Designing Spaces for the Ages

Victor and Alex Saroki stand on the balcony of their architectural firm in Birmingham.

Saroki Architecture blends tradition and innovation

By Sarah Kittle

At Saroki Architecture, father and son Victor and Alex embody the past and future of the field. For them, architecture is both an art form and a practical endeavor, merging technological skills with design and aesthetics.

Their Birmingham office is home to over 80 design awards, with those from the American Institute of Architects (AIA) being the most cherished. “It’s a pretty nice group in our profession to receive design awards from,” Victor said.

For more than 40 years, the firm has thrived by prioritizing client communication. “I always think about aesthetics and beautiful design and beautiful spaces,” Victor said. “But how do we translate those beautiful designs to make them successful for the client’s business?”

Clients often remark, “You’re thinking like a business owner, not just an architect,” or “You’re thinking like a developer.” Both Victor and Alex view these comments as compliments, affirming that their design approach is effective.

Saroki Architecture’s client base is primarily commercial (60%) with a smaller residential segment (40%), but you won’t find any institutional buildings in their portfolio. “We don’t do university or healthcare buildings,” Victor explained. “We focus on hospitality, restaurants, hotels, stores, boutiques, and offices.”

Growing up in an entrepreneurial Chaldean community means you’re probably going to develop business skills, even from dinner-table talk. “We didn’t talk about sports,” said Victor, whose father-in-law Eddie Jonna was often part of the conversation. “We talked about business and opportunities and our families.”

His father, Yalda, was 19 years old when he came to the United States in 1929. The Great Depression was being felt around the globe, characterized by massive unemployment, widespread poverty, and a drastic decline in industrial production and international trade.

Yalda was the youngest of five brothers and the only one with a high school education, so the family pooled their resources and sent him to America. It was a classic immigration story, says Victor. Yalda came through Ellis Island before heading to Detroit and Henry Ford’s $5 workday.

Yalda worked 7 days a week, sending money home to his family in Tel Keppe for 4 years until he finally returned to Iraq, having ridden out the Depression. He quickly realized that the village wasn’t home anymore, and after a few months, told his brothers that he was going back to America to start a business and would send for them once established. He married, but left his bride in Iraq until he could provide for her in the United States.

“Our entire family was born here,” said Victor. The youngest of 5, he has 3 older sisters and an older brother, with a large gap between the girls and the boys. He explains that his father had to “take a break” after the 3 girls, desperately wanting a son to carry on the family name. “We’re almost sort of like 2 families,” Victor explained.

Yalda was influential in Victor’s career choice, not only because he encouraged education and learning, but because he purchased property and hired his cousin Jimmy Jonna to build a home for his family. Jimmy hired an architect to draw up plans, and regular meetings took place to document the change and progress of the building.

Victor accompanied his parents to those meetings, and his love of architecture was born. “I could see the floor plans and the elevations,” remembered Victor, “and look at the front door and windows and really start to understand how to design a house.”

One of Saroki Architecture’s first clients was Johnny Karmo of Market Square fame. Victor had just graduated from school and the high-end grocery business was still in the future for Karmo when they collaborated on building a liquor store in Detroit. Karmo owned the property, hired Saroki to design the store, and Jonna Construction to build it. It was the beginning of a beautiful relationship that lasts to this day. All three Chaldean-owned businesses are family businesses.

“Hopefully, our sons will continue to do business for many years,” said Victor.

Both Victor and Alex are highly active in the architectural industry. Victor, a past president of the AIA and a Fellow, is one of only about 2,000 worldwide. Alex has earned accolades of his own, adding to the firm’s prestigious reputation.

Alex also adds expertise in the use of new technologies. While his father learned to draft by hand, Alex was trained to work in CAD, or computer aided design. “Technology is really important to me because it’s such a big part of our profession,” said Alex. “We have to stay on top of it and stay in the forefront of it.”

They also recognize that many new buildings need technology built into them–mechanical systems, lighting systems, communications equipment, and visual technology.

Tech has become THE communication tool. “When we used to have meetings with clients, we’d roll out the drawings on a table, sketch in front of them and make notes,” said Victor. “Now everything is up on screens.”

“Visualization is so important in what we do,” explained Alex. “With the advances in technology, with all our projects now we are creating 3D models and photo realistic rendering, so it makes it really easy for our clients to understand the vision and understand the design as it progresses with our projects.”

Architecture wasn’t Alex’s first choice when starting school. “I thought the last thing I wanted to do was architecture,” he said. Although Victor never pressured him, he did suggest that Alex take a pre-architecture course and see if he liked it. “I enjoyed it, and the rest is history,” said Alex with a wry smile.

Both Victor and Alex encourage aspiring architects to travel. “We have as much to learn from old buildings as new ones,” Alex said. Victor agrees, adding, “If you walk in Paris or any great city, you notice the details—the sidewalks, curbs, and stones.”

One thing unique to Saroki Architecture is the incorporation of Babylonian and ancient building designs into some projects, such as the Chaldean Community Foundation (CCF) or Shenandoah Country Club.

“All of the buildings we design have influences,” said Victor. For example, with the CCF in Sterling Heights, Saroki incorporated limestone arches and lapis lazuli-colored tiles.

Victor and Alex design buildings to last for centuries. “Good buildings will last 100 years; our buildings are designed to last 500 years,” they said. They are particularly proud of projects like Shenandoah Country Club, which features custom Italian-made relief tiles.

If you look at the entries of Shenandoah, you will see a stepped ziggurat pattern that was inspired by Nebuchadnezzar, the famous Babylonian king. The interior colors are also a Babylon influence, gold for the sun, blue for the waters, and green for the trees. The design is both a homage to and a reminder of the culture Chaldeans inherited from the ancients.

“These buildings will outlive us,” Victor said, “and the people enjoying them today.”