In 1960, the late Keeva J. Kekst founded ka architecture in his attic, where he designed apartment buildings. Today, under the third generation of ownership, ka architecture is behind the designs of some of Northeast Ohio’s newest and most prominent structures, including the Horseshoe Casino in Public Square and the new Eaton Corporation world headquarters in Beachwood.

“We’re pretty proud that we’re still around and we’ve weathered this recession,” says ka president and COO John Burk. He credits ka’s success in part to the firm’s ability to work well as a team with other firms. Both the Horseshoe Casino and the Eaton project involved multiple firms working together.

As executive architects, ka had to coordinate all the players. “Both were interesting projects,” says Burk. “And both projects were team projects -- it was not just ka ownership, but owner reps, contractors and consultants -- a huge list. Working with other firms and good clients in a team atmosphere, it’s only challenging because there are so many people. But it’s not difficult if you put the right team together.”

ka’s work in Cleveland has led to additional projects elsewhere. “Based on our performance on the Cleveland casino, we were asked to be a part of the team working on the Horseshoe Casino Baltimore,” says CFO Alan Siliko.

Today, ka has 46 employees. The firm added two architects in January and an entry-level associate earlier this month. Burk says they will add to the staff, if need-be. “We never grow to grow,” he says. “We hire because we foresee an extended period of growth. And we’re cautiously optimistic.”

Sources: John Burk, Alan Siliko
Writer: Karin Connelly