Spokane-based NAC|Architecture says it completed a merger earlier this month with Denver-based AR7 Architects.

The merger will allow NAC to expand its presence in the Rocky Mountain states, NAC CEO Bruce Blackmer says. The firms have worked on projects together during the past two years to make the merger more seamless, he says.

"The benefits come from being able to significantly strengthen our higher education expertise," Blackmer says. "Individuals coming from AR7 have extensive experience in student housing and student-life projects for universities."

AR7's President Gary Desmond and four other principals will lead the Denver office, which now goes by the NAC name. Natalie Dohrn, a principal with NAC prior to the merger, will also join the leadership team in Denver.

With the merger, NAC now has five offices in the western U.S., with its other offices located in Seattle, Los Angeles, and Durango, Calif.

AR7 was founded in 1978 and provides programming, planning, and design services for a variety of building types, including education, housing, mixed-use, commercial, governmental, and transit.

NAC's origins date back to 1960 and the firm provides services in planning, design, engineering, and capital facilities consulting services.