Noted architect leaves his mark on Lakewood Ranch

Besides being a master architect and a personable and caring man, Doug Whitney always seemed to know the right thing to say.

His partner for 20 years, Doug DuPouy, knew that better than anyone.

"I am the worrier," DuPouy said. "I would be worked up, and he would say, 'Give it to God, and go to sleep.'"

DuPouy would take the advice, and somehow, things always worked out.

On Aug. 11, Whitney died unexpectedly at the age of 68, leaving behind a huge void for DuPouy, and the countless others whose lives he touched.

"He had a very big heart," DuPouy said. "He would do anything for anybody."

Whitney, who joined the WBRC architectural firm in 1980 in Bangor, Maine, retired from a 43-year architecture career on Jan. 1, 2024. He had moved to Lakewood Ranch in 2002 to create WBRC's Florida branch.

As he planned his retirement, after serving as the company's president and CEO from 2013-2022, Whitney wanted to buy a home in Maine. 

“Retirement was never really a goal of mine, but I’m just getting to that point in time,” he said in an East County Observer story by Liz Ramos in December 2023. “It would be nice to have time to do some things for myself. I’m looking forward to moving onto the next chapter and giving other people behind me a chance to move up.”

He found the right home in Eddington, Maine on the end of a two-mile dirt road, overlooking Chemo Pond.

"It has a magnificent view," DuPouy said. "We have 12 acres of frontage. That's where he wants me to scatter his ashes."

As much as he loved Maine where he was born, Whitney loved Lakewood Ranch as well.

"We still have a condo in Summerfield," DuPouy said. "He designed a lot of buildings here. He was very good at his job."

Under Doug’s leadership at WBRC, 1,823 projects were completed, including 617 under his direct supervision in the WBRC Florida branch. He designed buildings in 23 states.

"His contributions, from iconic designs to establishing our practice in Florida, were a huge part of our ongoing success. He was also a wonderful human being. To know Doug was to love him. He was generous, positive, loyal, and full of creative energy. Doug has left an indelible mark on our company and the people who knew him," WBRC CEO Ray Bolduc said in a company release.

Photo by Liz Ramos

Whitney told Ramos in the 2023 article that his favorite building he designed in Lakewood Ranch was R.E. Crawford Construction’s headquarters in the Corporate Park. He said he had to think creatively to give the building character.

The R. E. Crawford Construction headquarters was given the Grand Aurora Award, which is presented annually by the Southeast Building Conference and Florida Home Builders Association. It was named the Best Commercial Project in the under-20,000 square feet category in 2017.

Another favorite for Whitney was the design of the Tidewell Hospice House in Lakewood Ranch. It was one of the first hospice facilities designed specifically as an inpatient hospice house, and it had to be brought up to medical codes to run more like a hospital that is noncombustible and has all the same safety features as a regular hospital. WBRC now designs many of the hospice centers in Florida.

DuPouy said Whitney's favorite project of all was likely the Suzanne Smith Elementary School in Levant, Maine. Whitney based the design off a traditional farmhouse, which included a big house, little house, back house and barn. He included a silo, which housed a reading area as part of the library. 

“I knew it was going to end up being one of the biggest buildings in the whole town,” he told the East County Observer. “I was trying to figure out a way to make it look like it didn’t just fall out of the sky like the ‘Wizard of Oz.’”

When showing the school board his design, one board member told him she didn't want to send her children to school in a "chicken house." The school eventually became one of the most popular schools in the state.

He was revered by his co-workers at WBRC. such as Laura Adcock, a principal and Florida region manager, Senior Associate Mauren P. Freire, and Senior Architectural Designer Kevin M. Meserve, who all worked with Whitney in the Lakewood Ranch office. Adcock, Freire and Meserve all flew to Maine and were staying with DuPouy in advance of Whitney's celebration of life Aug. 19 at the Family Reception Center of Brookings-Smith in Bangor, Maine.

Courtesy image

Adcock related a story about Whitney's kindness.

At the Lakewood Ranch office, Adcock looked in the mirror in the restroom and noticed for the very first time that she had a gray hair sticking up in the middle of her head. She went back to the office, and was visibly upset. Whitney asked her what was wrong, and she told him she had found a gray hair.

"You mean that one that sticks up in the middle of your head," he said matter-of-factly.

Far be it for him to mention such a thing.

"He was my friend," Adcock said. "And I hope I was his friend. He taught our team how to see design decisions from all angles and modeled how to earn a client’s trust. The WBRC Florida office exists because of his adventurous spirit, and we are proud to honor his memory by continuing the work he loved so much."

While living in Lakewood Ranch, Dupouy said Whitney loved going to the beach, St. Armands Circle and the Wyland Galleries in Sarasota. 

"He loved antiquing," Dupouy said. "And he collected toy soldiers. We had a four-car garage in the house in Maine. On the second floor were all these cabinets. They were all filled with toy soldiers."

Dupouy will see those soldiers, and think of his partner. He will hear his voice at night.

"Give it to God, and go to sleep."

"We were a united front," Dupouy said.

Whitney is survived by his parents, Wilbert and Janet Gullifer Whitney; his partner, Dupouy; his brothers, Michael (Narelle) Whitney; Brian (Stephanie); and his sisters, Barbara Ardito (Gene); and Susan Linscott (Thomas). Dupouy said the decision has yet to be made whether to have a celebration of life in the Lakewood Ranch area after he returns in September. Condolences to the family can be posted at BrookingsSmith.com.