Centerbrook Architects & Planners complete a series of promotions

Centerbrook, CT Centerbrook Architects & Planners has completed a series of promotions, including three to associate principal.

David O’Connor, Agatha Vastakis Pestilli and Andrew Santaniello were elevated to associate principals, joining the firm’s leadership group. The trio has a combined 50 years at Centerbrook.

Other senior promotions announced by Centerbrook include the elevation of Brian Adams, Matt Montana, Alan Paradis and Andrew Safran to senior associates. The four have combined for nearly 60 years of design work at Centerbrook, and are currently managing projects in Connecticut, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Canada.

Rounding out the Centerbrook architectural staff updates, Aaron Emma, Frank Giordano, Hugo Fenaux, David Petersen, Anna Shakun and Aaron Trahan all received promotions.

“Agatha, David and Drew exemplify the qualities that we value most. They are thoughtful designers and collaborators, they care about getting the details right, and consistently guide us toward excellence,” said Todd Andrews, Centerbrook principal. “We are delighted to recognize their contributions to Centerbrook and look forward to many more to come.”

O’Connor came to Centerbrook in 2006, and has been a key contributor to large-scale institutional projects like the Outpatient Pavilion and Academic Building Addition at the UConn Health Campus in Farmington, Connecticut. He has worked on projects for a pair of Fortune 500 companies – United Technologies and Welltower – and is one of the senior staffers currently designing the expansion and renovation of Yale University’s Peabody Museum of Natural History.

Pestilli joined Centerbrook in 2003, and has worked extensively on projects at Quinnipiac University during her tenure. Most notably was the Center for Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences, a major undertaking at the North Haven Campus. She was recently involved in conceiving a campus master plan for Springfield College and is currently working on a renovation and facilities master plan for Goodspeed Musicals.

Santaniello has been at Centerbrook since 1996. Among the top quarter of longest tenured architects at the firm, he has lent expertise to numerous projects through the years. Santaniello worked on the team for the Sullivan Museum and History Center at his alma mater, Norwich University, earlier on in his time at Centerbrook, and a career highlight was serving as the project manager for The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine. He is currently immersed in the Peabody Museum renewal as the project manager for the extensive endeavor.