As the year comes to a close and Trump finishes up his first year as President, we're taking the opportunity to reflect on 2017's trials and tribulations and how they affected the architecture world. 45's Border Wall, and its implications for the industry, dominated our coverage of his presidency this year. But, 2017 was also a pretty turbulent year in terms of policy. The National Endowment of the Arts, the Historic Tax Credit, research into climate change, the effectiveness of HUD, and our extremely vital immigrant workforce were all threatened this year by various actions taken by the current administration.
Trump may eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts — here's why that matters for architecture
In spring, President Trump suggested plans to eliminate all funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. All three are organizations that support many architectural initiatives including competitions, exhibitions, cultural buildings, public spaces, workshops, and educational programs.
Trump border wall prototypes completed, prepare for sledgehammer testing
Six companies were awarded contracts to build prototypes of the border wall, one of Trump's biggest and most controversial campaign promises. Full-scale models of the designs were completed on a site near San Diego earlier this year and will now undergo testing by sledgehammers, torches, pickaxes and battery-operated tools to see how they fair.
Climate change was removed from whitehouse.gov today. What does this mean for architects?
Directly following Trump's inauguration, whitehouse.gov removed the climate change page from their site that previously housed local, national, and international plans for combating climate change, as well as the actions and goals of the previous administration.
As plans for the wall moved forward this year, many architects responded with proposals that subverted some of the original intentions behind such a border. This one by DOMO Design used shipping containers to create retail spaces and micro housing along the US/Mexico divide.
Trump begins presidency by increasing taxes for (middle-class) homebuyers
Within his first hour of being sworn into the Oval Office, Trump increased taxes on a million middle-class homebuyers. The Department of Housing and Urban Development reversed a scheduled 0.25 percent cut in mortgage insurance premiums issued by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). For a mortgage worth $200,000, this adds $500 to a homebuyer’s annual costs.
As the UK and US shift rightwards, architects react
Ushered in by the election of Trump and the Brexit vote, 2017 began on shaky ground and with much panic. In January, 229 American Architecture firms sent a letter to the then President-elect—and RIBA to the UK Prime Minister— addressing the concerning developments in their respective countries.
Raegan Administration's widely popular Historic Tax Credit jeopardized by Trump's tax plan
Original versions for Trump's tax plan sought to eliminate a 20 percent federal investment tax credit for historic preservation projects. Known as the Historic Tax Credit, the Reagan-era program has preserved more than 40,000 total structures, corralled over $117 billion in private investment, and is widely acknowledged as one of most effective tax incentives the government has created.
Facing backlash, companies building Trump's wall prototype seek protections
Since the bidding process began, participating companies have faced serious pushback ranging from angry calls made by the public to legislative opposition proposed in liberal cities and states. In response, these construction companies have called on the government for federal protections that would prevent cities and states from penalizing them.
How much would Trump's wall actually cost? This calculator can help you find out
One of the biggest hurdles, beyond the ethical, to the proposed border wall has been the issue of cost. To get a better feel for the realities of the wall, a team at the The Warsaw University of Technology led by Tadeusz Zwolinski and Mateusz Mucha spent six weeks putting together a calculator, where users can set main parameters like length, height or placement of guards.
Trump's Travel Ban: Architects and Educators Respond
One of Trump's first actions as President was the issuing of a highly controversial executive order that temporarily banned citizens and refugees from seven majority-Muslim countries and which has since seen several horrendous iterations over the course of the year. When the travel ban was first issued back in February, Archinect collected responses from architecture firms and schools on the executive order.
Can Trump’s anti-immigrant border wall be built without immigrant labor?
Julia Ingalls looks into the practical failures of Donald Trump’s proposed U.S./Mexico border and finds that, ironically, it will probably not be able to be built in Trump’s ideal budgetary range without the immigrant labor its backers are desperate to circumvent.
What does Trump's 20% tariff hike on Canadian softwoods mean for architecture?
In Spring, the Trump administration announced plans to impose a roughly 20 percent tariff on softwood lumber imported from Canada, which accounts for approximately 35% of the U.S. wood market. According to Dr. Warren Mabee, the Canada Research Chair in Renewable Energy Development and Implementation at Queen's University, the tariff will likely halt or significantly alter the design and construction of formerly ubiquitous wood-frame residences.
Find more 2017 in Review wrap-ups here.
13 Comments
How hard would it have been to say one positive thing about Trump's first year?
Apparently it's impossible for people who have committed to an outmoded worldview.
@LITS4FormZ for example ?
Really?
Some folks, like "friend", just like being on the wrong side of history, I guess. USA Today is starting to realize that Trump is a great President though: https://www.usatoday.com/story...
Not one positive article was written about President Trump this year, yet Archinect directly profits from the endless list of job postings due to our lovely, resurgent economy. It's cool though #notmypresident right?
Don't forget the upcoming Infrastructure Bill. That ought to make 2018 a very good year indeed for A/E.
Don't worry, people like "friend" will find a way to turn a desperately needed plan to invest in American infrastructure into some collusion with Russia and China.
that USA today list above is meant as a joke, right? "Coal: Trump stopped Obama’s war on coal."
infrastructure investments have been on obama's and hillary's agenda for a long time, but they've always been disregarded as socialist programs that americans apparently didn't want. now it's suddenly trump's idea. also, after the tax bill, there's no money left to pay for big infrastructure items.
Another outmoded reactionary utterly failing to understand what the Trump Revolution is all about. Sad! Many such cases!
Ending industry killing regulations is "ending Obama's war on coal." President Obama had 8 years to put an infrastructure plan together, didn't happen. And no one in their right mind is against upgrading the countries tired, outdated and in some cases "3rd world" infrastructure. Again the entire point I'm trying to make is, why can't we get a couple of paragraphs about something positive the current president has done in a year end review?
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