A new report from the International Code Council ranks the top commercial building code violations in a variety of construction trades. The 2019 Common Code Noncompliance Survey Report also details the reasons behind the violations. — Construction Dive
Construction Dive lists the top five causes for issues, according to inspectors as: Workers that don't follow the manufacturer’s instructions.A contractor’s lack of code knowledge. Cost-cutting, such as using substandard building materials that don’t meet local requirements.A lack of... View full entry
On Tuesday night, the Marciano Art Foundation laid off nearly six dozen visitor services employees who had been attempting to unionize. The museum then issued a public statement saying that the space would be “closed to the public until further notice.” By Wednesday, the museum had issued yet another statement: There are “no present plans to reopen.”
Staffers who had announced their intent to unionize decried the shutdown as an illegal union-busting scheme.
— The Los Angeles Times
The Marciano Art Foundation debuted in 2017 and was designed by wHY within a building originally designed by storied Los Angeles architect Millard Sheets. Describing the abrupt closure, Carolina Miranda writes in The Los Angeles Times, "The Marciano situation has also highlighted... View full entry
Different Tomorrows: Design Futures Beyond the Bauhaus [...] brought together scholars, artists, activists and designers to challenge the Bauhaus as the movement of record with discussions related to gender, race and global perspectives.
Organized by graduate Media Design Practices Department Associate Professor Sean Donahue and Professor Elizabeth Chin, the series included a reading room, [...] projects questioning the Bauhaus legacy, and a docent tour of the Getty Center’s Bauhaus archives.
— ArtCenter College of Design
A thoughtful interview with Elizabeth Chin and Sean Donahue, the two ArtCenter College of Design-based organizers behind Different Tomorrows: Design Futures Beyond the Bauhaus reveals a bevy of interesting and thought-provoking connections between the Bauhaus and a variety of topics and... View full entry
A recent report in Bloomberg News detailing accusations that Safdie Architects' much-Instagrammed Jewel Changi Airport design had been lifted from a proposed expansion to Doha's Hamad International Airport highlights the changing status of airport design. The accusation was quickly... View full entry
Los Angeles city prosecutors are calling for an unfinished mega-mansion in Bel-Air to be torn down to its foundation, the latest twist in the saga over a colossal building at the center of criminal charges, court battles and an FBI investigation.
[...] last week, City Atty. Mike Feuer and his prosecutors stepped up their demands, saying that a structural engineer had found that key structures supporting the building were deficient.
— Los Angeles Times
"Hadid pleaded no contest two years ago to criminal charges tied to the mammoth, unfinished building, which prosecutors said was much bigger than city rules allowed and included bedrooms, decks and even an IMAX theater that the city said were never approved," reports the Los Angeles Times. Calls... View full entry
With Seattle's housing costs increasingly out of reach, it's no surprise that Amazon, one of Seattle's largest employers, is dabbling in housing issues itself. According to a recent article by Aria Bendix of Business Insider, Amazon is following through in a surprising way: By building a homeless... View full entry
In case you haven't checked out Archinect's Pinterest boards in a while, we have compiled ten recently pinned images from outstanding projects on various Archinect Firm and People profiles. (Tip: use the handy FOLLOW feature to easily keep up-to-date with all your favorite Archinect... View full entry
The National Trust and its partners have led advocacy efforts to increase funding for five competitive grant programs: the African American Civil Rights Grant Program, the Underrepresented Community Grant Program, the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Grant Program, Save America’s Treasures, and the Historic Revitalization Subgrant Program. In total, these competitive grant programs received $41 million in FY 2019. — Saving Places
The National Trust for Historic Preservation breaks down some of the recently expanded funding opportunities that have taken shape at the federal level earmarked for the preservation of diverse and inclusive built heritage. Highlighted programs include the African American Civil Rights... View full entry
We've seen some of pop culture's most prominent figures break into architecture in recent years. There was Brad Pitt's "informal apprenticeship" with Frank Gehry and his subsequent Make It Right Foundation. We have Kanye West, and his exploratory activities within the field of affordable housing... View full entry
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has issued a rebuke of President Donald Trump's decision to formally withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement. Earlier this week, the American government initiated its withdrawal from the accord, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announcing that... View full entry
Alexico Group, the development firm behind Tribeca’s 60-storey “Jenga Tower”, a Herzog & de Meuron-designed residential high-rise at 56 Leonard Street, announced that it will start installing a public sculpture by Anish Kapoor commissioned specifically for the building in the second week of November. — The Art Newspaper
Kapoor's shiny 56 Leonard bladder — resembling a smaller, squashed version of his Chicago "The Bean" landmark — made quite a splash in early renderings for the Jenga-like Manhattan condo tower in 2008, but overcoming various fabrication obstacles has not been easy and thus pushed... View full entry
In the weeks following the much-anticipated opening of the Steven Holl Architects-designed Hunters Point Library in Queens, New York City, much of the public discourse regarding the structure has focused on a collection of accessibility and design oversights embodied by the library's design... View full entry
the L.A. City Planning Department (DCP) released its full draft Downtown Community Plan, called DTLA 2040. Once approved, the plan would eliminate parking requirements for all of downtown Los Angeles.
DCP has been working on the new DTLA 2040 plan since 2014. It is the first city community plan update that incorporates the city’s new modular planning code, developed under re:code LA
— Streetsblog
Under the proposed plan, up to 60-percent of Downtown Los Angeles would be eligible for residential uses, up from just 33-percent today. The planning document states: “By the year 2040, Downtown will include 125,000 new residents, in addition to 55,000 new jobs — representing 20% of the... View full entry
A huge stream of water visible from miles away gushed from the tiered west pyramid facade of One Liberty Place early Sunday morning, soaking the Center City Philadelphia sidewalk below.
Identified later by city officials as part of an ill-prepared fire system test, the liquid continued pouring out for approximately five minutes before coming to an abrupt stop.
— Billy Penn
According to Billy Penn, the spill was due to testing of the building's fire protection systems, required annually for certification. A spokesperson with the Philadelphia Fire Department explained that "newer buildings are equipped with special drainage systems that pull off most of the... View full entry
With support from the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance’s Innovation Fund, [Vancouer] collaborated closely with the building industry and its partners, and, in 2016, Vancouver’s City Council approved a Zero Emissions Building (ZEB) plan. That plan launched a bold commitment to make near-zero emissions homes and buildings the new normal in Vancouver by 2030. Few cities had yet gone that far. — Fast Company
Writing in Fast Company, Sean Pander, green building manager for the city of Vancouver, lays out the multi-faceted approach the Terminal City has taken to chart a new course with regards to carbon emissions generated by the city’s buildings. The effort, according to Pander, involved... View full entry
