Project Architect – Affordable Housing

Responsibilities

Serve as the architectural lead, coordinating and managing the external architect-of-record and full consultant team
Oversee design development and construction documentation to ensure alignment with project goals, budget, schedule, and affordability requirements
Manage and track affordable housing compliance, including zoning, code, accessibility, funding program requirements, and agency reviews
Support construction administration from the owner’s perspective, including review and coordination of RFIs, submittals, and design clarifications
Participate in construction meetings, site observations, and issue resolution with the design and construction teams
Ensure consistent documentation standards, quality control, and timely consultant deliverables
Maintain clear communication between ownership, consultants, and construction stakeholders

Qualifications

• 5–7 years of professional architectural experience, with a strong background in affordable or mixed-income housing
• Proven experience managing consultants and coordinating complex documentation sets
• Solid understanding of building codes, accessibility, and affordable housing compliance frameworks
• Experience supporting construction administration through closeout
• Strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills

Key Role Skillset

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Highly collaborative
• Well-developed project management skills

Benefits

• Personalized Health Care: Multiple medical, dental, and vision plan options; Employee Assistance Program
• Financial Benefits: Competitive salary and incentive packages; matching 401(k); FSAs and HSA; employer-paid life and AD&D insurance; paid leave & disability programs
• Social Wellness: 19+ days of PTO; mental health counseling & resources; fertility, surrogacy, and adoption assistance; volunteer days and donation matching
• Career Development: Learning & training programs; tuition & certification reimbursement; internal advancement opportunities

Company Overview

Formed in 1972, Related is the most prominent privately-owned real estate firm in the United States. Headquartered in New York City, the company has offices and major developments across the world. Related owns and manages a premier portfolio of assets valued at over $70 billion, including the 28-acre Hudson Yards neighborhood on Manhattan’s West Side.

Divisional Overview

Related Midwest, the Chicago office of Related Companies, is the preeminent developer of mixed-use properties, affordable housing communities, and luxury condominium and rental homes across Chicago. The company commands a portfolio of residential, mixed-use and master-planned properties, including pioneering projects like The 78 where the company is heading a transformational development on 62 acres in the heart of downtown Chicago to create the city’s next great neighborhood. Related Midwest is also the largest developer of affordable housing in the Midwest, with more than 10,000 units, and has never converted an affordable unit to market rate. The firm’s other market-defining projects include ultra-luxury residential tower One Bennett Park, designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects; The Row Fulton Market, the first high-rise in Chicago built by an African American general contractor (BOWA Construction); luxury rental towers 500 N. Lake Shore Drive and OneEleven; Lathrop, an ongoing restoration and redevelopment of the historic Julia C. Lathrop Homes into a mixed-income community; 400 Lake Shore Drive, two residential towers situated where the river meets the lake in Chicago, and Roosevelt Square, an innovative 120-acre multi-phase development on Chicago’s west side. For more than 30 years, Related Midwest has been an industry leader in community commitment and routinely sets the bar for measurable equity, diversity and inclusion standards on all of its projects. The company is deeply committed to improving neighborhoods, creating sustainable opportunities for small businesses and community residents, and building inspirational places and homes for all. Related Midwest’s business model is built on partnership with minority- and women-owned firms as well as mentorship of small minority- and women-owned businesses as they launch and grow. The firm is a founding partner in HIRE360, a first-of-its-kind community partnership designed to expand professional development and employment opportunities in the trades.