Joe Catalano, AIA, is based in Sierra Madre and is an AIAPF Past President (2008) as well as an award-winning Historic Architect.

Specialty: Historic preservation 

 Pictured: An example of his work is the Historic Reconstruction of the previously-demolished wing of the Pio Pico Mansion in Whittier, using authentic adobe construction of the period (circa 1830-1880).
It is on the National Register of Historic Places and is also a California Landmark, and is open to the public as an Interpretive Museum.

Professional Highlights: As a qualified Historic Architect, whose consulting practice is a combination of research and craft in the service of restoring or reconstructing historic buildings.

Recognition of his work includes the California Preservation Foundation Design Awards and the Governor’s Historic Preservation Awards, as well as a number of awards from the cities of Pasadena and Los Angeles.

His research includes studies and reports, and also the studied drawing development of very accurate, and beautifully drawn, historic reconstruction work. He works as an architect of record himself, and as a consultant to contractors and other architects. Most of his work is for National Register or State Landmark buildings. though he believes that many of the same principles apply to sustainable adaptive reuse of other older buildings.

Joe is also an AIA Citizen Architect. He has served on Sierra Madre’s Planning and Cultural Heritage Commissions, two General Plan committees, the board of the local historical society, and the facilities masterplanning committee for a major Pasadena Unified School District bond issue. He is also a Lecturer in Urban and Regional Planning at Cal Poly Pomona.

Why are you a member of AIAPF? The collegiality of the Chapter is very important to me as a sole practitioner.