Unesco, which for too long has been silent on the growing environmental threat to Venice and its evident mismanagement, as revealed by the exposure of massive corruption in the construction of its flood barriers, has at last shown its teeth. At the meeting of its World Heritage Committee in Doha this June it passed important resolutions that show that it intends to call the Italian government to account and put Venice on its World Heritage at Risk list if it is not satisfied. — theartnewspaper.com

On Sept. 16, Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell signed three bills that make it a misdemeanor (punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a maximum $1,000 fine) to sit or lie on sidewalks in the bustling tourist district of Waikiki and outlaw relieving oneself in public islandwide.

Homeless advocates say the new laws unfairly target Hawaii’s most vulnerable residents, especially since Waikiki has only one 24-hour public restroom in the crowded district. — Al Jazeera

Spanning dozens of acres, the structures provided everything the park staff and visitors would need: a gas station, restaurant, community building, maintenance shop, housing, even a two-room elementary school. The National Park Service entrusted the design to prominent architects Richard Neutra and Robert Alexander ahead of the agency’s 50th birthday, and it’s the only project of theirs still standing within the Park Service. — seattlepi.com

Ricketts got most of what he wanted. Alderman Tunney was again involved in the negotiations and he said the mayor’s office essentially decided that “one of the most generous sign packages ever” was a reasonable trade-off for the Rickettses’ willingness to spend their own money. He added ruefully: “There will be advertisements coming out of everywhere. We will have our own little Times Square right here at the corner of Clark and Addison.” — NYT

We need to make sure we strike the proper balance between public safety and burdensome regulatory practices so that Indiana's economy can flourish and citizens can prosper - Nicholas Rhoad

Rhoad is executive director of the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency, an umbrella agency for 38 state boards, commissions and committees that oversee more than 240 types of licenses, permits and certifications between them. — Indianapolis Business Journal Online

The aptly named Quake Column is a knurled pillar of 3-D printed concrete that combines an ancient Incan masonry technique with state-of-the-art manufacturing tools to create a structure that can withstand seismic shocks without mortar or rebar. [...]

It’s an interesting proof of concept, but utilizing a 3-D printer, rather than traditional ceramic manufacturing technique also unlocked a host of other advantages. — wired.com

A few minutes after sitting down to talk with Renzo Piano in his large, airy Paris studio Tuesday, I asked the architect about the progress of the film museum he is designing for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Wilshire Boulevard.

"The academy?" he asked. "Ha. The academy is a good story.

"Look, I know you don't like that scheme," referring to my recent coverage of the design.

"I don't think it will be that bad. Actually, I'm struggling to do something good." — latimes.com

Many major U.S. coastal cities will face a huge surge in the number of tidal floods they experience as sea levels rise due to climate change, a new report has warned. The study, conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), covered 52 cities on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, from Portland, Maine, to Freeport, Texas, and predicts a dramatic increase in flooding linked to high tides over the next few decades. — Al Jazeera

The city’s board of supervisors voted to legalize and regulate short-term stays through a controversial piece of legislation that has been two years in the making [...]

The key changes include a limit on non-hosted rentals for up to 90 days per year. [...]

[The hosts will] also have to pay the city’s hotel taxes. They — not Airbnb — are responsible for certifying that they’re only hosting 90 days a year and for keeping records that prove this. — techcrunch.com

When Steve Jobs designed a new headquarters for Pixar, he obsessed over ways to structure the atrium, and even where to locate the bathrooms, so that serendipitous personal encounters would occur. Among his last creations was the plan for Apple’s new signature headquarters, a circle with rings of open workspaces surrounding a central courtyard. — Walter Isaacson, Linkedin.com