--- title: "Sonya Lee Architect llc — Architects & Building Designers | Houzz" canonical_html_url: https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/sonya-lee-architect-llc-pfvwus-pf~1225792687 markdown_url: https://www.houzz.com/md/professionals/pf~1225792687.md entity_type: LocalBusiness business_name: "Sonya Lee Architect llc" category: ["Architects"] image: https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/8de3291005284c2b_7975-w400-h400-b0-p0--.jpg address: "New York/Tampa, Florida 33625, United States" latitude: 28.0726 longitude: -82.559 phone: "(917) 941-3322" website: http://www.sonyaleearchitect.com rating: 5 review_count: 8 best_of_houzz_awards: 4 followers: 43 last_updated: 2026-09-23 --- # Sonya Lee Architect llc Original Houzz profile: [Sonya Lee Architect llc](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/sonya-lee-architect-llc-pfvwus-pf~1225792687) ## Professional summary - **Primary category:** Architects - **Location:** New York/Tampa, FL - **Houzz rating:** 5.0 out of 5 (8 reviews) - **Best of Houzz:** 4 awards (2021–2025), for Service, Design. ## About ### Houzz Badges - Recommended on Houzz - 1,000 Ideabook Saves Sonya Lee Architect llc is a design office, providing full architectural services from feasibility through to construction and furnishings. We view each project as unique and born from a collaboration with you and our team. Every project comes with a different set of priorities -- whether its budget, time, program -- that will inform and shape how we proceed. We translate this into thoughtfully detailed residences and commercial spaces. Prior to starting her own firm in 2011, Sonya was an Associate at Toshiko Mori Architect where she led several award winning projects including the Eleanor and Wilson Greatbatch Visitor Center and the House in Ghent. She received a dual degree at the University of Michigan (B.S. in Architecture and a B.A. in History of Art) and a Masters in Architecture from Columbia University, where she was the recipient of the Lowenfish Memorial Prize. Sonya is a registered architect in New York, Michigan and Florida, NCARB Certified and is a LEED accredited professional. ## Business Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Business Name | Sonya Lee Architect llc | | Address | New York/Tampa, Florida 33625, United States | | Phone | (917) 941-3322 | | Website | http://www.sonyaleearchitect.com | | License Number | New York, Florida, Michigan | | Followers on Houzz | 43 | ## Contact - **Houzz profile:** [Sonya Lee Architect llc](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/sonya-lee-architect-llc-pfvwus-pf~1225792687) - **Website:** http://www.sonyaleearchitect.com - **Phone:** (917) 941-3322 ## Credentials **Certifications & Awards** - LEED AP BD+C, NCARB Certified - **Best of Houzz:** 4 awards (2021–2025), for Service, Design. **Affiliations** - [The American Institute of Architects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/schools-and-organizations/the-american-institute-of-architects-pfvwus-pf~1350720471) - [NCARB](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/schools-and-organizations/ncarb-pfvwus-pf~1477640315) - [AIA New York \| Center for Architecture](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/schools-and-organizations/aia-new-york-center-for-architecture-pfvwus-pf~815067495) ## Reviews **Overall rating: 5.0 out of 5 — 8 reviews** *Aspect averages:* - Work Quality: 5.0 - Communication: 5.0 - Value: 5.0 ### All 8 reviews **★★★★★ — Iman Hassan, Nov. 2024** > Sonya is the epitome of excellence. She is beyond creative, thoughtful, true to her word, committed and professional. She wonderfully renovated my childhood home. Living out of state while the work was done was not a barrier because she constantly kept me informed, assured the work was being completed to the highest standards and knew how best to proceed in all phases. Sonya is a joy and I am blessed to have worked with her on this once in a lifetime project. **★★★★★ — Mattia Colangelo, Dec. 2019** > Great Professional with a strong aesthetic sense of space and design. We had the pleasure to collaborate producing some great images for an interior renovation. > Really easy to work with. Highly recommended **★★★★★ — Nth Form Architectural Visualization, Aug. 2018** > Of the architects I've had the pleasure to collaborate with, Sonya stands out as one of the best as far as meticulous execution and uncompromising design sensibility. Her focus is always on serving the client's best long-term interest, and her knowledge of architectural principles is vast. Together with her easy-going demeanor Sonya is a rare, delightful architect showing great promise in years to come. Having seen the quality of her work in design phases as well as in realized form, I would wholeheartedly recommend Sonya without hesitation to any of her prospective clients. **★★★★★ — Tiffany Childs, July 2018** > Sonya is an exceptionally talented architect who knows how to push all the right buttons to get your project over the finish line. > > My husband and I reached out to Sonya in January 2015 when we were scouting around for an architect to design, plan and execute the overhaul