Planning

Planning at SMMA is a multidisciplinary effort of the imagination. The site plan that expertly informs and anticipates a future development. The learning environment that lets all students forge their own path. The lab space that’s optimized for scientists to do their best research.

Whatever the challenge, we strive to position our clients to pursue their highest aspirations. Supported by in-house specialists, our planning services help you reach a clear-eyed understanding of how competing forces—organizational objectives, people, budgets, data, existing infrastructure, land use, climate change—intersect and drive big decisions.

Master Planning

From school and college campuses to commercial and corporate developments, we craft site master plans that simplify large-scale problems and empower clients for multi-generational success. Our deep knowledge of land use, permitting, and environmental laws takes you beyond mere compliance to realizing the fullest potential of your project.

Proposed master plan for Providence College, RI featuring new and enhanced academic programs, facility modernization, and improved on campus housing and dining options.

Recent Shanley Hall Project

Lab Planning

At life science companies and universities, the possibilities of research reach as far as the capabilities of your lab environment. Design expertise alone is not enough. SMMA’s lab planning team is formed of architects, engineers, and lab-scientists-turned-planners. We educate ourselves in clients’ workflows to understand precisely what each scientist needs from their space.

We expertly program and stack labs that elevate your organization’s research and push the limits of ever-changing building and sustainability codes.

Educational Planning

Of all the questions that arise when designing a school, one informs the rest: What does the future of your education look like? Our educational planners begin by listening. We meet with students, teachers, parents, and community stakeholders to define the unique educational goals that will shape the design of your school. We do not impose fixed learning models; we respond to the needs of your curriculum, supported by decades of research and experience in how children learn best.