a continuation of that legacy. “We’re trying to honour what’s already been done there,” he explains. “I believe that fit is something that is incredibly important in architecture. It’s like with music – you want harmony, you don’t want noise. The same is true with architecture.” To date, Peter and his team have completed roughly twenty houses on Kingsway Crescent alone, with further projects on Queen Mary Drive, Queen Anne Road, and surrounding streets. He believes that their sensitivity to context and their commitment to honouring the street’s architectural heritage is a big part of what has kept those clients coming back. The other big part of the draw, Peter believes, is their passion for what they do: “This isn’t just a job,” he says. “It’s a passion. Yes, it brings in enough to support the family, but it’s also just so much fun. I ask myself what I would do if I didn’t do this – just watch television and travel and spend money? No thank you. I prefer to draw, have fun, meet people, and make them happy.” That satisfaction has sustained him through more than forty years of practice, and it shows no signs of fading. That is why he has no plans to retire, but also no plans to grow – at the firm’s current scale, Peter can be a designer, not just an administrator, and he intends to keep it that way. What is evolving, however, is the firm’s geographic reach. Ph.D. Design has recently taken on several projects in the Caribbean, brought in by Canadian clients who have relocated there. The work is new territory in the best sense – a different climate, a different architectural character, a different kind of challenge. Closer to home, a striking commission in Prince Edward County is also underway: a 12,000-square-foot beach house on a sweeping lot fronting Lake Ontario, complete with an observatory at the roofline for stargazing. No matter where they are working, however, Peter says Ph.D. Design will remain powered by the same thing – his personal lifelong conviction that architecture, done well, should make people fall in love. After more than 500 projects, he shows no sign of losing that belief. MAY 2026
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTYzNTg=