US President-Elect Donald Trump, who built his business on constructing towers, used his victory speech early today in New York to repeat his pledge to put “millions of people to work” rebuilding American infrastructure, airports, schools and hospitals.
[...]
“We are going to fix our inner cities and rebuild our highways, bridges, tunnels, airports, schools, hospitals,” he said to whoops and applause.
— Global Construction Review
“We’re going to rebuild our infrastructure, which will become, by the way, second to none, and we will put millions of our people to work as we rebuild it.”
More on how the Trump residency may impact the built environment:
15 Comments
"I'm gonna stiff this country like it was a hapless architect." ~Donald Trump
trust
trəst/
noun
noun: trust
1.
firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something.
See also NY Mag interview with Hedge-Funder and Trump Adviser Anthony Scaramucci
"Could this be a long-term government bond? Could it be a 50- or 100-year bond? Not saying that definitively. Could there be a private-public infrastructure bank put together? Could there be some kind of tax incentive for people to help us build this structure? I don’t know. I’m not going to say I know the answers...If it’s going to cost $3 trillion — that’s the cost of the Afghan and Iraq wars — you could float a 50-year bond at 1.5 percent and all that positive externality would go back into the country. It will be taxed and added to tax revenues and have a multiplier effect. Look at the Big Dig in Boston. It cost four times more than anticipated. It created about $120 billion in positive externalities for the city and state, because it created five new suburban hubs around Boston."
keep pushing the infrastructure theme. I'm counting on Trump to run government jobs like his own, ridiculous tight budgets with lots of borrowed money. If the fat government contracts are cut in half by Trumps shrewd construction method we will have real projects for real dollars.
Like many of you who have posted, I am disappointed by the outcome of this election. However, in this free election, the people have spoken and we must accept the results and move forward. In responding to the comments I think we need to step back & remember that we need to be at the table not just for economic reasons but to have any chance at being heard on the very important social issues we recognize as an integral part of the profession's role in society. To that end I would like to quote some of the talking points that are part of our organization's position in dealing with the new administration. • Ensuring that policymakers hear our voices is a top priority of the AIA at all levels of government, from the White House to city councils. If we do not work to engage with those in power, then we are leaving the fate of our profession in the hands of others. • The AIA will always remain true to our principles and values, which are established through our Board with significant member input. For example, the AIA strongly supports elevating and respecting the dignity and worth of all people, and we are committed to addressing the impacts of climate change through policies that promote sustainable and resilient design. • We stand ready to work with any policymaker who is willing to work with us, but we also are not afraid of calling out policymakers who do not share our values or work to oppose our interests. • We hope you and all AIA members stay engaged in the AIA, and share with us your views on the major issues – not just at the federal level, but at the state level and in your community. • In the coming days we are issuing our biennial Call for Issues, where we ask all AIA members what issues they want us to take to Congress and the White House. • Only by listening to you and the other 90,000 members of the AIA can we develop a clear, strong message on what architects believe and what we are willing to fight for. I hope you will continue to help us lift our voice and make sure we are heard. I say this as the father of an 8 year old girl whom I hope one day will have the opportunity to achieve her full potential. We must not loose sight that if we are at the table we can better promote our strong principles on key issues such as climate change, equity and diversity amongst other important AIA initiatives. As a group we must engage or otherwise risk being sidelined. We must continue to engage so that we may continue to be a positive influential force or otherwise risk being inconsequential. As architects, we certainly are not a profession that falls into the inconsequential category. Now, more than ever, we must work collectively as a group to ensure that we continue to have a voice in all matters having to do with our profession.
Sincerely,
Thierry Paret, FAIA
Director-At-Large
AIA
Thierry Paret, FAIA
architects who are AIA members, like me, are upset because Mr. Ivy hastily wrote to Mr. Trump without collecting some ideas and opinions from thousands of members.
Do you guys understand this? AIA is not Robert Ivy's farm sir.
Orhan Ayyuce, AIA
Dear Orhan,
We absolutely understand your point and value your opinion. The AIA is here to serve your and all our members best interest. This is a difficult moment for many amongst us, but I am sure that you agree with me that we cannot be sidelined or remain silent. Trust me when I tell you that I am personally very passionate about social issues and climate change and that I want my daughter and all other children to inherit a better future. The rest of the board is also absolutely committed to the Principals for which the institute stands for, we are firm on this.
Please do know that we want you to keep your faith in us as we move forward during these uncertain times. We need you to stay involved and active.
Many thanks,
Thierry Paret, FAIA
Director-At-Large
AIA
Thierry,
With all due respect, to make a statement, two days after the election, with little or no conference, input or feedback with members, or member boards is the height of arrogance. At very least, a letter like this one should have come from someone in communications, without the full force of membership, or the backing of the CEO. It is this tone deaf, cowtowing letter from the CEO no less, that further enforces the narrative that architects are spineless servants of the 1% and the ruling class. We, yes I'm a dues paying member, are severely concerned by the disconnect of our board, from its members, and severely concerned about the direction of our country by a racist, misogynist, xenophobic president-elect.
You, the CEO, and the rest of the leadership have failed not only us, but the American people.
Your resignation letters should be the first step to heal the rift.
#IamnotAlbertSpeer
Ken R. Koense, AIA
Thierry, I'm President of the Indianapolis Section of AIA. I speak here *as myself only*, not as a representative of my board or membership.
