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TVS Enhances Florida Team with Seasoned Industry Veteran Ken Cowart to Help Lead Tampa Office
Atlanta-based architecture and design firm committed to Tampa, smart growth
TAMPA, Fla. – (Sept. 21, 2023) – Award-winning architecture and interior design firm TVS is pleased to announce that Ken Cowart has been named principal of its Tampa office, joining Principal Chris Osborn to lead its local team. The duo will leverage their decades of design experience and deep relationships within the community to drive the firm’s Florida growth.
“Joining TVS offers an exciting opportunity to further build upon the work accomplished in the Tampa community for more than two decades,” Cowart commented. “We find ourselves in a unique position, where our international experiences can be harnessed and integrated with invaluable local knowledge to tackle a variety of complex projects to advance the Tampa Bay region.”
With more than 25 years of architecture and design experience, Cowart has spent his career focused on practical, forward-thinking design solutions that engage the public and private realm. He was previously an associate principal at Behar + Peteranecz Architecture in downtown St Petersburg. His portfolio spans a wide range of projects that have gone on to win multiple local, state and national awards. Some of his most significant local work includes the reimagined St. Pete Pier and Sparkman Wharf, as well as multiple restaurants, offices and mixed-use urban centers.
With architectural degrees from University of Florida and Georgia Tech, Cowart’s architectural career began at Walt Disney Imagineering, with stints at Perkins + Will, Chancey Design Partnership, and ASD | SKY. He has served in a variety of leadership roles within the community, including the American Institute of Architects (AIA), Hillsborough County Public Arts Commission, Barrio Latino Architectural Commission, Friendship Trail Bridge: Vision Before Demolition, and is a member of the Leadership Tampa Bay Class of 2020.
TVS has a 40-year history in the Florida area, starting with projects like Bayport Plaza, home to the iconic Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, Armani’s and Oystercatchers. Other key projects that bear their signature include standouts like the MOTE Science Education Aquarium, Midtown Tampa West Tower, The Florida Aquarium renovation, Embassy Suites USF renovations, The Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values at The University of Tampa, Bradenton Convention Center, Florida Cancer Specialists and Building III at MetWest International.
The Tampa office first opened in 2021, and is housed in one of Tampa’s most historic buildings, providing a unique space distinct from other offices in town. Located just outside downtown Tampa at 442 W. Kennedy Blvd., the office is just steps away from the Oxford Exchange, and across from the University of Tampa.
TVS Tampa serves as an extension of the firm’s expanding Atlanta headquarters. Under Cowart’s leadership, the studio will support all markets served by TVS including convention centers, cultural arts, education, sports, multifamily, mixed-use, hospitality, office, retail, office repositioning, workplace, hospitality, multifamily, healthcare and planning.
“Ken’s addition to our Tampa team complements the growing work we have underway in Florida and further demonstrates our commitment to provide remarkable design that matters to Floridians,” said TVS President, Janet Simpson. “We are confident that Ken’s reputation and design expertise will help the firm deliver significant architectural and design projects that will create a better built environment and quality of life for the Florida community and are excited about the opportunities ahead.”
About TVS
TVS is an award-winning architecture and interior design firm headquartered in Atlanta, GA with global project expertise. Its team of experts listen intently, solve creatively and deliver reliably to make remarkable design easy. TVS’s roundtable operating approach engages honed perspectives across workplace interiors and corporate office, hospitality, cultural arts, convention center, mixed-use, sports, education, retail, healthcare and multifamily residential to deliver design solutions that meet the complex challenges of the 21st century. This multi-disciplinary, multi-market diversity equips the firm’s architects, designers and strategists with a unique ecosystem of ideas and resources that best support a client’s vision.
Founded in 1968, the 100% employee-owned firm has offices in Atlanta, Los Angeles, Shanghai and Tampa. Having worked in 28 countries and 46 states, districts and territories within the United States, TVS creates high performance, high impact environments that help individuals, businesses and communities thrive around the world. For more information, visit tvsdesign.com or join the conversation @tvsdesign.
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Click here to see our Florida work and to get in touch with the local team.
