From Vision to Reality: Kevin Kennon’s Journey in Architecture and Real Estate

Kevin Kennon (00:00)
architectures you have to think of it almost like frozen music

it operates a lot like music It’s not it’s very hard to kind of put into words, but you can describe it in feelings

just happen to walk into some amazing space and it takes your breath away

you turn a corner in the city and wow, you discover something

and go to a beautiful national park and you see an incredible view

Erika (01:58)
Hey everyone, welcome to the Real Estate Pro Show. I’m your host, Erika, and today I’m excited to be joined by Kevin Kennon, who’s been crushing it in the architecture space. It’s awesome to have you here today, Kevin.

Kevin Kennon (02:13)
Thank you Erika, it’s a pleasure to be here.

Erika (02:16)
So our listeners are gonna be in for a treat with all your design expertise and know-how. So let’s jump on in. For our listeners who aren’t familiar with your world, give us the rundown. What was your journey like into real estate and architecture?

Kevin Kennon (02:34)
Okay, well I grew up in Southern California, near Los Angeles in a relatively rural area, right on the water, sort of right on top of a giant cliff.

and which is now slowly sliding into the water. But it wasn’t when I was there. It was a kind of beautiful place to be. ⁓ I went to the East Coast for college and graduate school and ended up in New York City. And I’ve been in New York City since 1984. ⁓

You know, I guess I really fell in love with architecture when I moved to the city for the first time. And I got very interested in that. ⁓ But also, I think growing up too, I was always ⁓ very interested in all these incredible houses around Los Angeles that were always built in these kind precarious ways, sort of hanging off cliffs and things like that.

I just always felt that connection between nature and building and people. ⁓ And it’s never left me. I find myself at a more mature part of my career, and that’s all I think about.

Erika (03:54)
Yeah, that’s really cool. And when it comes to the architecture, what’s your main focus these days in types of the projects that you’re working with and the markets?

Kevin Kennon (04:06)
Well, most of my career I was developing and designing tall buildings and large, what we call mixed-use complexes, both here in the city and around the world. And on the West Coast and also various places in the West, but ⁓ just about anywhere you can think of, I certainly at least proposed some sort of building.

⁓ And now, you know, what I’m really focused on are designing and we’re developing a new type of ultra luxury, some small ⁓ hotels in the wilderness. You really on the edge, we’ve designed something that I think is really quite exciting that can be

almost on any site, any room.

The farther they feel, better. It comes with its own challenges and problems, but we think that we’ve got something that’s quite unique and is really geared towards what we see are developments now in the marketplace with people traveling in groups, families and in groups, and looking for travel experiences that are more social.

oriented and safe.

Erika (06:23)
That is really cool and unique. What’s it been like building something that really isn’t out there yet? It’s got to be exciting, you know, it’s, you know, what’s it like doing something that, you know, not everyone’s done before? So then when it comes to getting advice or that, you know, there’s not a lot of people that done it.

Kevin Kennon (06:47)
Well, my whole career is that, in a nutshell. You didn’t give me the perfect sound, but I’m going to have to repeat that. But yes, it’s always about coming up with something that no one has seen before or experienced before. And I don’t know why, but I seem to have an ability to convince people

Erika (06:49)
you

Kevin Kennon (07:07)
this is something cool and something that is worth going on and investing in.

And, you know, but it really comes, I think, from the place of collaboration.

I’m not a, you despite what a lot of people sort of get the impression about architects, and the wrong impression from movies like The Brutalist, if anybody saw that, we’re not sort of, you know, artistic loners who sort of demand everything happens, know, our way or the highway. You know, for the most part, most of us are skilled listeners and collaborators.

And we, you know, I would say my greatest skill is providing a vision, a vision that’s shaped my client’s desires and then imparting that vision on, in many cases, thousands of people who are involved in the process of realizing this particular design. So for me, the greatest, ⁓ I would say, benefit.

from what I do is to hear other people take ownership of this project that they’re engaged in, get that kind of feedback, all the way from the guy who just hammers the nails on the site. But pride of ownership and pride in building something and something that is unique and special. That for me has always been…

the greatest, I guess, thrill that I get from what I do.

Erika (08:58)
Yeah, that’s really awesome. And with that innovation, you still have to have a sense of practicality and there’s also budgets to keep in mind. How do you juggle all of that?

