Developers, architects, and property owners invited to submit top-quality completed projects in Montgomery County; submission deadline is July 21, 2025.
Wheaton, Md. – The Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), will host the seventh Design Excellence Awards on Thursday, October 16, 2025, honoring the best works in architecture and urban design that make a difference in people’s lives and represent Montgomery County’s highest quality of design to the region, state, and nation.
Entries will be accepted starting May 14, 2025, and the deadline for submission is July 21, 2025. There is an entry fee of $175 per project submitted. The selection of the two winners will be made by an independent jury of national experts in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, planning and urban design. The awards categories are:
- Gwen Wright Design Excellence Award: Honors the most outstanding architectural, urban design and/or landscape design in Montgomery County.
- Exceptional Housing Award: Honors the best multi-family housing in the county.
The biennial awards ceremony will be held at Celebrate Design 2025 event, co-hosted by the AIA Potomac Valley Chapter, on October 16, 2025, at the Marriott International Global Headquarters (7750 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD). The community is invited to attend this exciting ticketed regional event, which will also honor recipients of the AIA Potomac Valley Chapter’s Excellence in Design Awards.
The two winning projects and possible additional jury Merit Award winners will highlight how great designs within the county foster walkable, sustainable places at the scale of the neighborhood, block and/or building. The projects should be integral to the surrounding public realm of the pedestrian, bike, and street networks and should showcase the kind of buildings and places people love. Both Design Excellence award winners will illustrate how great design contributes to the community in terms of character, identity, and economic value. These awards provide the opportunity for the winning projects to be seen widely, particularly in business and professional settings where the best qualities of Montgomery County are promoted.
“The Design Excellence Award is a chance for us to highlight the best projects around the county and to showcase how great design strengthens our complete communities,” said Senior Designer Paul Mortensen. “We’re excited to host this event at Marriott International Global Headquarters, which won a Design Excellence Merit Award for Architecture and Urban Design in 2023. It continues to be an example of how design can impact corporate culture for the betterment of our centers like Bethesda, and the greater region.”
2025 Design Excellence Awards Jury
The jury is composed of accomplished and highly regarded practitioners in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, planning and urban design. Jury members will be announced soon.
How to Apply
Projects eligible for the 2025 Design Excellence Awards include private and public structures and spaces located within Montgomery County built within the past 10 years and are currently occupied and in use. Entries for the housing category should be apartment, condominium, or townhouse buildings; single-family detached houses are ineligible for submission. Award entry forms are available at montgomeryplanning.org/design. Entries will be accepted starting May 14, 2025, and the deadline for submission is July 21, 2025.
Learn more about the Montgomery Planning’s Design Excellence initiative.
Review the 2023 Design Excellence Award winners and jury Merit Awards.
Celebrate Design 2025
The Celebrate Design 2025 event will be held on Thursday, October 16, 2025, at Marriott International Global Headquarters in downtown Bethesda (7750 Wisconsin Ave, Bethesda, MD 20814). In previous years, this event has brought together urban designers, architects, landscape architects, planners, developers, builders, policymakers, elected officials, design professionals, artists and interested community members from across Montgomery County and the region.
Tickets are expected to go on sale for the October event in September.
For more information, contact Paul Mortensen at paul.mortensen@montgomeryplanning.org or 301-495-4523.
About Design Excellence
As one of the nation’s most educated, diverse, and prosperous counties, Montgomery County desires neighborhoods, public spaces and buildings of the highest-quality design to reflect our cultural health and maintain a competitive advantage within our region. Quality architectural design that frames a thriving public realm of streets and public spaces is a driving force for complete communities. Design excellence is increasingly important as available land for development in the county is shrinking, densities in our centers are increasing, and priorities for excellent public spaces become more acute. These development challenges present a great need to create and enhance attractive, safe, and sustainable places to live, work, and play. Design excellence is an important tool for attracting the best and brightest to our county – residents, businesses, and visitors. To raise the quality of design throughout the county, the Montgomery County Planning Department has launched a comprehensive Design Excellence initiative focused on the themes of inspiration, collaboration, and clarity.