About Rueter Associates Architects

Rueter Associates Architects has established a reputation for creating architecture that is sensitive to existing conditions and responsive to the needs, desires, and budget of the client. Our approach to design combines an understanding of architectural precedents with contemporary detailing to create architecture with a historic sense of place, as well as modern appreciation for light and space.

Listening has taught us that clients have different needs, desires, and budgets. Over the years, we have striven to answer complex architectural questions with simplicity and elegance, and to resolve functional and aesthetic problems as if they were one. Our buildings are designed to express their purpose, to provide spatial clarity, and to be warm and inviting. All of our commissions, public and private, are designed to be sensitive to their location, whether urban, suburban, or rural.

The firm has a broad range of experience in single and multi-family housing, including new construction, additions, renovations and preservation. Our commercial projects include new construction, expansion, tenant improvements and mixed-use developments. We work collaboratively with clients, contractors and consultants to fulfill the unique requirements of each project.

Due to its distinguished reputation, Rueter Associates Architects has been able to recruit the highest caliber staff. Each member of the firm is trained and capable of handling diverse aspects of an architectural commission. With our projects, the same Principal and Project Architects are involved throughout all phases of the work. We believe strongly that this method best serves our client, and that our success over the years is directly attributable to this approach.

Our Partnerships

The firm assembles an experienced group of professional consultants in Structural Engineering, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Lighting Design, Interior Design, and Acoustics as needed for each commission. By selecting consultants for each of our commissions, we are able to meet the specific needs of our individual clients.

Our Staff



MARC RUETER, AIA

Designer And Principal In Charge

Marc Rueter graduated with distinction in architecture from the University of Nebraska and has a Masters degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Wisconsin. He began his professional career as an Assistant Professor of Architecture at the University of Kansas. In 1972 he helped organize a Midwest branch of Urban Planners, Inc., a firm specializing in architectural, planning and engineering services. Marc helped select sites and design major housing projects in Michigan, Indiana, and Minnesota.

Marc’s interest in historic architecture and traditional town planning began in 1974 while serving as a city planner for Ann Arbor, Michigan. As a Senior Planner, Marc wrote neighborhood preservation plans and a comprehensive downtown conservation plan for the city.

Since 1979, Marc has been in private practice. He has completed a wide variety of projects, including the restoration of the Halsted (Goetsch-Winkler) residence designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, an Alden Dow-inspired head injury clinic in Lansing, a wooden water tower for the Henry Ford Museum, and the adaptive reuse of the Earle Hotel and Restaurant in downtown Ann Arbor. Marc also has a major interest in residential work, including additions, renovations, historical restoration and preservation, new homes and housing developments. Marc has worked on over 100 projects in Ann Arbor’s Old West Side Historic District and has proven ability to update historic homes for today’s families within the design guidelines of the District. Recently he completed restoration plans and assisted with the application to the National Register of the Jonathan M. Lund House, a Greek Revival farmhouse on Pontiac Trail.

Whatever the project type, Marc consistently provides thorough attention to detail and thoughtful designed solutions, which are influenced by his extensive knowledge of architectural history. His preservation, renovation and historically influenced new work has been published in Fine Homebuilding, Inland Architect, Old House Journal, Old House Interiors and Place magazines. He received a citation from the Ann Arbor Housing & Development Commission for a historically sensitive addition to a house in the Old West Side Historic District. He won an AIA Honor Award in 1995 for a new Greek Revival-style residence in Chelsea.

Marc serves on the Ann Arbor Historic District Awards Committee, the Ann Arbor Individual Historic Properties Study Committee, and the Community Development Review Board. Marc has lectured at area-wide Historic District Committees on planning sensitive additions and solving structural problems and at a Michigan Historic Preservation Network Conference. Marc is a locally recognized expert on Greek Revival construction and structural preservation techniques.



JAMES SCRIVENS, RA

Project Architect

Jim Scrivens joined Rueter Associates Architects In February of 2006. Jim brings with him a wide range of skills and experiences that enable him to be involved in all phases of the architectural process, from schematic design to project administration.

Jim is a registered architect in the state of Michigan, received his Master of Architecture degree from the University of Michigan in 1994 and a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Lawrence Technological University in 1992. Prior to joining Rueter Associates Architects, Jim served as Project Architect for David W. Osler Associates for nine years. In his prior experience, Jim worked on a number of technically challenging public buildings in Michigan. Not only has Jim contributed to a wide range of building types, including libraries, schools, offices, houses of worship, and residences, he also was a construction manager for West Oakland Builders, supervising residential and commercial/ industrial projects for four years. With over eight years of experience as a skilled carpenter and a working knowledge of other trades, Jim is capable of detailing with more than design in mind. His first-hand knowledge of construction allows him to communicate effectively with consulting engineers and contractors through the design development and into construction phases.



CARA SMITH

Office Manager

Cara Smith joined Rueter Associates Architects in July of 2021. Cara has over 20 years’ experience in AR/AP, Billing, Collections Manager and handles our researching and writing of reports. Cara is certified in Six Sigma­ Yellow Belt Customer Service I and II, and CPR/First Aid. Cara also has her own confectionary business where she bakes amazing cakes. In her spare time, she volunteers for Hart of Michigan and Faerie Tales Cat Rescue.

Want to learn more about Rueter Associates Architects and what our innovative architects can do for you? Contact us today to explore the possibilities for your upcoming project.

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