Kevin Kennon (09:10)
Right.

Well, I happen to be kind of a nerd. data is something that I always am interested in. I guess because I come from a practical background and trained as what’s called a commercial architect, ⁓ we were always having to meet.

schedules and budgets. And then I’m also adept at sort of developing those as well. So, yeah, it is a practical, we’re not artists, you know, I mean, this is another misconception. We deal in practicality, architecture is reality. It’s not just images, despite what people see generated by AI these days.

It’s ultimately something that has to be put together, built.

And understanding those practical realities is, think, just as important as dreaming up something that is cutting edge or purely visionary. So you have to do both. And you have to be able to modify that vision to practical realities.

time, budget, materials, the capabilities of being able to achieve what it is that you are trying to achieve. It only gets better. And that’s the other part of my experience, is that generally looking back on it, the times that we’ve had to make changes or I’ve had to make changes to that vision, it only improves it. It hardly ever retracts.

Erika (11:38)
That’s really awesome. Kevin, with the innovation, how do you stay inspired all the time? What do you do to get inspiration with your design?

Kevin Kennon (11:52)
⁓ You know, it’s a great question and ⁓ I guess my answer is, lot of times people ask me this kind of the same question and they’ll say, well, what’s your favorite building? And the way I answer is I have lots of favorite buildings, but I don’t really focus on that as much as I focus on cities. ⁓ And what I like about cities is

I don’t go there to see the architecture. That’s not my primary goal. My primary is just to go there and live there, and try and feel like I’m actually living there. So I watch people ⁓ a lot. I watch how people interact and how they, to things that annoy them as much as the things that they enjoy.

And so it’s human interaction in their environment, I would have to say, is core to my inspiration.

Erika (12:54)
Wow, that’s really interesting. I was not expecting that, but that makes sense on so many levels.

Kevin Kennon (13:04)
Yeah, well, you know

architectures you have to think of it almost like frozen music is one of the best descriptions I’ve had it’s it’s ⁓ it operates a lot like music It’s not it’s very hard to kind of put into words, but you can describe it in feelings you know if you go to someplace and You just happen to walk into some amazing space and it takes your breath away some

someplace you turn a corner in the city and wow, you discover something amazing. It’s akin to that. And ⁓ frankly, it’s akin if you go into the wilderness and go to a beautiful national park and you see an incredible view

somewhere. It’s a lot like that as well. So I like to help people think about architecture less like buildings, ⁓ less like objects.

more like landscape. And to me, the city is just another kind of landscape. It’s got plateaus and vistas and nooks and crannies and all that stuff. And you just kind of imagine yourself happening to be in, say, Yosemite, but you’re actually in Tung Square. So that for me is…

how I can describe what I do to people that I feel resonates without having to use lot of jargon, architecture speak, and all that kind of stuff that tends to mystify what we do. I don’t think that really serves us very well.

Erika (14:50)
So with your experience and doing innovative things, I feel like your answer might be kind of interesting, but

what do you see going on with trends in architecture and design and how is that shaping the industry or influencing what you do?

Kevin Kennon (15:50)
Well, you know, I would say the biggest trend that I’m seeing, not just in architecture, but in engineering as well, is, you know, there’s a movement in everything we do actually, towards being able to give individuals more control over their environment.

So, you know, environmental control at the office, environmental control, just like in your car, you have a lot of control over, you know, we’re driving together and our car, you know, there’s usually a kind of, likes it colder and someone likes it hotter and someone likes, you know, the air breathing on them and so, you know, you have that kind of close control. That’s also happening in architecture and engineering.

And I think that’s a trend that’s going to continue to happen. So giving people more control over their environment is, I think, a huge driver in what we’re

Erika (16:59)
Yeah, absolutely. And I can see where that would make any property more appealing to have that customization too.

Kevin Kennon (17:09)
Yeah, and especially in the hospitality sector, that’s a big driver. ⁓

Erika (17:15)
And for my next question, maybe it can be related to hospitality. You know, maybe it’s something else that you’ve designed, but I’m sure as you know, every pro has a moment where things got real. Maybe a project hit a snag or a client threw you a curve ball. Can you share one of those moments on your journey, Kevin, and how you navigated that?

Kevin Kennon (17:40)
⁓ Let’s see. ⁓ Well, I work for some very well-known people. And I don’t like to talk about it. just because, really not something I do. ⁓ But I will say that there’s plenty of time.

