Designed by Brooks + Scarpa, the redevelopment would entail the renovation of site’s northern building and demolition of the southern building. That would make room for a new 15-story building with 323 residential units—32 of them reserved for moderate-income families—plus about 64,000 square feet of office space, 64,000 square feet of wholesale space, and roughly 10,000 square feet of event space. — Curbed LA
The city planning commission is now backing the planned redevelopment of the Southern California Flower Market in Downtown Los Angeles. "The materials and colors of the structures are intended to mimic the bright colors of flowers," Curbed reports. View full entry
Former planning director Michael LoGrande recently admitted to violating city ethics laws by lobbying planning department officials just months after leaving his job running the agency. — The Los Angeles Times
This week, the City of Los Angeles Ethics Commission voted to fine former Los Angeles City Planning director Michael LoGrande $281,250 for violating the city’s “revolving door” rules. The fine is the largest single penalty ever levied against a current or former city employee, according... View full entry
Topped by a glass pyramidal tower that infuses the interior with natural light, the Beth Sholom Synagogue in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania ranks as one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most striking architectural creations. Still, the preservation foundation that tends to the welfare of the 1959 synagogue is eager to raise its profile and reposition it as a cultural resource. — The Art Newspaper
An immersive installation blending various artistic disciplines is set to open on September 11 inside Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic mid-century Beth Sholom Synagogue in Elkins Park, PA. The Art Newspaper reports that the foundation tasked with the preservation of the building has "invited the artist... View full entry
The Transamerica Pyramid, San Francisco’s second-tallest building and an icon of the city’s financial might for four decades, is being marketed for sale for the first time.
“Right now, San Francisco has a very robust office real estate market,” Jay Orlandi, chief administrative officer at Transamerica, said in a statement. “We are exploring options for a possible 100% interest sale of the property, with Transamerica retaining naming and branding rights.”
— The San Francisco Chronicle
The 853-foot, William Pereira-designed pyramidal skyscraper reigned as San Francisco’s tallest tower for more than 30 years before it was dethroned by the Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects-designed Salesforce Tower in 2018. Built in 1972, the Brutalist-style Transamerica building features a... View full entry
The Board of Harbor Commissioners of Long Beach, California, awarded a $38.7 million, five-year engineering design services contract to architectural, engineering and consulting firm HDR to perform the final design for the $870 million Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility Program at the Port of Long Beach. The project will help streamline rail operations and reduce congestion at the port, which has the second-highest volume of container traffic in the U.S. — Construction Dive
The law has created a new agency with vast and wide-ranging powers to be in charge of coordinating and managing the entire operation. It will also receive all the funds raised by national and international subscriptions; manage all work to the immediate surroundings of the cathedral; establish training programmes for the restorers; [and] implement information programmes to educate the public about the conservation process. — The Art Newspaper
More details regarding the laws and governing structure that will oversee the reconstruction of the Norte Dame Cathedral in Paris have come to light. According to The Art Newspaper, French president Emmanuel Macron will be the sole official in charge of the rebuilding. Macron, according to... View full entry
Tougher building rules for skyscrapers have been drawn up by the City of London because of concerns that a high-rise, urban microclimate will generate winds capable of knocking over cyclists and pedestrians.
Developers will have to provide more comprehensive safety assessments of how proposed buildings will affect people on street level, with more robust testing of roadways and pavements using detailed scale models in wind tunnels and computer simulations.
— The Guardian
After a series of high-profile skyscraper design controversies, including documented incidents of pedestrians being knocked off their feet and cyclists being pushed sideways into the path of vehicles due to strong skyscraper-generated winds, London is moving to regulate the wind-driven... View full entry
The Basement Apartment Conversion Pilot Program provides eligible low- to middle-income homeowners living in East New York and Cypress Hills, Brooklyn with low or no-interest, or possible forgivable, loans to convert their basement or cellar into a safe, legal, and rentable apartment, based on altered building code legislation passed in February 2019. — NYC Housing Preservation & Development
With plenty of futuristic and architecturally diverse buildings to choose from, which of these world-famous designs has gained the title of the most popular on Instagram around the world?
We gathered research to find out the most Instagrammed skyscrapers in the world [...] we wanted to see what the total height of these Instagram photos would be in comparison to the height of the buildings themselves.
— Dublin Airport Central
With the looming presence social media has over the built environment, iconic buildings have never been easier to track down, especially as platforms like Instagram make high-profile architecture accessible at the press of a button. Dublin Airport Central recently conducted a... View full entry
With no photographic evidence of the theatre from when it first opened, Dr Arrighi and her team have scoured archival eyewitness accounts and architectural floor plans to recreate the theatre in the virtual world. — ABC Local
A group of researchers at University of Newcastle are working to recreate the Victoria Theatre, which opened in 1891. The effort is part of the Lost Theatres Project involving, 12 universities from across Australia and run by AusStage, a national performance database that provides open access to... View full entry
With only 400-some Wright structures still standing, surely these listings must erupt in bidding wars from eager buyers as soon as they hit the market, right?
Wrong. On the contrary, Wright homes tend to sit on the market for years. Often with numerous price cuts!
— Realtor.com
Owning a home designed by a famed architect may be a dream for many. However, what are some of the unforeseen factors that come with owning such a home? According to Adriana Velez from realtor.com, owning a Frank Lloyd Wright home comes with its fair share of obstacles. Velez explains, "for... View full entry
Prada Poole conceives the city of the future through what he calls “the three stages of a nonexistent architecture.” In this conception, the traditional city would, in successive transformations, morph into an immaterial city, without inertia, in which the solid buildings would be replaced by the accumulation of foam that would “appear and disappear, converge and disperse according to the different needs.” — MAS Context
Antonio Cobo examines the revolutionary work of Hippie Modernist architect and theorist Jose Miguel Prada Poole for Mas Context. View full entry
On August 14, 2019, the Dallas City Council unanimously approved a resolution that temporarily halts the use of public funds on any further demolitions in Tenth Street—an important move given that to date, at least 70 of the district’s 260 homes have been demolished. Thanks to a broad-based coalition effort bolstered by the media attention of the 11 Most listing, this vote removes the immediate threat to the neighborhood and helps advance the cause. — Saving Places
Chicago-based Studio Gang architects, Aurora Capital Associates, and William Gottlieb Real Estate have completed work on 40 Tenth Avenue, a 10-story, 160,000-square-foot, prismatic boutique office building created for New York City’s Meatpacking District. Image courtesy of Studio... View full entry
Workers are taking down Chernobyl's "sarcophagus," once meant to keep the reactor's radioactive materials locked inside, before it falls on its own accord.
The dismantling will begin after the New Shelter Containment (NSC) is in full working operation. Currently, the NSC controls part of the confinement. Earlier this year, the European Union handed off control of the NSC to Ukraine.
— Popular Mechanics
The steel and concrete containment structure, hastily erected following the nuclear disaster at the Chernobyl power plant in 1986, is being replaced by internationally funded and coordinated effort. The new shelter, a €1.5 billion complex considered to be the largest work of movable... View full entry