Archinect - News

Webuild and Carlo Ratti propose replacement for Baltimore’s collapsed Key Bridge following tragedy

2024-05-03T15:28:00-04:00

Today, the Webuild group advanced a proposal designed in collaboration with architect and MIT professor Carlo Ratti and French structural engineer Michel Virlogeux for a new bridge in Baltimore that would replace the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge.

The design, which was released ahead of next week’s preliminary reconstruction forum called by the Maryland Transportation Authority, calls for a cable suspension span totaling 2,300 feet with a 213-foot clearance and offering wider lanes and increased vessel navigation safety, structural maintenance monitoring technology, smart traffic management, and enhanced connection to the Harbor area.

Webuild had already famously contributed to the rapid reconstruction of Renzo Piano’s Morandi bridge replacement in Genoa, Italy, after the deadly 2018 collapse that killed 43 people. The company is also expecting to begin constructing what will become the world's longest suspension bridge over the Strait of Messina by the end of the year.

Render...

NYT survey finds 309 bridges across the U.S. vulnerable to ship strikes following Baltimore disaster

2024-04-09T12:19:00-04:00

In the wake of last month’s fatal collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, the New York Times has published an assessment of other vulnerable spans across the country in danger of similar catastrophic failures due to the precarity of critical elements and various structural deficiencies.

According to the report, a total of 309 bridges are at risk of collapsing from a direct hit by an errant ship as was the case in Baltimore and nearly repeated in an incident last week at the Verrazzano Bridge in New York City.

Of those 309 surveyed, 193 bridges that service a significant number of motor vehicle traffic (10,000 or more cars per day) face dangers stemming from a lack of protective barriers at their pier supports and caissons. Among the largest are the Lewis and Clark Bridge in Washington state and the Crescent City Connection in New Orleans.

Recently on Archinect: Transportation Secretary Buttigieg admits ‘we don't fully know’ scope or extent of Francis Scott K...

Transportation Secretary Buttigieg admits ‘we don't fully know’ scope or extent of Francis Scott Key Bridge repairs in Baltimore

2024-04-01T13:02:00-04:00

"A lot goes into how that reconstruction will be designed, how the process is going to work," Buttigieg said on "Face the Nation" on Sunday. He noted that he didn't have an estimate on the rebuilding timeline, but the bridge itself took five years to initially construct. "Right now we don't fully know everything we need to know about the condition of the portions of the bridge that did not collapse."

Engineering News-Record reported that debris removal has already begun in haste at Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse site, where six people lost their lives last Tuesday, courtesy of the U.S. Navy, Army Corps of Engineers, and Coast Guard. The surviving portions of the bridge will first have to be removed piecemeal, although that work has no timeline.

Previously on Archinect: Major Baltimore bridge collapses after being struck by container ship

Speaking on CBS 'Face the Nation' on Sunday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Buttigieg said, “It’s a very complex process,” adding, “This is not going to happen overnight.” Maryland’s Governor Wes Moore told ENR, “To see this up close, you realize how daunting a task this is. You realize how difficult the work is ahead of us.”

The most recent reported costs for the bridge’s replacement are around $400 million.

The United States currently needs about $319 billion worth of repairs to bridges, according to an analysis that was released...

Major Baltimore bridge collapses after being struck by container ship

2024-03-26T11:04:00-04:00

A major bridge in Baltimore, MD has collapsed after being crashed into by a container ship. The Francis Scott Key Bridge, which spans 1.6 miles over the Patapsco River, was hit by the 1000-foot-long ship just before 01:30 ET.

Rescue efforts are ongoing for as many as seven people believed to be missing, while two people have already been pulled from the water alive. As the bridge was struck, contractors were working on the bridge to repair a concrete deck.

According to early reports, the container ship ‘Dali’ was leaving the port of Baltimore en route to Sri Lanka. On approach to the bridge, the ship deviated from its charted route, colliding with one of the bridge’s main concrete pillars. Upon impact, the bridge quickly crumbled into the river.

The bridge opened in 1977, designed as a steel arch continuous through truss bridge. At the time of its completion, the bridge’s main 1.6-mile span was the third longest of any continuous truss bridge in the world.

To maintain its structura...