of our Brownstone in Brooklyn. All the architects we met with were pre-selected off the back of their portfolios and recommendations, but out of all the professionals interviewed Sonya was the only one who truly listened to what our needs were – in terms of budget, look, feel and the need to preserve the integrity of our home as much as possible. We felt that she was able to gauge the areas of work we were confident in and the areas we would need more advice and assistance with; that she comprehended the challenges of undertaking major works on an old home with a toddler in tow; and also the pressures of managing the varying needs of stakeholders (unreasonable neighbours, the DoB, expeditors, engineers, contractors, etc etc). > > Sonya managed nearly every aspect of our project – design, drafting, approvals, contractor selection, payments, issue resolution – the whole kit and caboodle. When we ran into issues with our contractor she confidently stepped in and micro managed them to get the work done. We have no doubt that without her intervention and expertise we could have been left high and dry, with a half complete house. Sonya dedicated considerable extra time and energy to ensuring we achieved the home that we desired, navigating obstacles and challenges with ease. We consider ourselves very lucky to have met such a dedicated and gifted person. **★★★★★ — HU-528949, July 2016** > Sonya is an outstanding architect. I recommend her to anyone looking to get work done. She is a great listener and put together plans that fit my ideas, way of life, city regulations etc. She stayed on the project from the first discussion to the final walk through, addressed challenges encountered by the general contractor (pipe unexpected location) and also pushed the general contractor to deliver the best possible output for her client. I can't say anything negative about her because she did a fantastic work with my home. **★★★★★ — HU-809698, June 2016** > Sonya was the primary architect for our apartment buildout (2013, Battery Park City) and was more recently the primary architect for our office buildout (2015, Financial District). Both spaces stayed true to the initial design, while also adhering to building requirements and city codes. This was a massive undertaking, as we were working from raw basebuilding, and creating the entire space from scratch. We attribute these successes in large part to Sonya’s design and direction. > > We have trusted Sonya fully with these two spaces that are extremely important to our lives, both personally and professionally- people live here, and we couldn’t be happier with the job she’s done. She is reliable and overall great to work with. We would happily recommend her skills and talents to anyone looking. > > Sonya did a particularly great job at incorporating our design suggestions into the space. Especially with regard to finding creative solutions, Sonya excels. She is easy to communicate with and quick to respond with suggestions. > Furthermore, she did a great job managing both of these projects, whether it was keeping contractors on task or negotiating discounts for us, all while meeting very tight deadlines. > > Sonya is also great to work with on a personal level. She listened to our needs and shared her visions, but always deferred to what we wanted. **★★★★★ — David Lee, Dec. 2015** > Sonya was our architect for two home renovations. The first was a finishing of a basement in a nice 1920's cape code home in Ann Arbor, MI. Her meticulous attention to detail allowed us to maximize the space to create a great family entertaining space, an additional bedroom with full bath and walk in closet, and an office space. She is a great outside of the box thinker and helped us stay under budget. > > Our second renovation was a complete gutting and conversion of a previously converted duplex in the historic fan district of Richmond, VA. she did an amazing job of rethinking the space to provide a modern touch to an historic row house. We were able to stay around our budget and she held our contractor and his subs to a higher standard. Her work ethic, integrity, and flexibility made her great to work with. **★★★★★ — Law, Dec. 2015** > We hired Sonya Lee as architect to design and manage a complete gut renovation of a pre-war apartment in Forest Hills Gardens, NY. I can't even imagine another architect doing a better job than what she did for us. She has our absolutely highest recommendation possible. > > Process & Knowledge -- Sonya managed the contractors, the architectural drawings, the electrical and plumbing drawings, the Dept of Buildings approval, and helped us deal with the building's board process. She coordinated the entire renovation with an incredible handle on every detail and turned a giant project into manageable pieces and kept it all transparent enough that we knew where we were on status and what the next steps were. She verified all the bills and invoices presented from the contractors and helped us negotiate costs with them. She picked out furniture pieces and fixtures for us. Her expertise was such that we could ask her any question at any time about materials and she could quote price ranges