Beverly Frank, Vice President, Florida Architecture, Goodwyn Mills Cawood

June 2026 — In an interview with Invest:, Beverly Frank, vice president of Florida Architecture at Goodwyn Mills Cawood, discussed the firm’s expansion in Florida, demand drivers across healthcare, education, and infrastructure, and the importance of resilience in long-term design. “The opportunities are limitless in Florida,” Frank said.

What have been some of the most significant developments for Goodwyn Mills Cawood over the past 12 months, particularly in Tampa Bay?

I joined in December 2025 when my firm, BFrank Studio, was acquired by GMC, so that was a significant change. GMC is a company with about 750 employees and 30 offices across the Southeast.

The acquisition of BFrank Studio added to a presence GMC had already established in Tampa. Between the architecture and engineering sides of the firm, we are a full-service, true A/E firm, and I think that has established us in the Tampa Bay community as a leader within the A/E design market.

How does Tampa Bay fit into GMC’s broader long-term growth strategy, and what opportunities do you see emerging in the region?

Florida is growing by leaps and bounds, with a lot of people moving here from other locations because of our beautiful climate, but also because of the great climate for business and low taxes. There are definitely a lot of opportunities relative to the boom in population. That obviously puts a lot of strain on infrastructure, but it also creates a lot of opportunities for growth, especially for architecture and engineering in Florida, which I have not seen slow down.

BFrank Studio has typically been focused on civic and institutional work, and that work has not slowed down. That is also a great barometer for other projects in the private sector. With the population boom, with Florida being one of the biggest economies in the United States, and with the growth in Tampa Bay, I think it is an ideal business climate for GMC.

As the leader for GMC architecture in the state of Florida, where we currently have offices in Pensacola, Orlando, Tampa, and Sarasota, we see a lot of opportunity to catalyze growth throughout the state as GMC’s hub in Florida.

What trends are driving projects throughout Florida?

At GMC, we do a lot of work in healthcare. Healthcare is always a bellwether relative to architecture because opportunities follow population growth and changes in population demographics. There are a lot of opportunities related to outpatient care and medical office buildings, and I am seeing a lot of increase in that area. I also think healthcare is an important element of infrastructure.

We are also seeing a rise in opportunities for hotels. That is another indicator when you need a certain number of keys, especially with municipalities that are on the main traffic arteries within the state.

K-12 and higher education are also key markets. There are a lot of variables related to changes in laws and the way different municipalities are handling K-12 work, but there is certainly significant growth in this arena. There are a variety of signals within the public sector, and private sector developer work is also starting to flourish again as we see some stabilization around lending.

How important are public-private partnerships in shaping Tampa Bay’s future growth?

One area we’re seeing a lot of activity is data centers. The challenge with data centers, and we are seeing it in Polk County as well as throughout the U.S., is community concern about stretching infrastructure, particularly the electrical grid. There are concerns about costs for the average person going up because the grid is being leveraged to bring in data centers.

On the surface, data centers are great for economic development, but communities also have to consider the offset for the average citizen. Public-private partnerships can help expand the grid and make sure we build back responsibly so that there are opportunities for growth without detriment to the average citizen.

How are resilience and environmental considerations shaping project planning and design decisions?

Resilience is always a concern with everything we do. First and foremost, it is responsible design. That means thinking through not only the minimum code requirements when you are designing, but also longevity. In many of the institutional projects we do, we are not building 10- or 20-year buildings. We are building 50- to 100-year buildings, so resilience is especially important.

GMC has a whole team that deals with resilience, including our coastal engineering and disaster recovery teams. They have significant expertise in developing resilience plans for companies, municipalities, and institutions. That includes thinking through what happens if something goes wrong. No matter how much you plan, you need a strategy moving forward.

That also includes understanding what resources are available through FEMA and how to navigate those resources. GMC does a phenomenal job helping clients navigate that. On one hand, it is about designing, planning, and building responsibly. On the other hand, it is about planning for a worst-case scenario and helping clients navigate those storm waters.

How are you approaching workforce development and team building in this environment?

That is probably the biggest challenge we have, especially in design. In architecture, when we hit the recession around 2008 to 2010, it created a talent gap in the middle. Our industry is definitely based on an apprenticeship approach.

Around that same time, there was a technical surge, and we were transitioning into 3D modeling and much more advanced tools. AI has obviously been a big push within the last five to 10 years. 

Maintaining good talent is critically important, and we want people who understand a servant leadership approach and understand how to deal with clients. I feel like there is a little bit of a resurgence in how we are receiving talent and how talent is being trained in the university system. That has been bolstered by some changes in mindset. The talent pool has definitely improved over the last 18 to 24 months.

What are your key goals and priorities for GMC, and what is your outlook for the sector over the next few years?

For GMC, the opportunities are limitless in Florida. We are just on the cusp of breaking out and leveraging the institutional rigor and established nature of GMC. The company started in 1947 as an engineering firm, and being able to leverage that legacy is important. Our CEO, Jeffrey Brewer, talks about leaving a legacy of good, and I am really excited about our opportunities to do just that, not only in Tampa Bay, but in other areas as well.

I like to think Tampa Bay expands beyond Tampa and St. Pete into Sarasota, Bradenton, and beyond. Across that broader region, the opportunities are really wonderful.