Byron Foster Romanowitz *53

An architect and jazz musician, Byron died in Lexington, Ky., Nov. 28, 2022.

Born Nov. 14, 1929, Byron was a 1951 graduate of the University of Kentucky College of Engineering and earned an MFA from Princeton’s School of Architecture in 1953. He spent his career as president and CEO of Johnson Romanowitz Architects and Planners. 

Byron served as architectural designer for most of his firm’s more than 1,200 projects throughout Kentucky, which included campus master plans, projects on 16 collegiate campuses, hotels, apartment buildings, hospitals, banks, schools, and airports.. Notable designs transformed the landscape of both downtown Lexington and the University of Kentucky. 

A jazz musician who played professionally from the age of 14, Byron was the tenor saxophone soloist of the Men of Note Orchestra. His jazz combo, Jazzberry Jam, performed regularly in venues all around Kentucky.

Byron authored two books: Issues & Images: Fifty Years as a Kentucky Architect, and Jazz in Lexington: a Personal View.The Byron F. Romanowitz Archive at the University of Kentucky Library preserves his collection of original documents, photos, and recordings.

Predeceased by his first wife, Millie, Byron is survived by his wife, Doris Pippin Benson; three children; eight grandsons; and four great-grandchildren.

Graduate alumni memorials are prepared by the APGA.