staff and clients. "Our ability to weather the financial interruption in our business was definitely helped by the PPP," he said. e firm bucked the national trend and expanded its portfolio in part because of its reputation for designing unique cor- porate headquarters and high-rise office buildings, Pickard said. "We're known for creating environments that promote the well-being of the folks that live and work there," he said. "So, what's happened in the tragedy of COVID is, the characteris- tics of the buildings that we have historically designed have become of paramount importance." ose characteristics include providing workers with access to daylight and good views, which Pickard said helps improve cogni- tion and productivity, while also providing enhanced ventilation — vitally important in defending against viruses. e firm oen does this by designing outdoor meeting spaces that are also protected from the elements, something they did for Exxon Mobil's Energy Center in Houston, among others. "Our reputation was very well established before the pandemic," Pickard said. "e pandemic has simply Despite pandemic, New Haven architectural firm Pickard Chilton adds 11M square feet of new projects CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | BOB HANDELMAN Pickard Chilton designed Akamai Technologies' global headquarters in Cambridge, Mass. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | ANTON GRASSI The three principals of New Haven-based Pickard Chilton are: (from left) Jon Pickard, William Chilton and Anthony Markese.

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