we want to experiment in making better public spaces. Cities are built in a very formal and classist fashion, which is at odds with the good that rapid production and public participation can do for urban development. — Huffington Post

Behold the Subway Terminal Building, hidden in plain sight in the middle of downtown LA, where at one point during the 1940′s over 65,000 riders were shuffling down into the depths of Los Angeles to board a train which traveled beneath the busy streets. And, fittingly, it’s just a block from where you might board the Red Line subway today. — gelatobaby.com

I remember Poly Styrene, the singer from X-Ray Spex, and all her prophetic songs from the late 70s: "I Am A Poser," "Germ-Free Adolescents," "Prefabricated Icon," "Genetic Engineering." Take a look at architecture and people today and you realize that it all came true. — Vice Magazine

As we mention more and more that 21st century will be the century of rising sea levels, depletion of energy resources and century of urban nature, we still think the solution to these problems are once again will be produced by our far superior technological society as if we know these things better.
We don't. — architects for peace

SEEDocs launches with the story of the restoration and revitalization of the Owe’neh Bupingeh pueblo in Ohkay Owingeh, New Mexico. — SEEDocs

Around the world, followers of architecture with a capital A have focused so much of their attention on formal experiments, as if aesthetics and social activism, twin Modernist concerns, were mutually exclusive. But Medellín is proof that they’re not, and shouldn’t be. Architecture, here and elsewhere, acts as part of a larger social and economic ecology, or else it elects to be a luxury, meaningless except to itself — NYT

the plaza features include "a terraced amphitheaterlike space and a drainable reflecting pool that could be used as a stage in summer and a skating rink in winter. Waterfalls absorbed noise; garden rooms offered intimacy and softened concrete edges." — NYT

A jury of internationally recognized design professionals and Seattle civic leaders have declared a winner among three semi-finalists in Urban Intervention: The Howard S. Wright Design Ideas Competition for Public Space. The winner is ABF, of Paris, France, for its design, In-Closure, which envisions an interactive wall around a forested landscape that is both flexible and dynamic, embracing social life in the city at multiple scales. — bustler.net

The urban tech districts that are emerging today, from SoMa in San Francisco to New York’s Silicon Alley and London’s Silicon Roundabout, are housed in similarly walkable, low to mid-story neighborhoods. — Atlantic Cities

Urban planning has focused on identifying many important questions about the formation and functioning of our cities. However, there is a lack of understanding about the spatial patterns related to material and energy use in cities. This work attempts to address this knowledge gap. — urbmet.org

The latest Showcase feature profiles the Summer House in Austria by Judith Benzer Architektur, the design of which is oriented by the cubature of the Kellerstöckel (wine house), typical of the Southern Burgenland region. stroke123 liked it but wondered "how does the roof shed water? Waterproof membrane and concealed gutters and downspouts?".

Danish HAO / Holm Architecture Office together with Archiland Beijing has won the competition to design a master plan within the city of Qingdao, China.

In addition to its famous Tsingtao beer, the city of Qingdao has long been a key tourist and film production destination in northern China. — bustler.net

“As a housing commissioner we feel like we’re trying to plug a lot of leaks in the dike,” said Nick Fish, a Portland city commissioner in charge of the housing bureau and parks and recreation. And the city’s budget has still not recovered from the downturn. Habitat, especially in east Portland, he said, is filling the gap. — NYT

Economist Paul Romer believes he can create and launch a new city in much the same way tech companies create and launch startups. Looking to Hong Kong and China’s Shenzen for inspiration, Romer’s theory is that the rules and organizational structures of prosperous nations can be grafted onto poorer nations, or areas within those nations, to become highly functioning states-within-a-state. Though so far untested, the theory has gotten the attention of multinational companies... — americancity.org