⁓ And I think it is true of every architect, every builder, every designer, where a project just falls apart. ⁓ Usually happens to know, the money is gone or something happens on the project that’s catastrophic. ⁓ So yeah, I’ve had a few projects like that that have done that, but what’s interesting is they’ve always led to something else.

So, you know, it’s important in our business to just understand that every experience that you have is essentially just another step on a journey.

that I urge people out there who might be struggling with either projects that are getting delayed or maybe falling apart, that just understand that you’ve learned something in that process. And if you just look at that as everything is a learning experience, that can be applied to your next project. It’s always worth it in the end, almost so.

Erika (19:16)
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I’m not gonna say it right, but there’s some sort of quote about like, you never lose, like you only learn.

Kevin Kennon (19:25)
I think that’s a good, well, whatever, you just said it, I think that’s a great way to say it, Erika. you know, ⁓ yeah, I just think that we just, it’s a question of ⁓ resilience, I would say, and support. You know, it helps to have a really good network of people you work with that, you know, that you are kind of in the trenches with, and then you just maintain that, ⁓ those relationships that you created will be fun.

Erika (19:55)
Yeah, absolutely. It’s funny because like that was what I was going to talk about is relationships and networking next. So for, you know, when you’re in the trenches or, know, maybe it’s not not the trenches, but, know, those people that you’re close with, what kind of networking or, you know, groups have had an impact on you when it comes to your growth?

Kevin Kennon (20:20)
Well, I say lately out to podcasting, mean podcasting is a phenomenal medium because, and you know, if you, I listen to podcasts a lot and I’m sure you do too because you have one, you know, it’s amazing ⁓ what you can hear from people.

Erika (20:27)
Mm-hmm.

Kevin Kennon (20:43)
⁓ We just listened to a podcast of Mark Marion, a podcast with Robin Williams. It was like one of the last interviews that he did. It was extraordinary. ⁓

cast just because you saw a side of people that you have an image of that you just couldn’t get any other way. ⁓ And so it’s the same thing in terms of people that you’ve worked with for a long time. You spent hours on a plane together, had to hang out with them at dinner, having drinks after some particularly difficult experience. And you just remember those

things than that support that you get ⁓ as a result of that and the relationships that you build ⁓ when you’re going through both projects that are going well and projects that are even having difficulties.

Erika (21:45)
Kevin, what’s next on the horizon for you? You talked a little bit about the hospitality, but can you go into more detail with that? maybe there’s something else you haven’t shared yet.

Kevin Kennon (21:56)
Yeah.

No, I’m really focused on that. ⁓

But I continue to do some consulting and I love talking to people, you know, regardless of just about anything. I like to say that I can help people solve problems before, after, and during construction. And if I can help you, I certainly know the right people who can. So anybody out there, you who want to get in touch with me, I’m happy to help you in some capacity.

at least identify perhaps the problem. That’s usually the first step is able to sort of talk about it because anybody’s out there trying to build something, you know it’s extremely painful and for a lot of people it’s one of the most painful experiences they can go through. you know sometimes just having to move outside council is useful. I call it design therapy.

But yeah, that’s what I like to do too.

Erika (23:09)
that. Well, Kevin, before we let you go, if someone wants to connect with you, learn more about what you’re doing in the hospitality world, or you know, maybe they do need consulting, what is the best way for them to reach you?

Kevin Kennon (23:23)
LinkedIn, absolutely, is the easiest way. So you can find my profile. ⁓ You won’t find my profile under Kevin Kennon. It’s Paul Kevin Kennon. That’s my first name. My parents called me Kevin. It has some challenges throughout my career. ⁓ I go by Kevin, but my LinkedIn profile says Paul Kevin Kennon. You just look that up, and there’s all my connections there.

get in touch with DM me.

Erika (23:57)
Fantastic. Well, I love that you’re not just ⁓ building projects, but you’re making a real impact in the industry and are full of innovation and passion. Thank you so much for being on the show today.

Kevin Kennon (24:10)
Thank you, Erika, for having me. It’s been a pleasure. ⁓

Erika (24:14)
for everyone tuning in. If you got value from this episode, make sure that you’re subscribed to the Real Estate Pro Show. We’ve got more episodes lined up with pros like Kevin who are shaping the real estate world. We’ll see you on the next episode.