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Berger Associates, Architects & Planners
Company History
When Burton W. Berger was in High School, he wanted to be a cartoonist working for Walt Disney. During
these formative years he became aware of an art form that he was not familiar with, Architecture, the design of
buildings. Having researched this new art form he came across the work of an American Architect named
Frank Lloyd Wright. The work of Wright had a profound impact on his thoughts for the future. In his senior
year in High School, he applied to several Universities to study Architecture.
Upon graduation from the University of Oklahoma and a two year stint in the U.S. Army, Berger started his
apprenticeship in the architectural office of Chauncey W. Reilly in 1956 in NYC. After working the required
number of years, in 1961 he applied for and passed the NYS Architectural license examination Berger then
worked for some of the most noted Architectural design firms in NYC.
In one of the firms he was promoted to the level of Associate Partner and worked on developing the Master
Plan for the first new town in the U.S. - Reston, Virginia.
In 1967 Burton W. Berger AIA and Salvatore Caltabiano AIA formed the architectural partnership of Berger
& Caltabiano. In 1969 the firm expanded and changed its name to Berger Caltabiano & Ascione (BC&A) with Burton
W. Berger as the Senior partner. In 1974 BC&A merged with The Gruzen Partnership. This is an article in the New York Times related to work on elderly housing Burt Berger did at Gruzen. In 1984 The Gruzen
Partnership changed the name of its New Jersey office to Gruzen/Berger, P.C. and Mr. Berger, then the
partner-in-charge, assumed the presidency.
In April of 1986, Gruzen/Berger and The Gruzen Partnership restructured its operations into three separate
firms. The firm of Berger Associates, Architect & Planners, P.C. is one of the major firms that resulted from
the restructuring of the national architectural firm of The Gruzen Partnership. Burton W. Berger, four senior
Associates and the entire staff of 30 people of Gruzen/Berger P.C., remained intact as the independent firm of BERGER
ASSOCIATES, Architects & Planners, P.C. The firm was located in the Gateway Bldg, in Newark N.J..
During its 12 years of operation, Berger Associates designed buildings of $1 Billion dollars in construction.
The number of projects designed and built are approximately 1,000.
BERGER ASSOCIATES had a long history with a national reputation. Its diversified practice of architectural
design and space planning covers a wide range of building types. The firm had developed a reputation for fine
design, economical construction, completed projects and above all a close personal service for all its clients.
BERGER ASSOCIATES projects are represented in several states and its clients include both public and
private entities, as well as institutional and corporate clients. Building types span a broad range and include
corporate, cultural, educational (both secondary & higher ed.), medical, gerontological, governmental, judicial,
correctional, and multifamily residential. BERGER ASSOCIATES designs have been for both new buildings
and as well as for renovation/rehabilitation. Several renovations have been to designated Historic landmarks.
BERGER ASSOCIATES planning projects have been a major part of its success. Its Planning covers such
areas as space planning, master planning, urban planning, and facilities planning. These projects have either
been a part of the architectural design projects or as pure planning projects.
BERGER ASSOCIATES interior design division, BAI Design Associates, played a vital roll in the total services
that it provided for its clients. Their projects have ranged from the interior design of a Day Care Center to
that of a full corporate building complex such as was done for the Hertz Corporation (225,000 sf).
A representative list of clients include: Private sector clients such as, The Hertz Corporation, AT&T,
Continental Insurance Co., Southwest Bell Telephone, The Prudential Insurance Co., the New Jersey
Performing Arts Corp., and the Morris Museum; Institutional clients such as The Actors' Fund of America,
Cathedral HealthCare System, Columbus Hospital, Kennedy Memorial Hospital, Saint James Hospital. And
denominational clients such as: The Newark Archdiocese, the Lutheran Social Services of New Jersey, the
Episcopal Diocese in Newark, The Jewish Federation of MetroWest and the Islamic Center of Passaic County.
College clients such as Bergen Community College, Ramapo College, Rutgers University, and Kean College.
Several town or regional Boards of Education such as Morris Hills Regional, Rockaway Township, Denville,
Wharton and East Orange. County clients such as Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Atlantic as well as the State of
New Jersey Division of Building & Construction and the New Jersey Department of Corrections. Federal
clients such as the Veterans Administration, and the United States Postal Service.
During its 27 years, BERGER ASSOCIATES, had received over 30 Design Awards in recognition of their
commitment to design excellence. BERGER ASSOCIATES was selected as New Jersey's Architectural firm
of The Year in 1991.
In 1994, Burton W. Berger, President and AIA Emeritus, retired from the firm.
Link here to see the Design Brocuhre for Berger Associates (right click the images and save to disk. Then open with Windows Picture and Fax Viewer or other image-viewing program other than an internet browser for best quality).
Representative Project List & Awards
Buildings
- SECAUCUS MAIN POST OFFICE, Secaucus, NJ (30,000s.f.)
- THE HERTZ CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, Park Ridge, NJ (225,000 sq.ft.)
- JERSEY CITY STATE OFFICE BUILDING, Jersey City, NJ (120.000 sq.ft.)
