Our Team


PAUL ATHINEOS

Owner Paul AthineosFounder Paul Athineos has 25-plus years experience in the field of architecture and is both NCARB certified and a registered architect in New York and Florida. He earned his architectural degrees from New York Institute of Technology and Florida International University. Paul is also a Certified Code Enforcement Officer for New York State and currently
chairs the Head-of-the-Harbor Architectural Review Board. He is also a member of the Building Officials Association of Suffolk County (BOASC).

A seasoned pro, Paul has 25 years of broad experience in design, construction management and code compliance. Whether designing a client’s dream home or commercial spaces (restaurants, medical offices, retail stores), Paul delivers on schedule and within budget. The emphasis is always on realizing the client’s vision, not his own signature style. For instance, one client asked for an extreme high-techy home featured on HGTV, while other clients prefer more traditional designs.

What you don’t learn from Paul’s curriculum vitae is that he fulfilled his childhood dream to become a registered architect. His hands-on approach to design and construction comes from observing Greek and Italian craftsmen bringing wood to life in a workshop owned by his cabinetmaker father. (In fact, the cabinetmaking gene goes back three generations to Athens, Greece.) It was in this mahogany-scented workshop that the future architect began to appreciate artistic craftsmanship which he later explored in his travels abroad. But Paul learned to focus on craft and detail as an apprentice on the shop floor stripping and sanding furniture in preparation for the finisher. While in college and afterward, Paul worked for various architectural firms both in south Florida and New York where he drafted by hand, though now he prefers designing on a computer.

The best design, however, requires a thorough understanding of the building code and, as a code enforcer, Paul has a unique understanding of design possibilities. He often finds solutions to design problems created by others who misunderstood local building codes. You better know the local code or you’ll find yourself in hot water before you know it, he says. I’m never in the dark about what can or can’t be done.

THE TEAM

Architects Rule is an architecture firm dedicated to bringing creative design and high-quality construction together to produce architecture that makes our clients happy. Paul Athineos, Architects Rule's principal architect, founded the firm on the principle that good architecture combines craft, detail, materials, and form for the purpose of giving our clients what they want. To do that, we listen and we work. We enjoy doing both. Our clients' needs, wants and desires give shape to all our designs.

MJ - Architect in Training MJ Architect in Training
Doris - Art + Antiques Specialist / Writer Doris Art + Antiques Specialist / Writer
Sam - Construction Consultant / Coordinator Sam Construction Consultant / Coordinator
Cathanina - Architect in Training Cathanina Architect in Training
Ming - Architect in Training Ming Architect in Training
Chloe - Administrative Assistant Chloe Administrative Assistant