A woman with long blonde hair, wearing a white top and gold hoop earrings, resting her chin on her hand, in a room with art on the wall and a potted plant in the background.

ABOUT

Founded in Riverside’s Midtown neighborhood, NJP Architect is a high-touch, experience-driven firm that delivers distinctive, high-impact projects grounded in proven expertise and exceptional client service. We build strong relationships, collaborate closely, and use research-based insights to guide our design decisions. Our goal is to help local businesses strengthen their brands and deepen their connection to the community through building facelifts, tenant improvements, historic restoration, and adaptive reuse projects.

At NJP Architect, we use BIM (Building Information Modeling) software to create a comprehensive, data-rich digital twin of each project. This technology helps reduce coordination issues through clash detection, supports long-term operational efficiency by streamlining facility management, and provides the project team with the transparency needed to make informed, data-driven decisions.

Research is central to our process and informs every design decision we make. Drawing on Natalie’s doctoral training and deep commitment to inquiry, we begin by understanding the “why” behind each project step. This research-driven approach guides design conversations, supports effective problem-solving, and helps owners make informed decisions throughout the project.

Our business model uses a curated network of consultants rather than a fixed employee structure, allowing us to assemble the right team for each project. We select collaborators based on the owner’s goals, project scope, technical requirements, schedule, and communication needs. This flexible approach ensures that every project is supported by professionals with the appropriate expertise, experience, and working style to serve the owner effectively and deliver successful outcomes.

Dedicated to client service, Natalie is highly responsive, an excellent communicator, and committed to exceeding project expectations. Her award-winning doctoral dissertation on high-rise renovation, combined with her fearless and relentless approach, has led her to work on large landmark projects and developed her capacity to manage complex, high-pressure, and highly visible assignments.

With more than eleven years of architectural experience, Natalie also brings over twenty years of expertise in business management, product development, and marketing.

CA Licensed #C42272

Professional Experience

DLR GROUP – July 2022 - January 2025 - Associate Designer

Riverside / Los Angeles

Higher Education

  • Pepperdine University - Golf Clubhouse & Fieldhouse Masterplan

  • Chaffey College - Library Learning Commons / Swinterton

  • Norco College - Human Performance Kinesiology Building

  • Moreno Valley College - Outdoor Classroom Feasibility Study

  • SBCCD Valley College - Career Pathways II / Sundt Construction

  • American University Cairo – New Building Design

K-12

  • Escondido Union School District - Escondido Middle School, Phase III

  • Palm Springs Union School District - Cathedral City High School Modernization

Mixed-Use

  • Phoenix Power Group – IPA HVDC Converter Stations, Adelanto, CA and Delta, UT

Justic + Civic

  • CDCR San Quentin Rehabilitation Center - San Quentin, CA (LPA & McCarthy)

  • New Hampshire Men’s State Rehabilitation Replacement - Concord, NH

  • LADPW Los Padrinos Small Communities Feasibility Study - Los Angeles, CA

GRUEN ASSOCIATES - June 2017 - July 2022 - Designer - Los Angeles

Mixed Use - High Rise

  • Opus Los Angeles (3545 Wilshire) - Jamison Properties, Los Angeles, CA

Civic - Modernization & Expansion (Federal)

  • Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry U.S Customers & Border Protection - San Diego, CA (Jones Studio & Atkinson Clark)

Historical Restoration / Adaptive Re-Use / Retail

  • Tower Theatre – Apple Flagship Store, Los Angeles, CA (Fosters + Partners)

Historical Restoration / Retail

  • Harry Winston - San Francisco, CA and Beverly Hills, CA

KENNETH PARK ARCHITECTS – November 2016 - May 2017 - Designer & Business Development

Los Angeles / New York

High-End Retail

  • Zadig & Voltaire - Abbott Kinney - Los Angeles, CA

  • Lacoste - Beverly Hills - Los Angeles, CA

ALTOON PARTNERS (STIR ARCHITECTURE) - 2015 - Fall Practicum / Doctoral Studies - Los Angeles

Mixed-Use Shopping Center / Adaptive Re-Use

  • NOHO West Mixed Use Shopping Center + Residence (Orange Architects), Macy’s conversion to offices - Los Angeles, CA

RIDER LEVETTE BUCKNELL (RLB) - 2015 - Summer Internship -Honolulu, HI

High Rise Renovations

  • Waikiki Marriott Beach Resort Phase II Renovation - Waikiki, HI

  • Alohilani Resort Waikiki Beach (Pacific Beach Hotel) - Waikiki, HI (Rockwell)

PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT

  • AIA Women’s Leadership Summit 2023 - AIA Leadership Event, Boston, MA

  • AIA Los Angeles Powerful 2020 - AIA Leadership Event, Los Angeles, CA

  • America Wood Protection Association 2013 - Presenter, “Designing with Thermally Modified Wood", Waikiki , HI

  • AIA Conference NWPR+WMR 2012 - Presenter, “Homelessness in Hawaii, Transforming Leadership,” Tucson, AZ

AWARDS / ACHIEVEMENTS

Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry (Gruen Associates)

  • American Public Works Association (APWA) Project of the Year Award 2025 - Honored for transforming the commercial port, doubling inspection capacity, and smoothing cross-border traffic.

  • ENR California Best Projects Award of Merit 2024 - Recognizing in the Government/Public Building category by Engineering News-Record.

  • AIA Arizona Design Award Distinguished Architecture 2025 - Celebrating the project's overall design excellence and environmental integration. (Gruen Associates with Jones Studio)

  • CMAA San Diego Special Merit Award 2024 -Acknowledged by the Construction Management Association of America for outsized community and regional impact.

Apple Tower Theatre (Gruen Associates)

  • AIA LA Design Award of Honor 2021 – Acknowledging excellence in Adaptive Reuse, Renovation, and Historic Preservation.

  • Los Angeles Conservancy Preservation Award 2022 – Honoring the innovative adaptive reuse of the historic 1927 movie house.

  • California Preservation Foundation Rehabilitation Design Award – Recognizing exceptional historic preservation standards.

  • ENR California Best Renovation/Restoration Project Award of Merit – Highlighting regional construction and engineering quality.

  • The Institution of Structural Engineers Structural Award – Commending complex structural integration inside a landmark shell

Harry Winston San Francisco (Gruen Associates)

  • Construction Excellence Award 2019 - Historical Restoration Interior

“Tall Building Delirium, The Next Life of the Metlife Building”

  • HAF Scholar 2016 - Dissertation,University of Hawai’i, School of Architecture

  • UH Practicum Fund Scholar 2015 - Dissertation Research

PUBLICATIONS

  • “Tall Building Delirium, The Second Life of the Metlife Building,” University of Hawai’i Dissertation, 2016