The billionaire real estate developer whose support for President Trump sparked calls for a consumer boycott is also behind one of the flashiest redevelopment projects coming to downtown Los Angeles. — The Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times points out that Stephen M. Ross, the controversial real estate developer and investor behind Related Companies, luxury gyms Equinox and SoulCycle, and other business interests, is also a driving force behind The Grand, a Frank Gehry-designed mega-project slated for... View full entry
Co-Arc International Architects director Catharine Atkins and architect Malika Walele are the leading women behind the 55-story building on Maude Street, which was designed by Co-Arc’s emeritus partner, Francois Pienaar. — TimesLIVE
In Sandton, Johannesburg stands the Leonardo, Africa's tallest building. Designed by the team of Co-Arc International Architects, the building stands at 55-stories tall and is set to be completed this year. Besides the record-breaking height of the building, there's another aspect to this... View full entry
All were built after World War II to cheaply house the masses in a way that jived with communist ideology. Near-identical two- and three-bedroom apartments included amenities like central heat, private bathrooms, and elevators. Standardization and mass production were paramount, though idiosyncrasies—a pop of color here, a geometric motif there—inevitably crept in. — Wired
David Navarro and Martyna Sobecka, the dynamic duo that make up the independent publisher/design studio Zupagrafika have trekked the Eastern Bloc in an effort to capture its hidden treasures. Their adventure has been published in a book called Eastern Blocks. "Eastern Blocks is a... View full entry
The head of the Vatican’s extensive gardens has announced an initiative, already underway, to totally eliminate the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. — Aleteia
The use of chemical substances at the 37-acre Vatican Gardens has fallen by 96-percent since an effort to reduce the use of these toxic substances was started back in 2017. "Under the initiative, the Vatican Gardens has adopted the use of organic products to eliminate destructive insects... View full entry
The series served as an introduction to Universal Design, described the social model versus the medical model of Disability, and shared the specific needs and design strategies to accommodate both the Deaf/HoH as well as the Autistic and Neurodivergent communities. This series initiated a conversation reaching across Disabled communities, and demonstrates that while different Disabled communities’ needs may be different, the design solutions are often incredibly similar. — OLIN Labs
With the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act approaching, discussions that examine where design and accessibility intersect have increased in frequency. In June 2019, for example, OLIN Labs' hosted a lecture series covering a range of topics relating to the interconnected... View full entry
A proposed dormitory block headed to Downtown Berkeley has a few people scratching their heads. The beguiling, 254-bed student housing project, known as the Enclave and designed by Kirk E. Peterson & Associates, will bring 55 dormitory units to a site located just across from Berkeley's... View full entry
Last week, we received news of Kanye's plans to "build a new type of home" that he believes will separate barriers between the rich, middle-class, and the poor. Built on his 300 acres of land in Calabasas, CA, the ambitious egalitarian now seems to have left out one crucial step in the building... View full entry
A widespread over-supply of parking in metro Boston residential developments is driving up the cost of housing and may encourage people to own cars who otherwise would not, according to a new study by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council. — CommonWealth
What’s the true cost of parking? In 2014, Sarah Goodyear wrote a piece for CityLab titled "How Parking Spaces are Eating Our Cities Alive" that provides a framework for answering the question. In her article, Goodyear discusses how the average parking space takes up about 300 square feet, or... View full entry
Post-Meier, the AIA has centered its efforts to stop sexual harassment by affirming good behavior in the profession. It’s using positive reinforcement to address sexual harassment and discrimination by saying the best work emerges from firms that embody equitable practices, and using that as the foundation of its strategy to incentivize better behavior. — Curbed
Curbed's Diana Budds takes a deep dive into the efforts being undertaken within the architecture community to eradicate sexual harassment in the workplace in the wake of the #MeToo movement. According to the report, although the American Institute of Architects (AIA) has worked to update its... View full entry
For his first feature, Antonio Pacheco (Archinect’s new Managing Editor) takes readers Inside the Plan to Save LA’s Southwest Museum, since a 2003 merger, known as the Autry Museum of the American West. Plus, Katherine Guimapang chatted with Jennifer Bonner about the power of alternative... View full entry
Emily Helen Butterfield, born August 4, 1884, was the first licensed woman architect in Michigan. Butterfield grew up in Detroit with a love of watercolor painting, and eventually studied architecture at Syracuse University, where she was a founding member of the Alpha Gamma Delta sorority... View full entry
A year ago, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals told Boise that it’s unconstitutional to stop the homeless from sleeping in public spaces if there’s not enough shelter available for them. Now Boise wants the U.S. Supreme Court to have a look at that decision. — The Los Angeles Times
A recent Los Angeles Times opinion piece takes a look at the ongoing legal battle regarding whether criminalizing homelessness constitutes "cruel and unusual punishment" under the United States Constitution. Two constitutional lawyers, Theane Evangelis and Theodore B. Olson, discuss the... View full entry
In particular, the new numbers confirm that there is a major slowdown underway in the creation of jobs making things: manufacturing, mining and construction.
Those “goods-producing” sectors, as Labor Department classifications call them, added an average of 58,000 jobs a month in 2018. That is now down to 23,000 a month thus far in 2019 — and a mere 15,000 in July.
— The New York Times
The New York Times reports that as most economic figures remain steady, a look at some of the "fine print" of recent economic data might be cause for concern, particularly within the manufacturing and construction sectors, which are seeing lagging job growth. According to The New York... View full entry
Central Park Tower, aka 217 West 57th Street, has surpassed the 1,450-foot-tall Willis Tower (née Sears Tower) to claim the title of highest roof in the Western Hemisphere. The Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill-designed supertall is being developed by Extell and will soon top-out at 1,550 feet tall over Billionaires’ Row. — New York YIMBY
Once the world's tallest building from 1974 to 1996, the 1,450-foot-tall Willis Tower in Chicago is, little by little, kicked out from top placements in various height-record categories by the new kids on blocks all over the world. After losing the overall height crown to the twin Petronas Towers... View full entry
In his book Four Walls and a Roof – The Complex Nature of a Simple Profession, Reinier de Graaf paints an honest picture of what it is like to work as an architect today. De Graaf, who is a partner at OMA and director of AMO, the office’s think tank, provides engaging stories about the banal, everyday reality of working for an acclaimed firm. — Failed Architecture
When pursuing a life of architecture, it's hard not to become jaded by the peculiarities of the profession. A career path not for the faint of heart: architects often dream of using their skills to "change the world." However, as mystical and alluring the profession may appear to be, architects... View full entry