DWL Architects + Planners Inc., is an architecture and planning firm headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. The firm was founded in 1949 by Frederick Penn Weaver and Richard E. Drover as the firm Weaver & Drover. It later became Drover, Welch & Lindlan Architects and was then shortened to DWL. The firm has designed many noteworthy buildings throughout the state of Arizona.
History
Frederick Weaver and Richard Drover met while working for Edward L. Varney Associates in Phoenix. In 1949, the two left Varney's firm and established the firm of Weaver & Drover. Its early work was mostly residential, but by the mid-1950s they were designing bank buildings for a local bank Valley National Bank.[1] Many of these bank buildings are examples of Mid Century Modern Architecture, and several are still in use today.[2]
By the end of the decade, it had completed two student residence halls for Arizona State University. In the 1960s, it expanded its portfolio with the completion of Terminal 2 at Sky Harbor. Designed in collaboration with Lescher & Mahoney, the modernist terminal building was the start of its long standing relationship with the airport. Also, in this decade, the Arizona Title & Trust Building in Downtown Phoenix was designed. The high-rise building is said to be Phoenix's best example of the International Style.[2] After Feed Weaver's death in 1968, Richard Drover reorganized it into Drover, Welch & Lindlan Architects, establishing the partnership of Wallace Welch and James Lindlan. In 1984, the firm's name was shortened to DWL Architects.[1] Today, it specializes in designing aviation, higher education and healthcare projects throughout the southwestern United States.[1]
Selected works
Arizona Title & Trust BuildingHayden Library at ASU
As Weaver & Drover (1949-1968)
Saint Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, Phoenix, Arizona, 1950[3]
Saint Agnes Church, Phoenix, Arizona, 1953[4]
Valley National Bank, 1st Street and Country Club branch, Mesa, Arizona, 1954 (Demolished)[5]
Valley National Bank, 21st Place and Van Buren branch, Phoenix, Arizona, 1954[6]
^"23 Jan 1982, Page 3 - Arizona Republic at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2021-07-17.
^"21 Aug 1983, Page 218 - Arizona Republic at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2021-07-17.
^"Transformation of Terminal 3 at Phoenix Sky Harbor Finishes with North & South Concourses | Airport Improvement Magazine". airportimprovement.com. Retrieved 2021-03-09.
^"Falcon Field Terminal | Falcon Field Airport". www.falconfieldairport.com. Retrieved 2021-03-09.