COBU Architecture Studio is a full-service architectural firm located in Barrington, Illinois. Our project types include single-family custom, single family production, multi-family residential, commercial, educational, industrial, healthcare, amenity/clubhouses and retail. Our philosophy is to provide the highest level of service to our Clients and pair that service with high quality drawings.
Jay W. Cox
RA, NCARB, SAME, ALA – MANAGING PARTNERJay W. Cox
RA, NCARB, SAME, ALA – MANAGING PARTNER
With his 35+ years of combined experience in the architecture and construction industries, Jay oversees the production and business management of the firm. His portfolio includes educational (K-8 and post-secondary), senior housing, historical preservation, correctional facilities, medical, multi-family, clubhouse, retail, hotel, restaurant, single-family residential, industrial, fire restoration, site planning, and construction phase services. Jay’s extensive and varied experiences have provided COBU with solid expertise in project development, site evaluation, and supervision of project teams and contractors. Jay will ensure the team has the resources to deliver the project documents on time and to your satisfaction.
Justin J. Bucy
RA, NCARB, ALA – PARTNERJustin J. Bucy
RA, NCARB, ALA – PARTNER
Justin, a founding partner of COBU Architecture Studio, is dedicated to the success of our projects. His experience ranges from commercial to residential projects. He uses various construction techniques and is currently working on custom and production-type residences across the country, including commercial clubhouses and amenities. Justin is NCARB certified, a member of the Association of Licensed Architects, and a registered architect. He received his Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Justin is an active member and serves on the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago board.
Carissa Wendt
RA, NCARB, LEED AP, ALA - PROJECT ARCHITECTCarissa Wendt
RA, NCARB, LEED AP, ALA – PROJECT ARCHITECT
Carissa is an architect and project manager with over 20 years of experience in commercial, multi-use, and multi-family architecture. Her experience includes historical preservation, senior living, education, retail, restaurants, medical, automotive, and telecommunications. Her favorite part of commercial architecture is learning the individual needs of a diverse set of local and national clients. She enjoys helping them create a building that meets their business goals and enhances the end user’s experience. Carissa received her Master of Architecture from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is NCARB certified, LEED accredited, and serves on the board of the Association of Licensed Architects (ALA).
Adrian Rodriguez
PROJECT MANAGERAdrian Rodriguez
PROJECT MANAGER
Adrian has over 20 years in the architecture field. He coordinates and manages the day-to-day operations and the staff assigned to projects to assure quality and timeliness. He is involved in single-family, multi-family, mixed-use, and commercial projects. In addition, he is integral in ensuring code compliance and quality control through specifications analysis. His passion for architecture reflects in his architectural style. He identifies our Client’s needs and concerns and works to satisfy them.
Steven J. Drews
SENIOR JOB CAPTAINSteven J. Drews
SENIOR JOB CAPTAIN
Steven, involved in the building and architecture industries for over 35 years, has experience in design through construction of various project types. His past projects include production and custom residential, multi-family residential, and various commercial projects. His developed relationships with architectural firms, builders, developers, and construction contractors add deep value to our firm. Steven puts our clients’ interests first and is an excellent asset for coordinating production documents and value engineering.
Tod Hurlbert
SENIOR JOB CAPTAINTod Hurlbert
SENIOR JOB CAPTAIN
Tod has worked in the architectural field for over 25 years. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Lawrence Technological University and a Master of Architecture degree from the Boston Architectural College. His interests in phenomenology lead him to his Master’s thesis project, Sloterdijk’s Spheres, an Architecture of Pluralistic Interior Space. Tod continues to work on various commercial and residential projects at COBU.
Iwona Miasek
JOB CAPTAINIwona Miasek
JOB CAPTAIN
Iwona comes to COBU with over 20 years of experience in the architectural field. She has always had a passion to create, which led Iwona to attend the University of Hartford where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Architectural Studies. Her prior experience includes both new and renovated custom residential projects. Since joining us at COBU, Iwona has worked on design and construction documents for both local and national clients; project types have included single family homes, multi-family residential, and mixed use.
Julie Bartocci
JOB CAPTAINJulie Bartocci
JOB CAPTAIN
Julie comes to COBU with international experience. She started off her architecture career at the University of Illinois at Chicago where she earned her Bachelor of Architecture. She continued her educational pursuits at the City College of New York where she earned her Master of Architecture degree. Julie is currently working towards licensure in Illinois. Her prior experience includes cultural and civic projects from her time working in Japan and Taiwan. In addition to that Julie worked on high-end single-family projects in New York City and Connecticut. Since she has joined us at COBU, Julie has primarily worked on single-family projects and coordinated with consultants to produce drawings that satisfy our client’s needs.
Tamsan Mora
SENIOR ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATETamsan Mora
SENIOR ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATE
Tamsan is an aspiring architect who is currently on the path to licensure. Her primary responsibilities have included designing and developing projects through the schematic design and construction documentation phases. In addition, at COBU, she has assisted with the development of townhouses, single-family homes, and adaptive reuse projects. Tamsan studied architecture at the University of Arkansas, where she earned her Bachelor of Architecture degree with honors. Her scholarly and career interests center around affordable housing, and her honors thesis focused on affordable housing in Chicago.
Dermeei Perez
ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATEDermeei Perez
ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATE
Dermeei is a graduate of Judson University in Elgin, Illinois where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Architecture. She intends to return to Judson to earn her Masters of Architecture on her way to pursuing licensure. While at COBU, she has worked on single family residential, multifamily apartments, site planning, commercial projects and renderings. She also has previous experience designing religious buildings and landscape projects. This experience has lead her to develop an eye that can envision projects of varying scale.
Daniel Martinez
ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATEDaniel Martinez
ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATE
Daniel is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Architectural Studies. During his time at COBU, Danny has worked on both residential and commercial projects while gaining experience and knowledge from the team. He has plans to continue his education to complete his Master of Architecture degree and become a licensed architect. Danny grew up playing sports and going to concerts, so his future career goals include designing commercial buildings for entertainment such as stadiums, arenas, and venues.
Jennifer Cox
OFFICE MANAGERJennifer Cox
OFFICE MANAGER
Jennifer has been with COBU since we began this venture in 2018. Before joining COBU, Jen served as a Medical Corpsman in the United States Navy. She also worked in the medical field in various clinical and leadership capacities over a multi-decade career. Jen keeps our business running by taking care of human resources, implementing firm policies, managing payroll, billing, collections, and many other office needs.
