Architects suffering from development slowdown

As new
development slows, architectural firms are scrambling for work by
lowering fees, chasing smaller projects and looking for assignments
abroad. To support his business during the recession, architect
Bradford Perkins, chairman and co-founder of Perkins Eastman, is looking for business
overseas and opened offices in Ecuador and India. About 10 percent of his
projects in New York were suspended or canceled in the past five
months, which forced Eastman, whose firm converted the landmark 650 Sixth Avenue in condos, to lay off 40 workers.