Syracuse, NY Ashley McGraw Architects has acquired studioMLA Architects, a 15-person architecture and landscape design firm headquartered in Brookline, Mass. Founded in 2006, studioMLA Architects is recognized as a national leader in the design of early education facilities along with nature-inspired playscapes for young children.
As part of the acquisition, studioMLA Architects will become the early childhood education studio within Ashley McGraw Architects and studioMLA founder, Mike Lindstrom, will become the seventh partner of the firm. As the founding principal of studioMLA Architects, Lindstrom has over 30 years of experience and is a leader in the design of play and learning environments for children. He has been a member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and regularly presents at the group’s annual conferences nationwide.
Lindstrom has served as an advisor to the American Academy of Pediatrics on Child Care Center Design, taught at the Institute on Childcare Design at the Harvard Graduate School of Design for seven years, and has been instrumental in organizing the World Forum “onDesign” conferences at UC Berkeley and in Rotorua, New Zealand. He is also on the board of several nonprofit organizations and writes, speaks, and leads workshops on sustainability and the design of children’s educational environments.
“As we emerged from the challenges of COVID, a vital component of our strategic plan was to build a more resilient business by diversifying our markets,” said Matthew Broderick, president and CEO of Ashley McGraw Architects. “We aimed to build one of the best community-focused design practice in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, expanding our capacity to make an impact and creating more opportunities for staff. This strategic acquisition provides Ashley McGraw a Boston-based office and a national practice centered on early childhood education, expanding our demographic diversity to include a much younger age group and anchoring our geographic diversity in New England.”
“We are excited about the new opportunities and resources that this strategic partnership provides to our clients and to the studioMLA team,” said Lindstrom on the acquisition. “Given the similarities in cultures and shared focus on high-quality design, I anticipate a seamless transition and look forward to a host of new possibilities.”
The acquisition furthers Ashley McGraw Architects’ geographic footprint in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. The new Boston office joins the firm’s existing locations in Washington, DC and Syracuse, New York. Broderick further explained his firm’s outlook, “We have had great success with our strategic expansion strategy. Since opening our Washington, D.C. office in 2022, Ashley McGraw Architects has secured a substantial K-12 portfolio with the District of Columbia Public Schools and other Mid-Atlantic districts. Additionally, our firm has made significant strides in the K-12 markets of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. This acquisition solidifies our physical presence in the region, bolstering our team with exceptionally talented designers. We’re now well-positioned to pursue a broader range of projects across New England.”
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