The Advantages To Having A Small Team

All of the partners of Teitsch-Kent-Fay Architects, P.C. (both past and present) began their career working for large architectural firms. These firms often lack the personal touch that Jack wanted to add to his projects when he started the firm. This founding principle of our firm allows us to maintain a personal involvement in the projects that we are fortunate to work on, and to allow the special interests of the individual members of the firm to inform and enhance the work we do.

Each member of our team shares a common technical and aesthetic understanding of architecture and the impact it can have. However, each of us also has our own particular areas of interest allowing a level of diversity of perspective, and opinion, that results in a lively and productive exchange of ideas throughout the office.

Courtney Stewart specializes in interior design. Having graduated from Cazenovia College’s Interiors Program, Courtney has a particular passion for materials, textures, colors and the impact they have on the built environment. We are all grateful to have Courtney’s assistance and expertise on projects that involve the coordination of finishes, furniture layouts and color theory. Courtney also meets with the clients both early in the design process, and during construction while the final finish selections are being made. Her insight and input help us to develop cohesive, coordinated designs for our clients.

Keith Berger, our Visualization Specialist, started at TKF as an AutoCad operator. As such he became a vital part of our production team, drafting and developing construction drawings for different projects. As he progressed in this role, Keith developed a particular interest in AutoCad’s three dimensional features. He began with very simple 3D study models, but quickly developed his skills to include photographic quality renderings. Keith is able to produce realistic images that the client can see, understand, and comment on much more easily than the two dimensional plan sketches and elevations that we previously used. On a recent interior design project Courtney had developed, Keith was able to create a very simple 3D view of the plan that added enough depth to the spaces to make them much easier for the client to understand.

Brian Manning, Chief Operating Officer, has worked in the industry for decades and has developed his skills to a very high degree. His design and detailing, and code review skills are extremely good, and something our whole team has come to rely on. Early on in his career Brian developed a particular interest in structural design. He worked closely with the structural department of his first employer, and even worked directly with a structural engineering firm. While we are developing concepts and designs, we often will run ideas by Brian so he can check the structural feasibility of what we are considering. On several projects, Brian has been able to develop the basic structural consents as the project has been developed. Our structural engineering consultants have often remarked that “if Brian looked at it, it is probably okay”.


Dan Fay, Architect, has been with the firm for 37 years. Over this time and his work with Jack and Bob he has been able to form and build meaningful relationships with many clients, consultants, and contractors. Clients that Jack began working with in the 1960’s such as the Diocese of Syracuse have transitioned to working with Dan who continues to maintain and expand those relationships. In the past few years, Dan has been gratified that many of these “old friends” have become comfortable with the other members of the firm. It has become quite frequent for these long term clients to call the office and rather than solely calling to speak with Dan they are looking for expertise from one of our other team members. It has been great to see these bonds grow to the rest of our Teitsch-Kent-Fay Architects, P.C. family. These long term relationships help us to keep that small firm touch that Jack Teitsch wanted when he started the firm.