TACAA's
May/June Alumni Profile...
TARLEE W. BROWN, AIA
Tarlee W. Brown is the chairman and CEO of the Brown Design Design Group, Inc., which he founded in 1975. For more than 26 years he has lead this company which provides professional service in architecture, urban planning, engineering and project management. Licensed and registered as a architect, Brown has national certification from the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) and the American Institute of Certifed Planners (AICP). He has practiced professionally in a number of states including, Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Ohio, Massachusetts, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Washington and others.
Brown was born in Hale County, Alabama one of twelve children, his father was a share cropper and his mother was the daughter of a successful landowner and cotton farmer. He became the first in his family to earn a college degree in 1964, when he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Architecture, and a commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.
Already known for his urban planning talents, after starting his private practice in 1975, he soon became known as an able architect and staunch support of his community. Tuskegee University commissioned him to design the 146,000 square foot "Chappie James Aerospace Center" in 1985, distinguishing him as an architectural alumni in designing this major building for the University. He later designed the Center for Food Animal research at the School of Veterinary Medicine at Tuskegee. Brown also designed the first solar heated building (new construction) in the State of Georgia; largest probable cause courthouse in Georgia; first Transportation Management Center for Georgia (the most advanced and sophisticated facility and system in the nation when it opened for the 1996 Olympics); and the first public library dedicated to African American Studies and Culture, to name a few of his works. In addition he was the lead Venture Partner for the design of the Graduate Science Research & Technology Center at Clark Atlanta University (the largest research center on any HBCU campus in America).
He organized an intern training program in his office to employ and train architectural students from his Alma Mater, Tuskegee University and Georgia Tech. A true beliver in "technology transfer" he has, and is, a leader in training young minority architects through his intern development program.
Brown is very active in numerous civic and professional organizations. He is Chairman of the Board for South Fulton Revitalization, Inc., and Chairman, Board of Trustees St. Stephen Baptist Church. He is an active member of Atlanta Chapter American Institute of Architects, American Institute of Certified Planners, Society of Americam Military Engineers, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and a past national president of the Tuskegee Architecture and Construction Alumni Association (TACAA).
END
5/10/2001
