The University of South Carolina recently announced a competition for a new design for the Moore School of Business. According to The State, "four Columbia firms and their national partners spent months of labor and an estimated $100,000 each hoping to win the project before the school abruptly canceled the bids in a two-sentence memo sent April 2."
The reason for the cancellation was that Darla Moore, the school's benefactor and board member, decided that the project should be given to the New York office of Raphael Viñoly Architects. Viñoly was one of the teams competing, but according to a source at the school, was not expected to win.
The University of South Carolina recently announced a competition for a new design for the Moore School of Business. According to The State, "four Columbia firms and their national partners spent months of labor and an estimated $100,000 each hoping to win the project before the school abruptly canceled the bids in a two-sentence memo sent April 2."
The reason for the cancellation was that Darla Moore, the school's benefactor and board member, decided that the project should be given to the New York office of Raphael Viñoly Architects. Viñoly was one of the teams competing, but according to a source at the school, was not expected to win.
The State
5 Comments
I think this would be an interesting case for a judge. If it were up to me, I would see that the school's benefactor reimburse the bidding architects for breaking protocol. although she is donating the architect's fee and gobs of money, she should be made aware of the consequences of her decision, and how it impacts the bidding architects financially.
a two sentence memo is also poor tact.
Arn't all competitions a fix and those spending hours working on them without getting the green lights from their friend in the freemasons hall beforehand are digging their own grave.
dot, I think that's an excellent proposal. It's reimbursing the firms for costs to date, which is fair by any account.
And if they had it all to do over again, they would. Architects are so ficking pathetic.
"We do a lot of work with the university," she added, "and I don't know if I should comment on what is fair or what's not fair. They have to do what's right for the university. Hopefully, next time we might be selected."
vV,
I have no doubt she has gotten projects similar to this type of strategies, favoritisms and less than transparent deals. This is how the game is played in most cases.
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A recent announcement for a lecture in Moore School of Business: Capitalism Without Guilt, Dr. Yaron Brook, president of the Ayn Rand Institute, speaks on "Capitalism Without Guilt".
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