Mikel received a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Oklahoma in 2001 and joined Chioco Design in 2014.  She has international experience working at firms in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and London, including Zaha Hadid Architects. While in New York, Mikel attended Parsons, The New School for Design where she studied and worked in the fashion industry.  This experience provided her with a deeper knowledge of materiality and processes of design at any scale. In addition to residential and commercial work, Mikel's experience includes museums and educational facilities. In 2024, Mikel received the AIA Austin Emerging Professional Achievement Award. She was on the founding board of NOMA of Central Texas and was the first Treasurer from 2021-2023. She is also lovingly known as the founding mother of the AIA Austin LGBTQIA+ Alliance which was the second chapter in the country.

Chioco Design
Chioco Design is an award-winning architecture and interior design firm formed in 2005 by Principal, Jamie Chioco.

Our firm’s work ranges from the intimate, a private residence, to the massive, an industrial adaptive reuse project, and everything in between. We have designed restaurants, bars, retail stores, multi-use facilities and public spaces. By having a diverse client base with various project types we believe this to be an effective way to experience and contribute to a community.

We strive to exceed our clients’ expectations in process and result, through active listening, collaboration and innovative design. We believe in a contextual design that fits into its built, natural and cultural environment. Our projects are functional, engaging and honest.

All this is to say, we believe elevated design elevates lives, for the individual and the collective.

G. Maximiliano Martinez, P.E. | Alejandra Flores, P.E.
Principal

Milian Engineering is dedicated to being a Civil Engineering firm that evolves as quickly as Austin's development, providing creative and efficient engineering solutions and positively contributing to the design team.

What we do:
Milian Engineering specializes in private land development design and permitting within the City of Austin. We are committed to maintaining a high level of expertise in the city’s current and future land development processes.

What makes us different?
Milian provides corporate-level experience with the dedication and attention of a small firm. Together, the Milian team has over 15 years of experience dealing with the City of Austin Development Services Department.

How we started:
Running a Civil Engineering firm was always part of the plan, but it was a “someday Island” type of idea—an end goal that seemed more like a dream or an escape during the late hours spent in the corporate engineering trenches. The decision to start Milian /ˈmily(ə)n/ was solidified in February 2021, during the Snowvid storm, when most Austinites were left without electricity and water for several days. This obligatory pause brought a wake-up call for Maximiliano, who realized that the uncertainties of tomorrow were a bigger threat than venturing out on his own. He recognized the importance of creating a firm that could not only provide competent engineering services but also serve the under-represented developers working to construct timeless, creative spaces that keep Austin magical. In three years, Milian Engineering has already supported Austin staples like Patrizi’s, Sour Duck, Jo’s Coffee, Licha’s, Suerte, Monk’s Jazz Club, and more.