to us, explain the pros and cons of different choices, and she knew everything that the contractors were doing and when they were doing it. There was never a missed deadline from her and she rigorously talked through budget choices and kept us in our desired range. The peace of mind from having someone like her in charge was without question worth the cost of hiring her. > > Design -- Sonya has an elegant modern sensibility about design, but she doesn't impose anything on you. She reviewed sample picture designs we liked, asked thoughtful questions about our intended use and worked to create a beautiful, airy design for our apartment that maximized a modern, timeless aesthetic with our needs for a durable and functional family life with small children. Put it this way, everything she created was beautiful, could withstand a beating from our kids and will not be dated years and years from now. > > Experience -- I think I've said this already, but if it's not clear, Sonya Lee knows just about everything there is to know for modern renovations. Here's a sampling of some stuff we asked about: light bulb choices and lighting and environmental impact, the hardness of different counters, how to clean wood finishes, "what is that thing behind the wall?", how many internet data jacks should we have, will the Dept of Buildings ask questions about xyz, is there a cheaper option for cabinet handles, what do we do if we want to install a heated toilet later, how is the sound dampening quality of this rug, etc. She knew everything. > > Attitude -- Sonya Lee is sweet and kind, but tough on slow contractors. Seriously, she is a very easy person to get along with and has an honestly positive attitude. ## Selected projects - [Tennis House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/tennis-house-pj-vj~3168670) - Location: Queens, NY - Photos: 13 - Description: Quietly tucked away on a lush, tree-lined street in the Gardens of Forest Hills, this landmarked single family home underwent a gut renovation. The updates addresses the challenges of creating a modern home within a 1930s Tudor-style stately home-- respecting the details and character of the home while balancing the needs of a young family of four. The renovation cleaned up many of the past adhoc renovations, structural instabilities and incongruous finishes that had marked it’s last 80+ history… - [Beechknoll House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/beechknoll-house-pj-vj~7354430) - Location: Queens, NY - Photos: 20 - Description: Built in 1935, this stately landmarked home in the lush Forest Hills Gardens, New York City had lost its original grandeur and was in complete disrepair and decay— massive water damage caused gaping holes between the first and second floor, there were structural inadequacies, small punched opening windows that stuck, a defunct heating system and finishes dated from the 1950s all beckoned for a full gut renovation. The floor plan was mostly kept in tact with a strategic reorganization to provide… - [JE House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/je-house-pj-vj~7645878) - Location: Queens, NY - Photos: 15 - Description: The JE House was a full gut renovation of our client’s childhood home, a stately 2-story brick Colonial built in 1940. The floor plans were reconfigured for an elder parent, providing a new primary bedroom with an en-suite bathroom on the first floor, directly off of the large bay windowed living room. The existing galley kitchen was relocated to the front of the house and opened up to the dining room, perfectly suited for their large family gatherings. Custom white oak cabinets with a calacutta… - [Brooklyn Height brownstone](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/brooklyn-height-brownstone-pj-vj~7471302) - Location: Brooklyn, NY - Photos: 17 - [Hamilton House](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/hamilton-house-pj-vj~7354439) - Location: Los Angeles, CA - Photos: 17 - [Sherman II Brooklyn brownstone](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/sherman-ii-brooklyn-brownstone-pj-vj~7257305) - Location: Brooklyn, New York - Photos: 11 - Description: Built in 1901, this Brooklyn limestone townhouse had been originally built by William M. Calder. Calder had shaped much of the neighborhood, building nearly 3500 one-to-two family townhouses in Brooklyn, commonly marked by their full-height bay windows, limestone facades carved with decorative panels of swirling botanical patterns and additional flourishes and dentil cornice mouldings. Over the course of the next century, the townhouse had endured a few ad-hoc renovations. Our clients, a family… - [Warren apt](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/warren-apt-pj-vj~6534229) - Location: New York, NY - Photos: 2 - Description: Refreshing this downtown Manhattan condo with breathtaking views of the Hudson River included new paint throughout, fixing small areas that had fallen disrepair, inserting in millwork in otherwise eccentric spaces and cavities. Behind large pocket pivot doors is housed a new home office, engulfed in a deep dark blue. White oak floating shelves and an adjustable custom desk is inserted into