Brad Bradfield

News Obituary Article

DAWSONVILLE: Brad Bradfield, designed houses for low incomes

By KAY POWELL

Brad Bradfield came to Atlanta with nothing and made something of it.

It was 1954. He went to the unemployment office and within three days had a job as a draftsman earning $1 an hour, he said in a 1986 Atlanta Journal-Constitution article. He lived in public housing, enrolled at Georgia Tech and graduated with an architecture degree.

When he retired in 1996, he had been presented more than 20 major awards for his designs for public housing, low-income housing and adaptive reuse of old buildings.

"His practice was primarily aimed at low-income persons, not a clientele always well served by the profession," said architect Greg Richards of Sandy Springs, his son-in-law and president of Bradfield, Richards, Rhodes & Associates. "He's one of the few who won design awards for low-income housing."

The funeral Mass for Richard H. "Brad" Bradfield, 73, will be 11 a.m. Saturday at Christ Redeemer Catholic Church in Dawsonville. He died of lung cancer Tuesday at his Dawsonville residence. Bearden Funeral Home of Dawsonville is in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Bradfield's influence is evident in several Atlanta projects.

One is his award-winning conversion of the 1914 Ford Model T manufacturing plant on Ponce de Leon Avenue into apartments and shops. He spearheaded the effort to create GlenCastle Constructors, Mr. Richards said. He pulled together volunteers in design and construction to build, at cost, projects for charity.

More than 20 years ago, Mr. Bradfield was at the forefront of the homeless issue in designing emergency housing, single room occupancy units and efficiency apartments for independent living. As a leader in national architectural associations, he influenced the profession's attitude about designing low-cost housing, his son-in-law said.

In retirement, Mr. Bradfield was rejuvenated by living on the water at Lake Lanier and by travel. He loved a fire as much as he loved the water and designed a fire pit for Christ Redeemer church, said his wife, Pam Clark Bradfield. The men of the church pitched in to be certain it was built in time for him to see it.

"They're calling it Brad's Pit," she said.

Other survivors include three daughters, Sandra Carey and Debra Wathen, both of Atlanta, and Alison Richards of Sandy Springs; a son, Richard H. Bradfield Jr. of Atlanta; a stepson, Darren Snurr of Dayton, Ohio; a stepdaughter, Kara Cimorelli of Cumming; and 13 grandchildren.

© 2007 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution