Many of my firm’s clients are New York developers. Almost universally, they dream big, love building, and are often late with their payments. They’re also smart, well-educated, fun, and appreciative of good design. I enjoy collaborating with them to shape the city I call home.

Occasionally, though, you encounter a client who’s just too much. You block their calls and avoid working with them – they’re unreasonable, aggressive, and not just late with payments, but sometimes they don’t pay at all. Trump was one of those clients for many architects.

Now he’s back for a second term as US President. With so many truly important issues at stake over the next four years, it feels almost petty to consider the impact of his presidency on architects. But this is an architectural column, so I’ll give it a shot.

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