Gensler and Gilbane will revamp M&T Bank Stadium for the Baltimore Ravens

2023-12-18T13:27:00-05:00

Gensler and Gilbane Building Company have announced the design for a major renovation of the 25-year-old M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The home of the Baltimore Ravens NFL franchise is set to undergo a list of stadium enhancements that will bring the fan experience in line with other professional sports entities, including the addition of social spaces, club experiences, dining, and expansion of its concourse and plaza areas near Camden Yards.

Three new membership clubs will be delivered at the field level on the west, north, and south corners of the stadium, with another suite area added above the West End Zone Club by 2025.

Image: © Baltimore Ravens Photos

Other upgrades include an upper-level concourse expansion that will add an additional 12,000 square feet of space in three locations, the construction of a new two-level “Baltimore Style” fan area called the Gatehouse totaling 5,000 square feet, and enhancements to the North and South plazas to c...

Moody Nolan reveals design for $342 million research complex at Morgan State University

2023-11-17T13:11:00-05:00

Moody Nolan has shared an update to its previously announced Science and Research Complex project at Morgan State University in Baltimore.

The new, 246,000-square-foot complex comes equipped with the industry’s latest technological features and will be designed to achieve R1 (very high research activity) Carnegie classification, aiming to bolster the school’s STEM education offerings and national position as a research university.

New renderings released by the firm showcase the direction of the project, whose programmatic elements include Collaborative Teaching and Research Spaces, Information Technology and Computer Labs, Tutoring and Learning Centers, a 3,000-square-foot Environmental and Botanical Rooftop Greenhouse, and space for Remote and Hybrid Technology Integration.

Image courtesy of Moody Nolan

The building will house MSU’s School of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences (SCMNS) and be constructed alongside pre-set minority business enterprise (MBE) goals of 47.75%...

3XN designs amphitheater-like venue for Baltimore’s waterfront

2023-11-03T12:42:00-04:00

3XN has unveiled its design for a new destination at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, holding a mixture of retail, hospitality, and public amenities located in a “market hall environment.”

The scheme draws inspiration from the sails dotting the city’s waterfront, with an architectural language that seeks to become a “natural extension of the waterfront and nestle into the existing architecture.”

Image credit: 3XN

A concave form of the building seeks to create an amphitheater-like space aided by public landscaped roof terraces while creating elevated views of the water.

Image credit: 3XN

The emphasis on external landscapes forms part of 3XN’s strategy for climate resilience, with landscaped elements doubling as stormwater management and flooding mitigation. The edges of the concave terraces are shaped to catch the prevailing wind, while the ground floor has been designed with anticipation for flooding, with the building itself imagined as “a community refuge during extreme heat and poor air q...

Dr. Abimbola Asojo is the new dean of Morgan State University's School of Architecture and Planning

2023-05-10T14:22:00-04:00

Morgan State University's School of Architecture and Planning has announced the appointment of Dr. Abimbola O. Asojo as the school's new dean.

Dr. Asojo is the second dean in the school's history following the tenure of former dean Mary Anne Akers, the school's founding dean who held the position for 14 years.

With over 25 years of experience as an educator, architect, writer, and academic leader, Dr. Asojo's academic work has focused on "cross-cultural design, architectural lighting design, African architecture, computing and design, global issues, sustainable design, and K-12 spaces."

She has held teaching and leadership positions at the University of Minnesota, where she served as the school's associate dean for faculty at the Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs and a professor of Interior Design at the School of Architecture at the College of Design for 12 years.

Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Image courtesy of Morgan State.

In addition to being a lic...

Looking to the future, Moody Nolan will lead the design of a new science center at Morgan State University

2022-07-11T14:36:00-04:00

In the face of many recent setbacks and other challenges befalling America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), the country’s largest African American-owned architecture firm, Moody Nolan, is now setting out once again to improve the prospects and educational resources of their community by leading the design services for a new science center for the campus of Morgan State University (MSU) in Baltimore, Maryland.

Coming in at a total project cost of $150 million, the 246,435-square-foot science center is expected to be completed by the year 2027 and will take the school even further toward its ultimate aim of becoming the first HBCU-classified R1 university by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

To date, the firm has completed more than 30 projects at HBCU campuses throughout the country, including the soon-to-be-opened Thurgood Marshall Hall residential housing at MSU, which has been pursuing an expansion of its STEM and other research...

KPF breaks ground on a new headquarters for T. Rowe Price in Baltimore

2022-03-31T19:36:00-04:00

An exciting birthday gift is underway in the Charm City as Kohn Pedersen Fox has finally broken ground on a new headquarters for T. Rowe Price in the company’s hometown of Baltimore 85 years after its founding.

