NEW ORLEANS – Trahan Architects, an award-winning architecture firm with offices in New Orleans and New York, announced today that it is designing the new Benson Jesuit Center at Loyola University New Orleans. Construction is anticipated to begin in the spring of 2021 on Loyola’s main campus in Uptown New Orleans. The new 7,000-square-foot building will be completed by late 2021.
The Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation provided the lead gift to Loyola to help fund the important project. The investment will serve the Loyola community by providing a new chapel and community gathering spaces. Loyola selected Trahan Architects through an invited RFP process which included several architecture firms.
“Trahan Architects feels privileged to be working on such an important project which will enrich Loyola’s Jesuit Catholic identity,” said Trey Trahan, FAIA, founder and CEO of Trahan Architects. “In this time of pandemic, it is important now more than ever to celebrate a faith that anchors us. Our firm is well positioned to do this meaningful work by approaching the design with artistry and restraint.”
The project manager and owner’s representative for this unique project is The Tobler Company, LLC. The Tobler Company is a New Orleans-based project management company servicing the Gulf South Region that has managed construction projects worth more than $500 million over the past decade. The Tobler Company’s previous ecclesiastical work includes Holy Ghost Catholic Church, Manresa Retreat Center and Xavier University’s Drexel Chapel.
Trahan’s previous ecclesiastical work includes St. Jean Vianney in Baton Rouge and Holy Rosary in St. Amant, La. The firm is multi-disciplinary, with additional projects that include the renovation of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta and the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park at Laguna Gloria – Arrival Garden and Moody Pavilions in Austin.
Trahan Architects is ranked the nation’s No. 1 design firm by Architect magazine, the official publication of American Institute of Architects, which said Trahan builds “dramatic, sumptuous and well-detailed projects.”
