Noted Lakewood Ranch architect dies at 68, 18 months after retiring

Doug Whitney, who died Aug. 11, designed some of Lakewood Ranch's most well-known buildings.

  • By Jay Heater
  • | 11:30 a.m. August 21, 2025
  • | 0 Free Articles Remaining!
River Club's Douglas Whitney, an architect for 43 years, always has loved drawing by hand. He is the only one in WBRC's Lakewood Ranch office to still have a drafting table.
River Club's Douglas Whitney, an architect for 43 years, always has loved drawing by hand. He is the only one in WBRC's Lakewood Ranch office to still have a drafting table.
Photo by Liz Ramos
  • Manatee-Sarasota
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Besides being a master architect and a personable and caring man, Doug Whitney always seemed to know the right thing to say.

His partner for 20 years, Doug DuPouy, knew that better than anyone.

"I am the worrier," DuPouy says. "I would be worked up, and he would say, 'Give it to God, and go to sleep.'"

 

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