Archinect - News

AIA commends finalized revisions to fee limitations for federal design and construction projects

2024-07-01T17:54:00-04:00

The United States Department of Defense has finalized a revision to the fee limitations for federal design projects after a yearslong campaign led by Emily Grandstaff-Rice, Dan Hart, Elizabeth Chu Richter, and other senior leadership of the American Institute of Architects.

Beginning on August 26th, 2024, as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024, the statutory fee limit for architecture and engineering services will be increased from six to ten percent of the contract's value.

This is being welcomed as a particularly big win for firms working on smaller contracts. The AIA says: "The increase will also benefit architect and engineering entities with contracts for producing and delivering designs, plans, drawings, and specifications for large horizontal and complex vertical construction projects. While costs have increased for architects, construction costs have increased more dramatically, which results in a higher cost limit."

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AIA criticizes SCOTUS decision limiting EPA regulation of carbon emissions

2022-07-05T12:57:00-04:00

The American Institute of Architects has released a statement criticizing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that restricts the EPA’s authority to mandate carbon emissions reductions. The ruling, which decided the case West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency, is described by the AIA as a “setback in the climate crisis fight.”

The decision rules that significant new regulations by the EPA require congressional approval and was decided along ideological lines with six conservative justices in favor, and three liberal justices against. While the case stemmed from the question of how the EPA could regulate coal-fired power plants, the decision may have knock-on effects for future federal climate initiatives.

“That's a very big deal because they're not going to get it from Congress because Congress is essentially dysfunctional,” Harvard law professor Richard Lazarus told NPR. “This could not have...

AIA announces energy-efficient redesign scheme for its Brutalist D.C. headquarters

2022-04-20T19:09:00-04:00

In an effort to bring the organization closer to its own self-stated goals on sustainability, equity, and collaboration, the Board of Directors of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has today unveiled plans for a comprehensive new upgrade to its aging Washington, D.C. National headquarters.

San Francisco-based EHDD will lead the overhaul of the nearly 50-year-old Brutalist structure using the AIA’s Framework for Design Excellence to author a host of efficiency upgrades that are expected to save some 58% of the building’s pre-Covid energy use levels.

Renderings courtesy AIA

“[The] AIA’s headquarters should serve as an expression of the value architects provide and align with the values we uphold as a profession,” President Dan Hart explained. “We have a responsibility to redesign this iconic building to the highest standards in sustainability, resilience, and equity. By demonstrating the powerful role design can play in improving our communities, we can...

Dan Hart officially takes over as the 98th AIA President

2021-12-13T15:43:00-05:00

Important news today for one of America’s oldest architectural organizations as the American Institute of Architects has announced the formal inauguration of Dan Hart, FAIA as the organization’s 98th president.

Hart comes from a particularly strong background of leadership, holding previous positions as a longtime member of the AIA’s Board of Directors in addition to serving as the 2011 president of the Texas Society of Architects. As a board member, Hart was responsible for organizing the AIA’s official COVID-19 business task force (which he co-chaired) and was also chair of the Public Outreach and Board Knowledge Committees in addition to serving as the moderator for the AIA’s Strategic Council in 2016.

Hart has practiced architecture since completing his bachelor’s studies in engineering at Texas Tech University in 1990, becoming a principal at the multidisciplinary firm Parkhill the next year, where he focused on projects in the higher education sector based out of the firm’s Au...