The project was announced in December 2020 and centers around a new 550,000-square-foot two-winged building with an all-glass central atrium sited along a prime piece of waterfront real estate fronting the pivotal gateway of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor area.

Image © Atchain, courtesy Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates

KPF Design Principal Jeffrey Kenoff said the project will create a “hyper-porosity, both visual and physical, from the Central Plaza down to the harbor. The façade specifically reduces the scale of the massing through a cadence of grey double-height bays that echo the city’s historical DNA and industrial heritage.”

Plans are for construction to be completed in 2024. The building will aim for ambitious Fitwel Three-Star and LEED Platinum certifications in its interiors. T...

Michael Graves Architecture is expanding with the acquisition of Waldon Studio Architects

2022-03-08T13:35:00-05:00

A major ten-year strategic plan of one of the most high-profile firms on the East Coast is underway after Michael Graves Architecture & Design announced its acquisition of the smaller Waldon Studio Architects, which was founded in 2003.

The New York, Washington, and Princeton-based Graves is expanding its footprint further down the Northeast Corridor with the acquisition of the 39-member office, which has operations in Baltimore, DC, and in Howard County.

Waldon had previously acquired another smaller Baltimore-based practice called Kann Partners in 2018 and is currently one of the largest firms in the city with $5.42 million in architectural billings reported for the year 2020, according to Baltimore Business Journals. Waldon’s founder and current principal, Ravi Waldon, will retain his title and serve as head of any religious projects for the new combined entity after the transition.

Graves’ ...

Infrastructure is not neutral; case studies of communities decimated by highways

2018-02-22T15:06:00-05:00

Making the case that infrastructure itself can be exclusionary is hardly straightforward. Many of the worst decisions in US planning were made decades ago to intentionally disenfranchise, marginalise and separate communities; policies such as redlining and “blight clearing” are well-documented embarrassments. But many decisions that segregated communities were unintentional. The stop sign and one-way street might seem benign, but they shape our lives in ways we sometimes don’t even realise.

Through focusing in on 5 case studies where communities have been obliterated by infrastructure decisions, the direct impact of highways and walls take on greater levels of meaning and urgency. The power of city planning also comes into greater consideration presently as the US takes on a massive infrastructure revitalization project.

"Too big to replace, too expensive to tear down", Miller emphasizes the importance of digging into the history of our country's development in order to understand past injustices, prevent future abuse, and address current issues as they stand right now.

An in depth look focuses on Detroit’s 8 Mile and historical Black Bottom neighborhoods, West Oakland in California, West Baltimore, and Jackson Ward in Richmond, Virginia. Arresting images of overlapping interstates where communities used to be reveal a truth many of us drive on in our everyday lives.

Please read Johnny Miller's full piece on how infrastructure decisions impact communities and are dir...

“It's not the kids, it's their environment”: The tragic story of a young aspiring architect who died too soon

2016-06-16T15:51:00-04:00

Too often children from low-income neighborhoods are called broken...That needs to stop. “You keep telling kids that, and they actually begin to believe they are broken, that there is something wrong with them,” she said. “When in reality, it’s not the children that are broken, it’s the environment and area around them that is not working properly.”

Ananias Jolley was a high-school student in Baltimore who had a knack for building things with his hands, and he had dreams of becoming an architect. Living in a low-income neighborhood wrought with violence, his life was tragically cut short at age 17 when he was killed by a classmate. The story above is yet another grave reminder about the social and economic inequalities that persist in many U.S. cities (and in the world), as well as the dangers of stereotyping kids — who, more often than not, are POC — from low-income neighborhoods.

Callison and RTKL merge in hopes to "bring swagger back" to Seattle office, CEO says

2015-10-20T20:06:00-04:00

On Tuesday, Callison and architecture/engineering firm RTKL announced they have officially joined forces as CallisonRTKL...[CEO Lance] Josal said the merger is good news for both firms and 'especially for the Seattle office.' In talking to the firm's senior leaders, Josal said there has been 'a little bit of frustration on their part' because they felt the firm 'may have lost a bit of swagger locally' and wanted an owner that would invest in the firm...

Previously on Archinect:

ARCADIS to buy Callison

Moscow, Russia voted world's unfriendliest city by travelers

2015-09-02T14:33:00-04:00

We suspect the city’s notoriously bad traffic and general “aloofness” of the people contributed to its low ranking, as well as its culinary scene, which was also ranked dead last in this year’s poll.

