Archinect - News

New York City releases RFP to transform Park Avenue into a verdant, public space

2024-08-30T08:00:00-04:00

Earlier this week, the City of New York released a request for proposals (RFP) to redesign a portion of Park Avenue, between East 46th Street and East 57th Street, by adding greenery, public seating, concessions, and safer crossings for pedestrians.

This section of Park Avenue sits atop the Grand Central Terminal Train Shed, which is currently undergoing a major rehabilitation by the City and the MTA. The project includes replacing the train shed roof structure and waterproofing membrane, along with enhancing Park Avenue, which will be removed and reconstructed in stages as underground work occurs. The street will be restored with an expanded median for pedestrians. Its redesign aims to enhance public space, promote sustainable transit options, and foster community for residents and visitors.

The New York City Department of Transportation is seeking design services from a contractor with a background in landscape architecture or urban design to fill the wider median with elements,...

Moody Nolan and Stull & Lee to lead design of mixed-use, affordable Columbia Crossing development in Boston

2023-02-24T15:19:00-05:00

The City of Boston has announced its financial support for a mixed-use, mixed-income development in the Upham’s Corner neighborhood. Called Columbia Crossing, the project will repurpose the historic Dorchester Savings Bank building and adjacent parking lot into an approximately 86,000-square-foot residential, commercial, and retail complex.

The scheme will be developed by nonprofit developer Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) in partnership with the Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation (DBEDC), a nonprofit Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) based in Upham’s Corner. The endeavor will consist of the construction of a new six-story building addition to the back of the existing Dorchester Savings Bank as well as the adaptive reuse of the bank building. Stull & Lee, Inc. and Moody Nolan are partnering on the architecture.

POAH and DBEDC were chosen through a competitive, community-driven RFP process led by Dudley Neighbors Inc. (DNI), a local community land trust and t...

Miami issues massive $10 billion RFP for downtown redevelopment

2022-08-23T12:03:00-04:00

Formally branded as MetroCenter, the 28-acre district includes the seat of government for Miami-Dade County. When a developer is chosen, they could be given the right to build up to 23.7 million square feet of mixed-use space on 17 acres. The developer could be chosen in 2024, according to the Miami Herald. The master builder would also get “unlimited height and development intensity” on the land that would be leased long-term to the developers, according to the county.

Reports indicate that the scheme would include up to 8,500 total units, with 2,000 being designated as affordable or workforce housing, according to the RFP. Of the plan’s 11 sites, 9 are earmarked for “vertical development” while the remaining 2 are reserved for parklands. AECOM will serve in an advisory role. Developers liken the plan to Hudson Yards or the Umeda in Osaka, Japan.

Decommissioned BART cars to be transformed into a variety of venues across the Bay Area

2022-04-04T14:18:00-04:00

Eight lucky winners have been awarded decommissioned BART cars, as BART announced these retired cars will be transformed into a retro video game arcade, a bike repair shop, and a beer garden at The Oakland A’s stadium.

In 2020, BART issued a request for proposals for the creative reuse of old train cars as they are taken out of service and replaced by their “Fleet of the Future” cars. The first of the BART’s 775 new train cars went into service in January 2018. The fate of the decommissioned cars, some dating to the original fleet in the early 1970s, is being stripped and recycled into scrap heap.

The eight recipients were selected after submitting a proposal to BART describing what they intended to do with the vehicle, including their plans for the cars’ retrieval and disposal once they’ve served their purpose. The remaining decommissioned cars, with approximately 531 still in service, will be mainly recycled over time.

The "Residence and short-term rental" proposal by Hernandez-Eli Architecture.

The winning proposals for the repurposed BART cars include the creation of a retro video game arcade, a craft beer garden at The Oakland A’s stadium, a bike repair shop, a multi-use social space, a muse...

Chicago Architectural Biennial opens new exhibition space at the Chicago Cultural Center

2022-03-29T17:41:00-04:00

The Chicago Architecture Biennial has announced the opening of the CAB Studio, a new, year-round exhibition space located on the first floor of the Chicago Cultural Center. The studio will be a space to explore design and present innovative ideas. It will host exhibitions, programs, and events, along with youth and family activities.

