St. Apkar named Arizona 'Best Worship Building for 2010' by Southwest Contractor Magazine

By Victoria Manoogian

Southwest Contractor Magazine, a publication of McGraw-Hill Companies, has named the Armenian Apostolic Church of Arizona [consecrated "St. Apkar"] Arizona "Best Worship Building for 2010" in its December 2010 issue.

The awards were distributed at a breakfast awards ceremony at Sheraton Downtown Phoenix Hotel on Tuesday morning, December 7th, 2010. Accepting awards for St. Apkar were Artin Knadjian of Langdon Wilson International, the Architect of the project, Moline Construction, the General Contractor; and the Western Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, as Owner, which was represented by its Parish Priest Rev. Fr. Zacharia Saribekyan, the Parish Council Chairman Dn. Berj Manoogian, Interiors Committee Member Dn. Dr. Stepan Ovanessoff, and Parish Council Vice-Chairman Rafi Hagopian. Mr. Hagopian's company, HRH Contractors, was a Subcontractor for the construction of the Church and shared in the recognition as such at the awards ceremony.
St. Apkar, as an award recipient, was among the company of some very extraordinary structures and building projects completed between September 2009 and August 2010. The winning projects were graded by a distinguished panel of judges in each state on Overcoming Challenges/Teamwork, Safety, Innovation/Contribution to the Industry, Construction Quality/Craftsmanship and the Function and Aesthetic Quality of the Design. The design teams and construction companies in their acceptance speeches described technical difficulties they solved on the job, time constraints they overcame, budget limitations they surmounted, and in almost every case, the cooperation and willingness to put aside personal agendas that team members showed to achieve success with their projects.

The Arizona jury was Tyler Bohlender, Mortenson Construction; Linnea Brudenell, A. AIA, LEED AP, Green Ideas; William R. Ferris, Jr., PE, Stantec; Steve M. Grauer, Hensel Phelps Construction Co.; Kristen Howard, Rider Levett Bucknall; Cy Keener, ASUL; Vince Leskosky, AIA, IIDA, Westlake Reed Leskosky; Scott Macpherson, Rider Levett Bucknall; and Adam Sprenger, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP; DWL Architects + Planners.

Among the other winners this year were: the Prescott Valley Library, the Val Vista Water Main Rehabilitation CMAR, the Musical Instrument Museum (MIM), the Indian Bend Road Improvements, the Schuff Perini Climber at the Children's Museum of Phoenix, the Rio Salado Audubon Center, the City of Phoenix Arizona State University College of Nursing & Health Innovation, the White Cliffs Middle School (Kingman USD), the City of Phoenix's CityScape Phase I, the Sagewood Phase I Continuing Care/Retirement Community, the Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino, the Banner Ironwood Medical Center, the Tucson Fire Central, the Paseo Vista Recreation Area (Chandler), the Maricopa County Security Building Re-Roof, the Blackboard Transact, the El Chorro Lodge, the University of Arizona Student Recreation Center Expansion, Scottsdale's Fashion Square, the Flagstaff Family YMCA, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the East Valley - Compadre Branch, the Tres Rios Wetlands Restoration, the Chandler CARE Center, and the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona Townley Campus.