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San Francisco

Gensler appoints two veteran designers to run SF office

Architecture firm names Katie Buchanan-Bjarke and Ben Tranel to co-manage operations

Gensler's Katie Buchanan-Bjarke and Ben Tranel; 220 Montgomery Street (Loopnet, Gensler, Getty)
Gensler's Katie Buchanan-Bjarke and Ben Tranel; 220 Montgomery Street (Loopnet, Gensler, Getty)

Gensler has named two top designers to run its San Francisco office.

The locally based global architecture firm has appointed principals Katie Buchanan-Bjarke and Ben Tranel as co-managing directors of its office at 220 Montgomery Street, the San Francisco Business Times reported. They started April 1.

The duo replaced Hao Ko and Randy Howder. 

Moving forward, Ko will serve as global director of design and a regional design principal. Howder will become co-managing director for the Northwest region, including San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland. Both will remain based in San Francisco.

Buchanan-Bjarke joined Gensler in Santa Monica for a two-year stint in 2002, then returned to the firm in 2006, according to her LinkedIn page. She moved to Gensler’s San Francisco offices in 2018. 

“The built environment is undergoing an exciting evolution and we are working with our clients to drive positive change in our communities,”  Buchanan-Bjarke said in a statement,

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Tranel joined Gensler in March 2006, according to his LinkedIn page. 

He has worked 17 years in Gensler’s San Francisco office, with an architectural portfolio spanning residential, office, hospitality, civic and cultural projects. Highlights include the 632-meter Shanghai Tower, The Tower at PNC Plaza in Pittsburgh and the new headquarters building for Alexandria Real Estate Trust in Pasadena.

Gensler, the world’s largest architecture firm, has designed major projects in recent years in San Francisco, including Ingka Center’s mid-market Ikea store and the renovation of San Francisco International Airport’s Harvey Milk Terminal. 

Mayor London Breed also tapped Gensler to look into new uses for San Francisco’s Emporium Centre, formerly the Westfield Mall, including its conversion to a soccer stadium.

In February, Gensler ushered TRD on a tour of its new “office of the future” hub at the 132-year-old Mills Building, in the Financial District.

— Dana Bartholomew

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