CAB Studio will open with the exhibition, Architecture of Reparations, by New York-based collaborative Riff Studio, including designers Isabel Strauss, Rekha Auguste-Nelson, and Farnoosh Rafaie. It incorporates a study of public policy, architectural history, and reparations to tell the story of the erasure in Bronzeville, a historic Black neighborhood in the South Side of Chicago. This is the focus and outcome of a thesis project by Strauss while studying at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

The exhibition uncovers the history and tells t...

NYC Parks invites landscape architects to reimagine greenspaces across the city

2022-03-23T17:25:00-04:00

The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation has issued a Request for Proposals in search of at least ten firms that will provide landscape architecture services for upcoming park improvement projects.

“We are seeking experienced design firms to advance projects that improve parkland across the five boroughs with a focus on equity, sustainability, and access,” said NYC Parks Deputy Commissioner for Capital Projects Therese Braddick. “The landscape architecture firms selected through this RFP will have the chance to make a lasting impact on New York City's park system by reimagining greenspaces for the communities they serve.”

While NYC Parks designs about 70% of landscape architecture projects in-house (its capital division employs nearly 500 team members, including more than 100 landscape architects), the department also works with consultants on a number of projects. The selected landscape architecture consultants will help ensure that various capital projects maximize th...

The Bronx Museum of Arts is looking for an architect for its new South Wing addition

2021-07-09T18:07:00-04:00

The Bronx Museum of Arts in New York City is seeking an architect for a planned expansion of its collection.

The Bronx Times is reporting that the institution released a request for proposals this week that will add a new South Wing atrium to the museum located in the Bronx’s Grand Concourse neighborhood.

The museum, which added an Arquitectonica-designed three-story North Wing in 2006, is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and has been under the tutelage of an interim director since early last year. The institution has been able to weather the pandemic thanks to an emergency PPP loan and will now look forward to a new chapter of prosperity coinciding with the new addition. The museum has become known around the art world for a progressive board and popular exhibitions that have elevated artists of color to the international stage for some time.

Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons user Jim.henderson

The expansion is expected to add an “enhanced entrance” to the building as wel...

Morphosis, SOM, and Renzo Piano make short-list for new office tower slated for former L.A. police headquarters site

2019-09-04T14:30:00-04:00

The City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering has announced a trio of finalist teams competing to redevelop the site of the former Parker Center police headquarters in the city's Civic Center district.

Each of the teams, according to Urbanize.la, is each made up of designers, contractors, operations providers, and community "equity" members. The project RFP calls for a 750,000-square-foot office tower, ground floor retail spaces, pedestrian passages to the surrounding neighborhood, and a requirement for including public displays highlighting the history of the former Parker Center complex. The project can rise up to 27-stories and would, according to Urbanize.la, rival City Hall in terms of height. A breakdown of the teams follows below.

DTLA Civic Partners

The DTLA Civic Partners team is headed by SOM and includes Clark Construction, Meridiam and Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate as equity partners, and ENGIE Services providing operations and management services.

LAC 3 Partn...

Cuomo releases RFP for 5 World Trade Center, may include 900-foot tower and affordable housing

2019-06-26T12:10:00-04:00

The Port Authority and the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation recently arrived at a deal to develop 5 World Trade Center, the last WTC site. Today, Governor Cuomo released a Request for Proposals, which allows for either commercial or mixed-use proposals for a 900-foot-tall building. Any proposals putting forth a residential component must include “onsite affordable units that comply with New York City’s Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program,” according to a press release.

The Adrian Smith Prize for the 2017 Ragdale Ring goes to "LIVING PICTURE" by T+E+A+M

2017-03-22T19:37:00-04:00

Ragdale, the acclaimed artists’ residency in Lake Forest, announces the winning design of the fifth annual Ragdale Ring competition. Amidst a field of national and international submissions, T+E+A+M, a young, internationally recognized architectural collaborative based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, was selected by jury for their proposal of LIVING PICTURE– a contemporary interpretation of the original Ragdale Ring garden theatre designed by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw in 1912.

The winning T+E+A+M exclaims, "We are thrilled to receive the Adrian Smith Prize for the 2017 Ragdale Ring. In its short history, this competition has produced an exciting series of experimental projects, and we’re honored to join the ranks of past winners. We look forward to our residency, meeting the other fellows, and watching our project come to life through public programming."

Historical elements from the original Ragdale Ring appear on lightweight objects stacked and spread throughout the grounds. Blending ...