Josh Manes Architecture

My realtor referred Jack Manes in response to “I want to find someone great to design our apartment” — and Jack was all that and more! Although we did a lot of our work remotely (she and apartment were in NY, we were in SF), it was a seamless process. Everything she chose was perfect and she was so easy to work with, and she has a slew of people she trusts for painting and cabinetry. I’d work with her again in a heartbeat and recommend her without reservation.

Hands down the best decision we made in our renovation was working with Josh & Jack. My husband and I worked with them on a full gut of our coop apartment. From the beginning of the planning process they we both extremely responsive, listened to wish list and helped us figure out what would fit within our budget. Josh’s thoughtful designs maximized the use of our space and opened up our kitchen/living room, turning what was dark and closed off into an open, family living space. Jack’s modern design aesthetic was a perfect match for ours. The finishes she picked were sleek and modern while still feeling welcoming. We’ve gotten so many compliments on our kitchen - even over zoom! Jack is also incredibly organized and keep all of our orders buttoned up. When we got to the plan submission & building phase of the project, Josh expertly handled any obstacle that came up. Our coop management company was challenging to work with and we encountered many roadblocks even after plans were approved. Josh navigated the situation with ease and came up creative solutions that made them comfortable. At the same time, he pays attention to every single detail - even when we needed to change an approach, he made sure solutions stayed true to the design. As with any construction projects, the unexpected can occur. Having Josh in your corner is an incredible asset. He is solution-oriented, proactive, and expertly navigates anything that came up. We ended up out of state for the last few weeks of our project and Josh made sure we were plugged into everything happening at home. We are so happy with how our home turned out and would absolutely work with them both in the future.

Summary: If you want someone to treat your project like they are building a home for their own family then look no farther. Josh and Jack Manes are masterfully skilled at their craft, hard working, and highly responsive/communicative. We hired Josh Manes Architecture for architectural and expediting services for our New York City apartment. Our goals were to transform an outdated 3-bedroom into a modern home for a growing family where we desired to balance the use of space between living/entertaining, working, and of course ample storage. It's easy to rate a business when things go smoothly, but it's even easier to give a glowing recommendation when things get hard and you have the chance to see what people are really made of. For us, this came in the form of quarantine beginning a few days after we closed and presenting us with the challenge of planning our project from our respective living rooms without the normal face to face interaction you would typically expect. Josh and Jack rose to the occasion over and over again. During the planning phase we couldn't of been more impressed by how they managed to visualize our space and considered each and every detail of our project. They methodically weighed the trade-offs required for each decision in reshaping our floor plan and selecting our finished materials. Even more importantly, they made us feel comfortable with their recommendations even when we could only see a small sample. It was incredibly hard to visualize the full room and required us to put a ton of trust and faith in Josh and Jack - trust they earned and maintained throughout the project. Josh made quick work of the NYC Department of Building's process to secure our permits. He rushed over to file the paperwork days after they reopened and his dedication helped us avoid the significant delays that many other projects, who were not as well prepared, faced in getting their permits approved. We were again impressed by the support we received as we moved into the build phase. We couldn't be happier with the final product, it totally exceeded our expectations! Did I mention we stayed on budget!?

From a former Project Manager in the event design/production business as well as current Director of Operations for AHAlife, I have worked closely with architects on various office and retail renovations as well as event design build-outs and Josh is by far one of the best in the business. I would highly recommend Josh Manes Architecture to anyone looking for quality work at an affordable price and extreme attention to detail Josh Manes' very professional, creative and highly efficient approach transformed our raw space into a beautiful concept store that has received lots of great praise and press for it's unique design and warm atmosphere. Working with Josh helped convey our vision for a flexible retail space through his attention to detail and overall passion for the success of the project. Josh Manes had a very hands-on role from concept design through final construction. He visited the site often and established a solid working relationship with the building trades and helped guide them through each step of the way. It was a pleasure working with Josh and the success of our store is a testament to his professional design skills.

I worked with Josh and Jack on a large-scale temporary installation and on a cafe redesign, and from the minute we began working together, I knew that they understood my vision and would be able to translate it into something memorable. They are tremendous communicators--transparent and responsive. They delivered work on time and on budget. I am quick to recommend them to anyone doing architectural or design work.

Josh and I have been working together for the past year and a half and I can't say enough good things. He is helping to build us our dream home and it's been a wonderful process so far. We are going after a lofty goal of Passive House, LEED Gold, Energy Star, and Net Zero. Josh's design has exceeded my expectations and his creativity is unparalleled. From the beginning, he has been extremely responsive to every question, demand, and late night text. He is supportive of our goal of an essentially passive home design with a mostly off site panelist (SIPS) build. He has unwavering attention to detail, latest technical and architectural knowledge, and patience, lots and lots of patience. I would happily recommend him to anyone who wants to build or renovate their home.

When my husband and I decided to combine our two units we needed an architect to help us envision the potential of the combined unit with expanded kitchen, living and bedroom space. It was a pleasure working with Josh. His technical expertise and attention to detail guided the project from permit drawings through the construction process. Also, his modern design sensibility helped us create a beautiful and highly functional custom kitchen layout. He created a double kitchen island layout that allows us access throughout the apartment. It was an innovative idea that we did not think of before. In addition to architectural scope Josh's wife, Jack, provided interior decorating services, helping us select the optimal furniture for our renovated space. Jack's modern style and selection of the furniture was spot on and really brought out the potential of our new home. We are very happy with the results and would highly recommend their services. The husband wife duo provided a turn key solution for our apartment.