- NEWARK MAIN POST OFFICE-Major renovations to this Historic Landmark building, Newark, NJ
- THE ACTORS' FUND OF AMERICA HOME, Englewood, NJ
- COLUMBUS HOSPITAL, Newark, NJ
- SAINT CLARE'S-RIVERSIDE MEDICAL CENTER, Denville, NJ
- VETERANS ADMINISTRATION MEDICAL CENTER, Lyons NJ; Total conversion of two existing Historic Landmark buildings; one to a 100 bed Intermediate Care Facility, and the other to a 100 bed psychiatric-geriatric facility (100,000 sq. ft.).
- THE MORRIS MUSEUM, Morristown, NJ; Major renovations to the McKim Meade & White historic Landmark building to add a new gallery building and main lobby.
- CELLULAR ONE, Teaneck, NJ; Complete gut renovations to an existing phone company building to change it to the FIRST
Cellphone switching equipment office in the U.S.-1985.
- JAMES STREET HISTORIC COMMONS STUDY, Newark, NJ; Complete evaluation of an existing 400 building neighborhood, identifying the architectural styles in order that a City Design Review Board could monitor any renovations in order to maintain the character of the neighborhoods.
- NEWARK PRESERVATION AND LANDMARKS COMMITTEE; Burton W. Berger is a past member of the Board of this Committee.
Colleges/Universities
- JERSEY CITY STATE COLLEGE, Jersey City, NJ; Campus Master Plan, Student Center
- RUTGERS/THE STATE UNIVERSITY, Newark, NJ; Campus Master Plan, Student Center
- BERGEN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, Paramus, NJ; Campus Master Plan, Student Center, Performing Arts Theater, Library
- KEAN COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY, Union, NJ; Campus Master Plan
- RAMAPO COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY, Mahwah, NJ; Campus Master Plan
Space Planning & Interior Design
- THE HERTZ CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS, Park Ridge, NJ
- SOUTHWEST BELL TELEPHONE COMPANY, Houston, Texas
- AMERICAN TELEPHONE & TELEGRAPH, Newark, NJ
- CATHEDRAL HEALTHCARE SYSTEM, INC., Orange, NJ
- SPACE PLANNING & INTERIOR DESIGN FOR 15 LAW FIRMS
- SPACE PLANNING/INTERIOR DESIGN FOR 10 DOCTORS' OFFICES
- BERGEN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, Paramus, NJ
- THE ACTORS' FUND OF AMERICA NURSING HOME, Englewood, NJ
- VETERANS ADMINISTRATION GERIATRIC FACILITY, Lyons, NJ
Criminal Justice
- SOUTHERN STATE PRISON, Leesburg, NJ
- TRENTON STATE PRISON, Trenton NJ
- RIVERFRONT STATE PRISON, Camden, NJ
- NORTHERN STATE PRISON, Newark, NJ
- HUDSON COUNTY CORRECTIONAL FACILITY, Kearny, NJ
- ATLANTIC COUNTY JAIL, Mays Landing, NJ
- BROWARD COUNTY JUSTICE COMPLEX, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Awards
- FIRST AWARD - 1993: Tenth Annual Masonry Awards; The Alex Aidekman Family Jewish Community Campus
- ARCHITECTURAL FIRM OF THE YEAR - 1991: Eighth Annual Masonry Awards (All projects using masonry throughout history of the firm).
- AWARD OF SPECIAL RECOGNITION - 1991: Eighth Annual Masonry Awards (The Morris Museum Expansion).
- AWARD OF SPECIAL RECOGNITION - 1991: Eighth Annual Masonry Awards (Hudson County Correctional Facility).
- MERIT AWARD - 1989: New Jersey/American Concrete Institute (Northern State Prison, Newark, NJ).
- DESIGN CITATION - 1989: New Jersey Society of Architects/American Institute of Architects (The Hertz Corporate Headquarters, Park Ridge, NJ).
- DESIGN CITATION - 1988: New Jersey Masonry Institute (Northern State Prison, Newark, NJ).
- THE MORRIS MUSEUM DESIGN COMPETITION -WINNER, 1988: The Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ.
- DESIGN CITATION - 1986: New Jersey Masonry Institute (Riverfront State Prison, Camden, NJ).
- MERIT AWARD - 1984: New Jersey/American Concrete Institute (Trenton State Prison, Trenton, NJ).
- DESIGN CITATION - 1977: New Jersey Society of Architects/American Institute of Architects (Muhlenberg Garden Apartments, Jersey City, NJ).
Chronological history of the professional life of Burton W. Berger
- 1961 BURTON W. BERGER AIA Architect
- 1967 BERGER & CALTABIANO Architects & Planners
- 1969 BERGER CALTABIANO & ASCIONE Architects & Planners
- 1973 THE GRUZEN PARTNERSHIP Architects & Planners
- 1984 GRUZEN/BERGER, P.C. Architects & Planners
- 1986 BERGER ASSOCIATES Architects & Planners, P.C.
- 1994 BERGER/PALOMBO LLC Architects & Planners
- 1996 BURTON W. BERGER AIA Architect, Planner & Interior Designer
- 2005 BURTON W. BERGER AIA Emeritus
Designs and Sketches