Five Years of Rooted: Lessons in Designing for Well-Being

Five years ago, Rooted Architecture Studio PLLC was a name on paper and a set of values I had spent a long time trying to articulate. I filed my PLLC on my 28th birthday in February 2021, and officially launched on July 1st of that year. At the time, I knew what kind of firm I wanted to build. What I did not yet know was how much the work of building it would teach me. See where our foundational work began in celebrating two years of Rooted Architecture Studio.

This milestone feels like the right moment to reflect, not just on what Rooted has become, but on what wellness-focused, inclusive design has shown me about the way spaces shape human experience. Explore our studio journey in celebrating 3 years of Rooted Architecture Studio.

Where It Started: A Pivot Rooted in Values

Rooted did not begin with a business plan. It began with a question I kept returning to during the COVID shutdown in 2020: what kind of architect do I actually want to be? I had been practicing, developing skills and experience, but something kept pulling me toward a more intentional kind of work. I used the Ikigai framework to sit with that question honestly, and what emerged was clarity I had not expected.

I wanted to design spaces that genuinely support people. Not just spaces that look beautiful or meet code minimums, but environments that account for how human beings actually live, sense, heal, and belong. That meant centering wellness, inclusion, and cultural responsiveness from the very beginning of a project, not layering them on at the end.

That values-driven foundation is still the core of every project Rooted takes on today.

Lesson One: Wellness Is Not an Aesthetic

When most people hear “wellness design,” they think of natural materials, soft lighting, and plants. Those elements matter. But over five years of practice, I have learned that true wellness-centered design is far more demanding than an aesthetic choice.

It requires asking questions before picking a finish: How will the acoustics of this space affect someone with sensory sensitivities? Does this layout allow for both social connection and meaningful privacy? How does natural light move through this room across the full arc of a day? Does this space communicate belonging to the people who will actually use it?

My 2016 research fellowship on biophilic design was an early anchor for this thinking. The evidence is clear that connection to the natural world has measurable effects on health, cognition, and mood. But biophilia is just one thread in a much larger tapestry. Rooted’s wellness approach draws on sensory design principles, trauma-informed frameworks, and ongoing conversations with the clients who know their own needs better than any style guide ever could.

Lesson Two: Inclusive Design Is Good Design

One of the clearest lessons of the past five years is that designing for the full range of human experience produces better outcomes for everyone. When I design with neurodivergent clients in mind, considering sensory thresholds, predictable spatial sequences, and the relationship between environment and nervous system regulation, those same qualities improve the experience for every person who moves through the space.

Inclusive architecture is not a specialty niche. It is the standard every project should reach for. Rooted has worked across residential, commercial, community, and healthcare contexts, and in every category, the most successful projects are the ones where we asked: who might feel left out of this space, and how do we change that?

Running a bilingual practice has deepened this commitment in ways I did not fully anticipate when I launched. Communicating with Spanish-speaking clients in their first language changes the dynamic of a project. It builds trust faster, uncovers nuances that might otherwise stay hidden, and produces spaces that actually reflect the cultural identity of the people who will inhabit them.

Lesson Three: Community Is Architecture Too

I did not build Rooted alone. The professional communities I have been part of, including AIA Long Island, EntreArchitect, and the broader network of Latina architects, Arquitina, who contributed to publications like Latinas in Architecture, have shaped how I think and how I practice.

Contributing to the Latinas in Architecture Volume Two publication and having the pleasure to share my story at Princeton University and Harvard University in 2025  reminded me that professional visibility matters. When younger architects see themselves represented in the profession, it expands what they believe is possible. That is a form of design too: designing the conditions for the next generation to show up fully.

The partnerships Rooted has built over the years, with wellness practitioners, contractors, community organizations, and fellow design professionals, reflect a core belief that the best work happens in relationship, not in isolation.

Lesson Four: The Practice Teaches You

Five years in, I am a different architect than I was when I filed that PLLC. Not because my values changed, but because the work kept refining them. Every client conversation, every zoning hearing, every project that did not go as planned and every one that exceeded expectations has added something to how I approach the next design challenge.

Running a boutique firm means wearing a lot of hats. It means developing systems, building a team, making difficult decisions quickly, and constantly asking whether the business I am running reflects the values I started with. That question keeps me honest.

It also means there are days when the work is hard and unglamorous, and days when a client shares how a space I designed has genuinely changed their daily experience. Those moments are why Rooted exists.

Looking Forward

The next chapter of Rooted includes expanding the firm’s capacity to serve clients across Long Island, New York City, and Northern New Jersey, deepening our focus on wellness-centered and sensory-friendly design, and continuing to grow the collaborative partnerships that make ambitious work possible.

Five years in, I am more committed than ever to the idea that the built environment is one of the most powerful tools we have for supporting human flourishing. Every room, every threshold, every material choice is an opportunity to ask: does this space make the people inside it feel well, seen, and at home?

That question is what Rooted was built on. And it is what we will keep building toward.

If you are curious about what wellness-focused, inclusive design could look like for your next project, I would love to connect. Reach out to Rooted Architecture Studio to start the conversation.

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