Local & Minority Business

Our firm was founded in 1986 by Suman Sorg, a first-generation immigrant, and female South Asian architect in Washington, DC. The business and design climate, unequal as it remains, was very different then than it is today. At that time, only one woman architect in Washington DC had designed a building large enough to require a boom crane for construction. That was Chloethiel Woodard Smith. Similarly, while fraternities of African American architects were active, there was little in the way of community for our founder. So, Suman made her own way.

Without connections, she went door to door asking for meetings with any municipal and federal agency who would speak to her. She was able to qualify for local and Federal small business programs and proved herself through her creative design solutions, quality work and excellent client service.

Given our own roots, Sorg is dedicated to providing opportunities for disadvantaged and under-utilized businesses. We are Washington DC CBE certified, and we make every effort to include the maximum number of CBE certified firms on each of our A/E teams. This, though, is not about checking boxes. It’s about finding quality professional collaborators who share our values no matter who they are or where they come from. This is where great design is born.