Archinect - News

6 Hawai'i-based architecture firms join AIA's 2030 climate commitment

2023-04-27T17:01:00-04:00

The American Institute of Architects' 2030 commitment program aims to transform building design to address climate change by setting standards and goals. AIA Honolulu member firms AEPAC, AHL, Ferraro Choi, KYA Design Group, MASON and WRNS Studio signed onto the commitment in honor of Earth Day.

The AIA 2030 Commitment program requires participating firms to report the predicted energy performance of all projects in their portfolios each year. Energy by fuel source, renewable energy, post-occupancy energy use, and embodied carbon are also tracked. The program has mapped out energy reduction targets of 80% and 90% by 2025 and complete carbon neutrality by 2030.

Previously on Archinect: AIA 2030 signatories making progress on commitment to reduce energy use

Snøhetta, WCIT, and AECOM to redesign Honolulu cultural center

2019-06-28T16:06:00-04:00

Snøhetta, WCIT, and AECOM have unveiled renderings depicting the team's efforts to re-imagine the Blaisdell Center in Honolulu via the creation of a new master plan for the 22-acre complex.

Exterior view of the rehabilitated arena. Image © Snøhetta.

A site plan for the project. Image © Snøhetta.

The designers are working to reposition the 64,000-square-foot cultural and arts center in order to update the venue into a state-of-the-art facility. Built in 1964, the Modernist-era structure is marked by sweeping archways, super-scaled columns, and an undulating concrete roof.

Image © Snøhetta.

The project will bring new performance and exhibition spaces as well as a sports pavilion, new parking structures, and reconfigured public outdoor spaces to the site. A new lobby and expanded food and beverage areas are included in the plan, as well.

Image © Moare.

A timeline for the project has not been unveiled.

To tackle Honolulu's housing shortage, lawmakers take inspiration from Singapore

2019-05-01T13:12:00-04:00

Hawaii and Honolulu laws require most new developments to set aside a certain percentage of units as affordable rental housing, but it’s not enough. In five years, Honolulu will still need thousands of additional new units. That has elected officials looking for other solutions to the problem, and some think they’ve found one in Singapore.

The housing proposal put forward by Hawaii State Senator Stanley Chang is called Affordable Locally Owned Homes for All, or ALOHA, and looks to replicate the public housing program of Singapore which has a comparable median household income.

Marketplace's Ryan Finnerty reports that the "vast majority of Singaporeans live in flats built by the government — [...] between 80% and 85% of the island nation’s 5.6 million residents. Singapore residents can purchase a two-bedroom flat on the resale market for less than $300,000."

New case of proposed "Poor Door" in Honolulu

2017-12-04T14:01:00-05:00

A real estate developer in Hawaii is under scrutiny for its plans to build a residential high-rise that has two separate entrances: one for high-income residents and another for low-income earners. [...] will include 78 affordable rental units for people earning 80 percent or less of the area median income, as required by Honolulu’s affordable housing strategy. The other 351 units will be market-priced condominiums. If things go as ProsPac plans, the units will be separated with two entrances.

Various examples of so-called "poor doors" in New York City, London, and Vancouver made the headlines in previous years, sparking heated debate across a number of Archinect comment sections.

Los Angeles and Honolulu are the toughest cities to build in

2017-07-27T17:15:00-04:00

Last week, The Wall Street Journal reported on the housing shortage in Venice Beach. As one of Los Angeles' hottest neighborhoods—in large part due to the influx of tech companies that have made it their home and lent it the new nickname, Silicon Beach—it might come as a surprise to learn that the zip code has not added a single new housing unit in 15 years. In fact, Venice Beach had roughly 700 fewer housing units in 2015 than it did in 2000 and despite adding 4,000 new jobs, lost 3,800 residents.

According to Issi Romem, a chief economist at BuildZoom who conducted the analysis of data for the publication, the lack of new housing accommodations is a result of overly strict building and zoning restrictions as well as stiff community opposition that has caused the precinct to become the "Toughest Zip Code in America to Build In." When we expand from zip code to city limit, Romem's data found that Los Angeles, in general, sits right behind Honolulu to take second place in terms of t...

