About

Tony is the Creative Director and founder of Atkins Design Studio. He spent the last decade honing his craft with CEI | HDR, a BC based architecture firm turned global.  This experience allowed him to learn directly from leadership about the local industry, in both Vancouver and Penticton, while being mentored by world renowned experts in Urban Planning, Sustainability + Resilience, and Computational Design. Over this period Tony developed the ability to create changes and see the impacts at every stage of a project from concept to construction. Working with large global teams and small local groups his work encompasses a vast range of scales and typologies. 

His project exposure includes wineries, custom homes, retail, hospitality, commercial, industrial, healthcare, recreation, community planning for large residential and mixed use development. In a firm of over 10, 000 people, Tony was elected to lead several internal groups and initiatives. Here he showed his aptitude for collaboration, innovation, networking, professional development, and community outreach. In this role he was able to lead international groups, utilizing his specialization in building for fire resiliency and recovery, helping respond to the wildfire crises along our west coast from BC to California and beyond. Tony lead efforts to foster an inclusive and  workplace and was recognized for his role as a leader in sustainable innovation, lowering the company's carbon footprint which he brings to his projects. Tony enjoys being able to bring a thoughtful and grounded approach to contextual design that improves lives while enriching the community and the environment.

 
A graduate of the British Columbia Institute of Technology's Architectural Science Degree Program, Tony approaches his work with a strong foundation of construction knowledge, consultant expertise, building science and design innovation. This is where he first learned of the large impacts of the construction industry on the environment and developed his sustainable approach to design. While attending BCIT, Tony was elected as the Chair for the School of Transportation, Construction and the Environment and served as the President of the Space Planning Committee. His efforts include the expansion of recreation services, disaster preparedness facilities and major renovations to the student services centre and on-site restaurant.  Proud to have left the school better than he found it, his impacts are still felt to this day.

Growing up in North Vancouver, Tony developed an inherent love for nature and being close to the waves.  His personal interests include landscape painting, fishing, football and any excuse to be near a body of water.  As a young artist and creative Tony was first attracted to architecture in high school where he started in hand drafting and went on to be the first graduate of the advanced computer drafting program (CAD.) He continued on to pilot the school's program using computer numeric cutting devices (CNC.)

 
Now living in the Okanagan, where his family chose to spend every summer growing up, Tony believes he can best serve the community as a small business making good design more approachable to all types of clients. He hopes to partner with owners and stakeholders on raising the bar for what design can be and establishing a new benchmark for all to build from.