He gained his academic architectural training at Princeton and Rice Universities. At Rice he won the William Ward Watkins Travelling Fellowship and at Princeton was awarded the D'Amato fellowship. After apprenticeships at Skidmore Owings and Merrill and the offices of Edward Larabee Barnes, Joe opened his office in 1968 in New York City. His first projects, the 28th Precinct Police Station; the renovation of the Bear Mountain Inn in New York and affordable housing in the South Bronx, established the tone for his forty-year career. The office has consistently sought and been awarded projects of civic value, frequently working on significant historic buildings and with clients who expect a direct hands-on relationship with their architect.

Joe has enjoyed teaching in addition to his professional practice. He taught "The Use of Materials" for the School of Architecture at Columbia University and is on the curriculum advisory board of the Alfred E. Smith High School in the Bronx. His civic involvements have included serving as a board member of the Greenwich House, the Harlem School of the Arts, the Architectural Review Board for the town of Orangetown in Rockland County, as well as, the Historic Areas Board of Review. His artistic passion is also pursued through sketching and water colour.