When Travel + Leisure compiled a survey of the places its readers love to visit, it also collected data on the 30 locales they loathe. While Moscow, Russia tops the list of the world's unfriendliest cities, a significant number of the top 10 are located in the United States (including Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Las Vegas and the world's #2 unfriendliest burg, Atlantic City).

Brutal Baltimore

2014-11-04T22:28:00-05:00

architecture designed to create an emotional reaction

As preparation for a D-Center lecture about The McKeldin Fountain at Windup Space tonight, a taste of Baltimore's "brutal" past.

h/t Fred Scharmen

Related Mckeldin Fountain

Baltimore-DC High Speed Train Secures $5bn in Funding

2014-09-15T18:08:00-04:00

An investor group hoping to build a high-speed train capable of cutting the travel time between Baltimore and Washington to 15 minutes says in a filing to state regulators that it has lined up more than $5 billion in financial backing. The commitment is from the Japanese government, which hopes to showcase the technology behind superconducting magnetic levitation or “maglev” trains to an American audience […]

The article notes that the maglev train has detractors, many of whom complain at the cost, which is far higher than other high-speed rails like those currently being built in California. For more information on the California project, check out the Atlantic's coverage here.

Meanwhile, Joanna Symons of the Telegraph rode around Japan to commemorate the 50 year anniversary of the bullet train.

Editor's Picks #377

2014-07-22T20:36:00-04:00

New to Archinect, Julia Ingalls penned an essay, titled Material Witness: Insanity in the walls of '"True Detective" and "Twin Peaks".

Olaf Design Ninja_ offered a complement "A good visceral read like a true detective watch...This would almost suggest the inert quality of this line between sanity and insanity material be abandonment. Been working on a large abandoned hospital to rental project for a few years now and…"

Plus, Nicholas Korody snagged an interview with Lagos documentary filmmaker Bregtje van der Haak.

News

R.I.P. Randall Stout, who has died at 56

Tim Fernholz looked at how retail/consumer giants, trademark their retail layouts. raj wanted some clarification "This is just a crazy thing....Who owns the copyright? AIA docs says the Architect. Did they sell that?"

Alexander Walter noted Martino Stierli has been named the new chief curator of MoMA Architecture and Design. darkman was disappointed "Another European academic. Shocking choice, Lowry".

Baltimore Business Journal ...

Each Material a Mockery of its 100-year-old Rowhouse Neighbors

2014-07-16T00:36:00-04:00

Not long enough to be comfortably horizontal, the building was also too tall for its shallow depth and too wide to be reasonably vertical. Both horizontal (modern) and vertical (historic) orientations were on display in the surrounding Seton Hill neighborhood. This bastard was of neither parent.

Architect and critic Klaus Philipsen takes the incursion of a faux historicist 7-11 into the westside of Baltimore's downtown to task.

"Last House Standing" beautifully photo-documents Baltimore's forgotten row houses

2013-09-25T11:57:00-04:00

The houses in Ben Marcin’s project ‘Last House Standing’ seem oddly misplaced, lost and forgotten. The series reads like a homage to the forgotten solo row house. The Baltimore based self-taught photographers interest ‘in these solitary buildings is not only in their ghostly beauty but in their odd placement in the urban landscape. Often three stories high, they were clearly not designed to stand alone like this’.

Behnisch Architekten Completes John and Frances Angelos Law Center for the University of Baltimore

2013-08-08T18:13:00-04:00

Behnisch Architekten, in collaboration with Ayers Saint Gross, completed the John and Frances Angelos Law Center for the University of Baltimore this past April. The structure began construction in 2009 after the firm, which was developed under the leadership of Günter Behnisch's son Stefan, won first place in the university's international design competition back in 2008.

The Demolition and Afterlife of Baltimore Memorial Stadium

2012-10-22T18:32:00-04:00

We tend to think of architecture as solid, stable, enduring, something that at its best will outlast us and possibly say something about us to future generations. Demolition makes powerfully evident the vulnerability, the mortality, of all things standing.

"When does architecture, once started, stop?" asks Keith Eggener. "Does it end when human occupation or attention terminates, when function or fabric are removed?" What is the connection between civic buildings and collective memory? Just in time for the World Series, Eggener recounts the saga of Baltimore Memorial Stadium, describing its powerful presence in the city during the decades when it was home to the Orioles — and its afterlife in the years since its demolition.