our team
David Clayton Miller AIA
Wm. Jack T. Phillips AIA
Charlie Verni
David Clayton Miller AIA
Wm. Jack T. Phillips AIA
Charlie Verni
David Clayton Miller AIA
founding principal
Founding principal of Bergen Street Studio, Clay Miller loves working with old buildings. A scholar of art history, Clay has expertise in historic landmarks, adaptive reuse and urban infill design. During his eight years with Polshek Partnership, he developed instincts for balancing new construction with renovation work to energize historic structures large and small. Clay’s designs invigorate the 19th century urban fabric by reimagining old structures with an aesthetic that is both innovative and sensitive.
Mindful of the social impact of his work, Clay is also drawn to the design of medical facilities. His interest in and experience with healthcare design allowed Clay to lead an award-winning division for healthcare planning and architecture within Polshek Partnership, where Clay was involved in over 1.5 million square feet of institutional project development. Later in his career, his experience with the design of medical facilities grew into a commitment to humanitarian architecture. Since 2014, he has worked on several major medical facilities in Central Africa, including Kigutu Hospital in Burundi.
Clay is a Fellow of the Urban Design Forum in New York. He has over 30 years of experience working in New York City and has worked in the offices of Susanna Torre, Allan Greenberg, Alex Gorlin, Paul Rudolph, Maya Lin, Asfour Guzy and Taylor Clark. He has taught at the Parsons School of Design, the Pratt Institute, and Yale University. Clay attended Columbia University’s School of General Studies in New York, and is a graduate of Duke University (Trinity ‘87) and the Yale School of Architecture (M. Arch ‘90).
Wm. Jack T. Phillips AIA
principal
Jack Phillips believes architectural invention is the result created at the intersection of the novel and the pragmatic. As a Principal with Bergen Street Studio, he brings this thinking along with his extensive experience with both large- and small-scale projects to bear on the work in the office. His diverse background includes project types ranging from industrial infrastructure, landmark preservation and renovation, cultural and educational institutions, corporate facilities, and residential as well as urban and master plan developments.
Over his decades of experience, Jack has encountered numerous challenges during the development, programming and planning of projects. He is a creative thinker providing design intelligence and strategic planning leadership in the development and execution of more than 3.5 million sf and over $2.8 billion of program and experience-driven environments. His direct and personal involvement throughout the duration of a project is a given and at the core of his practice. Jack’s hands-on approach reveals his passion for openly engaged and inspired team direction in the development of concepts and strategies.
Born and raised in Texas, Jack’s career began in the Houston offices of CRSS working under the guidance of Paul Kennon on large scale manufacturing complexes and civic planning studies. After attending graduate school in New York, he served in a senior design role at Polshek Partnership where he worked directly alongside his mentor James Stewart Polshek on many significant cultural, civic and institutional clients. Additionally, Mr. Phillips has held design director and thought leadership roles with other firms, delivering significant design and strategic planning direction for many noteworthy clients.
Ardently committed to linking education and practice, Mr. Phillips has lectured and led design studios at several institutions such as Pratt Institute and University of Nebraska, among others. Jack holds a bachelor's degree in environmental design from Texas A&M University and a Master of Architecture from the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. His work has been featured in exhibitions and publications and has been recognized with numerous awards for innovation and design excellence.
Charlie Verni
Raised by Real Estate developers in Westchester, Charlie has been exposed to planning and construction throughout his life. This led him to purse his bachelor’s degree at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, spending summers studying at SCI-Arc in Los Angeles and practicing at Bergen Street Studio. Charlie received his master’s degree from Pratt Institute, focusing on integrating urban farming methods into civic redevelopments. Charlie has worked on projects ranging from apartment renovations in Brooklyn, NY to a medical center in Burundi, Africa.
Outside of work, Charlie enjoys early morning rowing races with his brothers, country retreats with friends, and bartending at the tiki bar during family parties.
Kevin Alexander
Kevin developed an interest in architecture at an early age while ‘exploring’ the construction sites of new residential houses on Long Island. Fittingly much of his early professional experience benefited from this early interest, including a wide array of residential work ranging from urban apartments to country retreats. His interest in crafting and building solutions has also furthered his experience in other project types including hospitality, cultural, civic and master-planning.
Outside of work, Kevin enjoys exploring the City and all it has to offer. His goal to cross every bridge in New York City on foot.
Peter is a graduate of Syracuse University School of Architecture and an emerging professional pursuing licensure in New York State. During his time at Syracuse, he took an interest in civic-minded design culminating in the Chancellor’s Award for Public Engagement. This experience propelled him to pursue a career in architecture, one that continues to balance formal design aspirations with socially equitable design solutions.
Peter’s civic interests play an important role in his contributions to projects ranging from small single family residential to large civic, institutional and health care projects. Peter is also instrumental to expanding the firm’s institutional and civic engagement through projects that strive to address cultural, social and public health inequalities. He is also currently serving as a member of the New York Chapter AIA Diversity and Inclusion Committee. In his free time, Peter enjoys being most anything outdoors especially cycling and hiking.
Sarahdjane Mortimer, Associate AIA
Born in Brooklyn and raised in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sarahdjane has always believed in the change that architecture can make for the world. Her passion for connecting to people through design has left her with a strong desire to set her foundation as an architect.
When she's not sitting at her desk, Sarahdjane tries to stay active through her passion for ballet and tennis. She finds further excitement in travel, photography and exploring the city around her. All this in the hopes of understanding people, and the role design plays on social conditions worldwide; becoming a building block for a future focused not on what we lack but rather the potential that communities and cities present us with.
As a native New Yorker, Madeleine has a lifelong connection to the City and its urban condition. She is passionate about reuse, resiliency, renewable energy, and all things sustainable. As a Red Hook resident, she experiences first-hand the considerations of the urban environmental and equitable planning, the impact of architectural intervention, and the value of community.
Within the Sunrise Movement, Madeleine is organizing a youth-driven multidisciplinary coalition to bridge built-environment industries with activism. She loves to stay active lifting at her local CrossFit, biking to work, and exploring NYC. Madeleine will soon begin her MArch at Yale University’s School of Architecture.