Return to the Research Projects Page.
Berger Associates, Architects & Planners
Burton W. Berger, AIA Emeritus. Architectural, design, planning, construction, and project management consultant; logo design and artistic design consultation: Contact.
Company History
When Burton W. Berger was in High School, he wanted to be a cartoonist working for Walt Disney. During
these formative years he became aware of an art form that he was not familiar with, Architecture, the design of
buildings. Having researched this new art form he came across the work of an American Architect named
Frank Lloyd Wright. The work of Wright had a profound impact on his thoughts for the future. In his senior
year in High School, he applied to several Universities to study Architecture.
Upon graduation from the University of Oklahoma and a two year stint in the U.S. Army in Korea, Berger started his
apprenticeship in the architectural office of Chauncey W. Reilly in 1956 in NYC. After working the required
number of years, in 1961 he applied for and passed the NYS Architectural license examination Berger then
worked for some of the most noted Architectural design firms in NYC.
In one of the firms he was promoted to the level of Associate Partner and worked on developing the Master
Plan for the first new town in the U.S. - Reston, Virginia.
In 1967 Burton W. Berger, AIA left the architectural firm of Whittlesey, Conklin and Rossant, and he and Salvatore Caltabiano, AIA, formed the architectural partnership of Berger & Caltabiano. In 1969, a catastrophic office fire occurred in the office of Berger & Caltabiano on 45th Street and 5th Avenue in New York City.
In 1969 the firm expanded and changed its name to Berger Caltabiano & Ascione (BC&A) with Burton
W. Berger as the Senior partner. In 1974 BC&A merged with The Gruzen Partnership. This is an article in the New York Times related to work on elderly housing Burt Berger did at Gruzen. In 1984 The Gruzen Partnership changed the name of its New Jersey office to Gruzen/Berger, P.C. and Mr. Berger, then the partner-in-charge, assumed the presidency.
In April of 1986, Gruzen/Berger and The Gruzen Partnership restructured its operations into three separate
firms. The firm of Berger Associates, Architect & Planners, P.C. is one of the major firms that resulted from
the restructuring of the national architectural firm of The Gruzen Partnership. Burton W. Berger, four senior
Associates and the entire staff of 30 people of Gruzen/Berger P.C., remained intact as the independent firm of BERGER
ASSOCIATES, Architects & Planners, P.C. The firm was located in the Gateway Bldg, in Newark N.J. (office reception area).
During its 12 years of operation, Berger Associates designed buildings of $1 Billion dollars in construction.
A total of approximately 1,000 projects were designed by Berger Associates and completed construction.
BERGER ASSOCIATES had a long history with a national reputation. Its diversified practice of architectural
design and space planning covers a wide range of building types. The firm had developed a reputation for fine
design, economical construction, completed projects and above all a close personal service for all its clients.
BERGER ASSOCIATES projects are represented in several states and its clients include both public and
private entities, as well as institutional and corporate clients. Building types span a broad range and include
corporate, cultural, educational (both secondary & higher ed.), medical, gerontological, governmental, judicial,
correctional, and multifamily residential. BERGER ASSOCIATES designs have been for both new buildings
and as well as for renovation/rehabilitation. Several renovations have been to designated Historic landmarks.
BERGER ASSOCIATES planning projects have been a major part of its success. Its Planning covers such areas as space planning, master planning, urban planning, and facilities planning. These projects have either been a part of the architectural design projects or as pure planning projects.
BERGER ASSOCIATES interior design division, BAI Design Associates, played a vital roll in the total services
that it provided for its clients. Their projects have ranged from the interior design of a Day Care Center to
that of a full corporate building complex such as was done for the Hertz Corporation (225,000 sf).
A representative list of clients include private sector clients such as The Hertz Corporation, AT&T,
Continental Insurance Co, Southwest Bell Telephone, The Prudential Insurance Co., the New Jersey Performing Arts Corp., and the Morris Museum; institutional clients such as The Actors' Fund of America,
Cathedral HealthCare System, Columbus Hospital, Kennedy Memorial Hospital, Saint James Hospital, as well as denominational clients such as The Newark Archdiocese, the Lutheran Social Services of New Jersey, the Episcopal Diocese in Newark, The Jewish Federation of MetroWest, and the Islamic Center of Passaic County.
See this article on the Continental Building.
College clients include the Bergen Community College, Ramapo College, Rutgers University, and Kean College.
Several town or regional Boards of Education in New Jersey include Morris Hills Regional, Rockaway Township, Denville, Wharton and East Orange, and New Jersey county clients such as Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Atlantic as well as the State of New Jersey Division of Building & Construction and the New Jersey Department of Corrections. Federal
clients include the Veterans Administration, and the United States Postal Service.
During its 27 years, BERGER ASSOCIATES, had received over 30 Design Awards in recognition of their
commitment to design excellence. BERGER ASSOCIATES was selected as New Jersey's Architectural firm
of The Year in 1991.
In 1994, Burton W. Berger, President and AIA Emeritus, retired from the firm.
Link here to see the Design Brocuhre for Berger Associates (right click the images and save to disk. Then open with Windows Picture and Fax Viewer or other image-viewing program other than an internet browser for best quality).
Representative Project List & Awards
Buildings