The reason I can't speak for them is that *I have not yet asked for input from them* regarding this controversy. The members of our organization are all volunteers, and I will not ask them to spend time on their weekend formulating a response to a public move by National that was - and I'm being very kind with these words - incredibly bone-headed.
When we decided to take a stand on a local transit ballot measure, the Executive Board drafted a statement then ran it by all of our committee heads and full board members for comment before we released it to the press. This is the way that AIA should work.
So this is my ask, and again, I represent only myself, Donna Sink AIA, in these questions: WHO wrote the first and the second statements? WHO reviewed them and gave input? WHO approved releasing them to the press?
We members are owed this information.
Donna
Thierry,
I agree strongly with Donna's post above. Shame on Robert Ivy for presuming to speak on behalf of the AIA membership. I pay my membership dues with the expectation that the AIA's mission is to protect the profession and the general public from people like Trump, not to kiss up to him for the chance at a few plum commissions. One of Hillary Clinton's own campaign ads featured an architect who had been repeatedly stiffed by Trump and almost had to close his firm. I wonder how that guy feels about being sold down the river by the primary professional organization that's supposed to fight on his behalf.
My AIA membership renewal notification is still sitting in my inbox, and I'm seriously considering just deleting it rather than renewing for 2017. Regardless of what I decide to do, be assured that Robert Ivy does not speak for me on this issue.
Regards,
David S. Cole, AIA, NCARB
Dear Orhan, Ken, David & Rick,
Forgive my tardiness in responding to all of your posts. I wanted to first have a better understanding from the leadership as to what had happened. The AIA typically prepares a statement after every election, and it was no different last week. However, this was far from a typical election and given the toxic and hateful rhetoric that was part of the campaign, many Americans including myself were very upset about the outcome. This statement should not have gone out at all, even less so on behalf of the membership and the board. As a Haitian/African American man, I personally felt insulted and hurt by what took place during this election and as you can imagine cannot and will not accept any actions from the institute that will compromise its principles towards inclusivity, diversity, equity and climate change. My colleagues on the board including Robert Ivy and Russell Davidson make that pledge to all our members. The honest truth is that was that this was a serious mistake for which Robert and Russell sincerely apologize for (as per the video link below). The original message issued by Robert should have been carefully vetted before release and we/I understand how you feel (it was insensitive and did not grasp the severity, sense of angst and fear felt by many of us -- This is not what the AIA is about, we are inclusive and welcoming to all irrespective of gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation, we stand for social and environmental issues that really matter. The AIA will defend its position for social rights and the environment when engaging with any government body, we will not compromise on this in any respect. We hope that you will continue to work with the AIA towards these very important, as a collective, we are stronger as a group and can make an impact in these very troubling times. I hope that you will stay with us and that in time will regain trust in the AIA. In the coming days we will hold various forums to listen to your concerns regarding the fallout from this election and future actions that we need take. I know that I have not answered every detail of some of your questions, but want you to know that the original message certainly did not represent our sentiments in any way regarding seeking infrastructure work at the cost of our social responsibilities and ethics.
https://vimeo.com/191580244
Thank you,
Thierry Paret, FAIA
Director- At - Large
AIA
Dear Orhan, Ken, David & Rick,
Forgive my tardiness in responding to all of your posts. I wanted to first have a better understanding from the leadership as to what had happened. The AIA typically prepares a statement after every election, and it was no different last week. However, this was far from a typical election and given the toxic and hateful rhetoric that was part of the campaign, many Americans including myself were very upset about the outcome. This statement should not have gone out at all, even less so on behalf of the membership and the board. As a Haitian/African American man, I personally felt insulted and hurt by what took place during this election and as you can imagine cannot and will not accept any actions from the institute that will compromise its principles towards inclusivity, diversity, equity and climate change. My colleagues on the board including Robert Ivy and Russell Davidson make that pledge to all our members. The honest truth is that was that this was a serious mistake for which Robert and Russell sincerely apologize for (as per the video link below). The original message issued by Robert should have been carefully vetted before release and we/I understand how you feel (it was insensitive and did not grasp the severity, sense of angst and fear felt by many of us -- This is not what the AIA is about, we are inclusive and welcoming to all irrespective of gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation, we stand for social and environmental issues that really matter. The AIA will defend its position for social rights and the environment when engaging with any government body, we will not compromise on this in any respect. We hope that you will continue to work with the AIA towards these very important issues, as a collective, we are stronger as a group and can make an impact in these very troubling times. I hope that you will stay with us and that in time will regain trust in the AIA. In the coming days we will hold various forums to listen to your concerns regarding the fallout from this election and future actions that we need take. I know that I have not answered every detail of some of your questions, but want you to know that the original message certainly did not represent our sentiments in any way regarding seeking infrastructure work at the cost of our social responsibilities and ethics.
https://vimeo.com/191580244
Thank you,
Thierry Paret, FAIA
Director- At - Large
AIA
The time will show.
Will his desire for shiny new things for America temper his innate need to cut taxes to enrich the wealthy? Probably not - let's do both and leave the future with a gigantic deficit!
Quick note, because people don't stop to think about macroeconomics here.
Trump is proposing about 200 billion in tax incentives to boost infrastructure spending. Fun fact: tax incentives direct existing capital and pull it away from where it is currently allocated. The infrastructure spending won't be painless. Much like with a trade deal, everyone is better off in a few years, but in the immediate term, people will lose their jobs to friction and capital reallocation. This is why the more major infrastructure projects are carried out using direct spending. Less people get hurt.
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