Waikiki Beach closed after heavy rains cause sewage spills

2015-08-25T14:31:00-04:00

Waikiki Beach closed on Monday after heavy rains caused by a tropical storm set off the spills. Tropical Storm Kilo caused 500,00 gallons of wastewater to come gushing out of manholes, making the waterfront unsafe for beachgoers. "Now's not the time to go swimming," said Lori Kahikina, Honolulu's director of environmental services. The beachfront sees about 4.5m tourists annually. It will be a few days before the ocean is safe for people to swim in again, Ms Kahikina said...

Preservation politics and pricey prizes: Weekly News Round-Up for October 14, 2014

2014-10-20T20:51:00-04:00

Sunday, October 19:

The Portland Building: Architect Michael Graves fiercely defends his controversial creation against demolition: According to The Oregonian's piece, the architect does not think any of the problems are by his design, but rather its application under budgetary and civic constraints.

Thursday, October 16:

Unesco threatens to put Venice on its Heritage at Risk list: Responding to corruption and mismanagement of environmental risks by the Venetian government, UNESCO may have to declare Venice a "Heritage at Risk".

Wednesday, October 15:

Honolulu Law Criminalizes Homelessness: It is now a misdemeanor in the popular tourist destination of Waikiki to "sit or lie on sidewalks", punishable by up to 30 days in jail or a maximum $1,000 fine.

Tuesday, October 14:

Maya Lin wins the 21st Annual $300K Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize: At $300,000 USD, the prize is one of the US's largest, afforded to artists working to affect social change.
Petrified Forest buildings named national treasu...

Get Lectured: University of Hawaii at Manoa, Spring '14

2014-03-28T12:51:00-04:00

Archinect's Architecture School Lecture Guide for Winter/Spring 2014

Archinect's Get Lectured is up and running again for the Winter/Spring '14 term! As a refresher from our Fall 2013 guide, every week we'll feature a school's lecture series—and their snazzy posters—for the current season. If you're not doing so already, be sure to keep track of any upcoming lectures you don't want to miss.

For Friday, we have our first poster from Hawaii with the University of Hawaii at Manoa, School of Architecture. They have two lectures left for the season.

Want to share your school's lecture series? Send us your school's lecture series poster and details to connect@archinect.com.

Lectures take place at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, School of Architecture: 2410 Campus Road Honolulu, HI 96822

March 29
7:30-8:30 pm
Craig Steely / Craig Steely Architecture
AIAS West Quad Conference Keynote Speaker

April 9
6 pm
Yoshiharu Tsukamoto / Atelier Bow-Wow
archhawai'i speaker

For more details, click here.

...

Atelier Bow-Wow helps design Honolulu's first "indoor park" pavilion

2014-02-12T14:30:00-05:00

Interisland Terminal from Honolulu is on a mission to show the creative potential of their city's neighborhood with their latest endeavor known as Kaka'ako Agora. Located in the neighborhood of Kaka'ako, the project is an empty warehouse-turned-community space designed and planned in collaboration with Japanese architecture firm Atelier Bow-Wow.

Surrounded by plenty of local outdoor parks, Kaka'ako Agora will be the first "indoor park" for the Honolulu neighborhood. Once complete, the new space will serve as a local gathering area for various public programs, educational use, and other community-driven purposes.

Interisland Terminal recently launched a Kickstarter with a $15,000 goal to partially raise funds to purchase building materials for the pavilion's final pieces. The Kickstarter closes on Sunday evening, March 16.

For more details on Kaka'ako, click here.

Hawaii fights for Obama presidential center

2013-05-08T12:54:00-04:00

The president still has three years in office, but eventually his thoughts will turn to what comes afterward. [...] A presidential library has to be easily accessible to scholars and visitors, so Chicago has a clear advantage. That’s why Honolulu’s leaders named their public campaign carefully: The Hawaii Presidential Center Initiative, not a presidential library.

Previously: The LA Times' Christopher Hawthorne reviews the "fittingly blunt" Bush presidential library