the space. A small cabinet on wheels allows for flexibility. - [Sherman Brownstone](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/sherman-brownstone-pj-vj~5953528) - Location: Brooklyn, NY - Photos: 12 - Description: Our clients came to us with various scenarios of how they wanted to use their ground floor apartment in their multi-generational Brooklyn brownstone, ranging from renting it out as a separate apartment to using it as a home office with potential client meetings to an overflow entertainment area with long term visiting guests. Flexibility was critical. Compact and efficient was essential. Ease of use for varying ages and needs was fundamental. The existing apartment was divided into two main area… - [321 Apt](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/321-apt-pj-vj~1535826) - Location: New York, NY - Photos: 5 - [Brooklyn Brownstone](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/brooklyn-brownstone-pj-vj~1609418) - Location: Brooklyn, NY - Photos: 13 - Description: Located on a tree-lined street in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, this late 1800’s, 3-story brownstone had been held within a family for decades and with it, become in disrepair and desperate need of renovation. Underneath the magenta wall-to-wall carpet and layers of caked-on paint were beautiful inlaid floors and exquisite decorative woodwork that was carefully restored. Windows had decayed, leaving large gaping holes to the elements outside. The previous renovation in the 1980s had carved up th… - [Holder Apartment](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/holder-apartment-pj-vj~1145443) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 13 - Description: Located in the historic Gardens of Forest Hills, Queens, this gut renovation of a 3 bedroom, 2 bath creates a light filled open plan for a young family who work from home. The existing plan layout was closed off, making the large rooms feel smaller and disconnected. The renovation reconfigured the floor plan, opened up the kitchen and dining areas. A teak slat wall provides both natural daylight and privacy to the home office. - [Meow Parlour](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/meow-parlour-pj-vj~1452032) - Location: New York, NY - Photos: 4 - Description: New York City's first cat cafe: modern lounge space where kitties roam freely, awaiting adoption. Playfully designed and cleverly detailed -- displays are integrated with catbeds, mazes and hideaways. - [Stuart Residence](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/stuart-residence-pj-vj~1144769) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 9 - Description: This beautiful Victorian built in 1910 was converted back into a single family home from a duplex. Original details were restored, balanced with a modern kitchen and baths, updating the house for this young family's needs. Energy efficient windows and high R-value insulation significantly improved the building envelope's performance and lower energy bills. - [West Apartment](https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/west-apartment-pj-vj~1039058) - Location: Not specified - Photos: 11 - Description: This project combined two adjacent units into a spacious 3500sf apartment. A strategic reconfiguration of the floor plan eliminated the redundancies of two living rooms, two kitchens, two masterbathrooms etc, while providing for the specific needs of this client. New finishes, lighting and built in furnishings provides a cohesive modern space for this busy family with four young children. [See all 14 projects](https://www.houzz.com/professionals/architects-and-building-designers/sonya-lee-architect-llc-pfvwus-pf~1225792687) ## Community Q&A **Q: Lower Cabinet wood** *(in Photo Questions)* Is that a walnut on the lower cabinets run horizontally? Very nice look with the upper whites. A: Yes! The walnut panels are bookmatched panels so the grain of the wood appears continuous across the doors! **Q: what type of wood was used for vanity, mirror frame and shelf?** *(in Photo Questions)* What type of wood was used for vanity? A: Thank you. Actually it’s a standard off shelf Koehler verdena medicine cabinet that we added the wood trim and the fixed mirror next to it is custom. **Q: Kitchen cabinets** *(in Photo Questions)* Beautiful kitchen! I love the mix of wood and white cabinets. Can you please tell me the type of wood and manufacturer for both? Many thanks. A: Thanks -- the basecabinets are walnut; the upper cabinets are a gloss shop lacquer. **Q: Backsplash tile** *(in Photo Questions)* Can you tell me the size of those tiles and the source? Very clean and crisp, thanks! A: The backsplash is 2x12 glacier tile from Stone Source **Q: Recessed pulls?** *(in Photo Questions)* Such a clean work!! What brand and reference of recessed pulls did you specify in this project? A: Thanks J! It's Richelieu Contemporary recessed metal pulls in brushed oil rubbed bronze. **Q: Who makes the light fixture?!** *(in Photo Questions)* Who makes the light fixture?! A: Hi Jacqueline, The light fixture is from Ay Illuminate. Thx! --- *Source: Houzz professional profile. Reflects the profile as of 2026-09-23.*