Kikuchi + Kankel Design GroupKikuchi + Kankel Design GroupKikuchi + Kankel Design GroupKikuchi + Kankel Design Group
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About Us

Our Vision

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group’s staff is comprised of a team of highly motivated, dedicated professionals with a commitment to constant improvement. Each team member is encouraged to strive for balance, growth and maturation of their professional and personal lives. The highest degree of mutual respect, recognition, communication, support and understanding extends throughout the office at all levels. The team finds the work they perform and the office environment stimulating, inspirational, educational and challenging.

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group strives for a thorough, open and lasting relationship with all of its clients. Clients recognize the quality of service provided and will hire based upon reputation. Clients identify quality, honesty, integrity and professionalism as the main characteristics of KKDG. The satisfaction of past clients is evident by a strong referral system, which provides the bulk of our continuing work.

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group’s commitment to improving the built and living environment is demonstrated by its continual involvement in assisting the local community, in-need organizations, educational programs and other projects and programs focused on social needs. Our designs strive to minimize ecological impacts while exploring solutions that will benefit the environment and provide for sustainable needs.

Our History Continues to Evolve

Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group was originally founded in 1984 by Steven T. Kikuchi as “Kikuchi & Associates”. In 2005 Christopher Kankel was promoted to Vice President and Junior Principal of the firm. In October of 2013, the firm transitioned to the name “Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group” to better reflect the firm’s current structure and ownership.

Located in Half Moon Bay and Los Gatos, California, a majority of our work is within the immediate San Francisco Bay Area. The firm operates as a California Corporation with Steve Kikuchi as Senior Principal and President and Chris Kankel as Junior Principal and Vice President offering a combination of over 60 years of professional experience.

OUR TEAM

Steven T. Kikuchi

Founder, Landscape Architect
Mr. Kikuchi's passion for the profession has spawned from his early interest in art and childhood exposure to a family o...Read More

Christopher Kankel

Partner, Principal, Landscape Architect
Chris’s interest in landscape architecture was evident at the age of three when he began to re- landscape his childhoo...Read More

Tom Conroy

Partner, Senior Associate
Since moving to the Bay Area in early 2001, Tom has focused most of his professional career designing and managing the c...Read More

Nathan Brodie Rose

Partner, Senior Associate, Landscape Architect
Nate grew up in Davis, California with a strong sense of community and environmentalism that has driven his pursuits in ...Read More

Jeanette T. Hill

Partner, Senior Associate, Landscape Architect
Jeanette joined Kikuchi & Associates in 1996 after graduating from CalPoly, San Luis Obispo. After 6 years with the firm...Read More

Robert J. Dietz

Associate, Landscape Architect, Certified Arborist
Bob’s first impression of landscape architecture came at age 13, when he was given his first set of golf clubs by a fa...Read More

Jonathan Chu

Landscape Architectural Assistant
Jonathan joined KKDG in the fall of 2023. Growing up in Southern California, Jonathan was an art kid who regularly wa...Read More

Jingyan Zuo

Landscape Architect
Jingyan joined KCRH in early 2025, with a diverse experience spanning horticulture, urban planning, and landscape desig...Read More

Nathan Kwong

Landscape Architectural Assistant
Nate grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and found Landscape Architecture at an intersection when he was studying Biol...Read More

Safiyah Rasheed

Landscape Architectural Assistant
Safiyah joined KCRH in the fall of 2024 with a passion for thoughtful design and a curiosity for how spaces shape behavi...Read More

Chris Guio

Office Manager
Chris joined KKDG in 2022 as the Office Manager in our Half Moon Bay office. She spent the majority of her career in Ad...Read More
Main Office: 730 Mill Street, Half Moon Bay, CA 94019 T: (650) 726-7100
Branch Office: 61 East Main Street, Suite C, Los Gatos, CA 95030 T: (408) 356-5980
© 2016 Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group. All rights reserved.
  • Services
  • Projects
    • Residential Design
    • Corporate/Commercial Design
    • Recreational Design
    • Institutional Design
  • About Us
  • News
  • Contact Us
Kikuchi + Kankel Design Group