PAUA Architects
PAUA Architects is an award-winning Te Kāhui Whaihanga (NZ Institute of Architects) Practice working with clients across the Waikato and Coromandel. Our Mission is to design remarkable environments that enrich lives every day.
From our central Kirikiriroa Hamilton studio PAUA Architects provides a comprehensive range of design services across the Waikato region. Our work includes commercial and residential architecture, urban design, and heritage work, all with environmental sustainability strategies integrated within the design.
We advocate environmental responsibility and wise resource use, both in our work and in the wider community. We are members of the New Zealand Green Building Council.
PAUA Architects is a Practice Member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects, and a signatory to the Urban Design Protocol.
Great architecture is the result of a strong, collaborative process underpinned by open, robust communication throughout the journey. It is the ultimate opportunity to make your home or work environment personal and purposeful.
The PAUA process begins by discussing your needs, values and vision. We encourage the people we work with to keep an open mind and never assume the perceived constraints of a project or site are negative. There is always a design solution . . . it may just not be what you were expecting.
The unique homes and buildings you see here all started with one simple conversation, let's begin yours together. Please call our studio to get started on a project you are thinking about.
Starting with nothing and creating a place that is entirely bespoke is actually a rare and invigorating experience. It is a special feeling to orchestrate designers, builders and trades to create a home that is totally customised to our purpose and the surrounding environment.
Alastair & Anna Grigg – Home Owners
OUR TEAM
Antanas Procuta
Principal Architect
FNZIA B Arch B B Sc (NZRAB #2211)
Architecture is really about facilitating the way people live and experience their surroundings, how people and the things they do interact with their social and physical environment.
It's our skill - and privilege - to work with our clients to explore the full nature of their needs and opportunities to create a design that works fantastically for the long term but also creates a sense of place, character, and identity that reflects the client.
Richard Mauriohooho
Senior Architect
ANZIA B Arch (NZRAB #3179)
Quality design adds value to projects of all sizes and types. Often, it’s the little things which make all the difference.
When a client you’re working with thinks they’ve explored every possible angle but you come up with a solution they hadn’t considered, the sense of achievement is really satisfying.
Geoff Lentz
Senior Architect
ANZIA B Arch (NZRAB #1854)
What I like best is presenting a design to clients which meets their requirements in a way they would never have thought of, and just blows them away. Sometimes the initial shock they feel takes a day or two to subside, but then when they come back saying how much they love what we’ve designed it’s really satisfying.
Ghada Ajami
Senior Architect
ANZIA B Arch MA PMP (NZRAB #6405)
Good architecture to me is about spaces that provide us with a sense of belonging. We achieve this when we design buildings that consciously address the needs and aspirations of the users, the surrounding natural environment and the positive cultural legacy of our ancestors. In doing this we are more likely to tread lightly on this planet and safeguard what we have for the next generations.
Andrea Mead
Architectural Designer
NatDip Architectural Technology | Licensed Building Practitioner
I came to Paua to grow my design skills and meet more sustainably minded people.
Healthy living environments that lift a person’s spirit are my passion, in particular smaller homes.
I have a certificate in Ecological Building Design, am a certified mould assessor, have owned my own construction company and my current side hustle is working through a Building Biology Diploma alongside my husband.
Living under Te Aroha mountain and enjoying all that NZ has to offer keeps my family and I entertained.
Dominic Yuen
Architect
ANZIA B Arch (NZRAB #5786) MEngStu (A Hons) NZDAT
I believe architecture is about people, our relationship to the land, and our responsibility to the environment. As people, we respond not only to the structures designed, but as well as the area surrounding them. As a registered architect, I think we have a responsibility to design ethnically, focus on improving community living and be responsible to nature. We must realise our clients’ aspirations and develop a holistic approach to an architecture solution which is responsive to our awareness and to the site.
Beatriz Egan
Architectural Graduate
B Arch (UDESC)
Through architecture we can improve people's quality of life, a good design makes daily activities more pleasant and efficient. I see every project as an opportunity to create a new design able to enrich the mental, social and physical experiences that a unique space has to offer.
Megan Thomson
Practice Manager
Architecture to me is about the client expressing their needs, the role of an architect is to interpret this and design a space that reflects this in the most effective way.
Phil Mackay
Business Development Manager
I’ve spent the last ten years running hospitality businesses, including the very successful Rouge, which my wife and I opened in 2009. My approach has always been to align my work with my values, especially my passion for sustainability and drive for excellence.
When you live your values every day, your work becomes both successful and fulfilling. This made joining the team at PAUA an easy decision, the focus on sustainable design is such a perfect fit.