“I’ve seen Kelly Ripa there. Two little kids were playing with Legos on the treadmill next to her, and there was nobody else.” — NYT

"The changes to the plans...were not enough to assuage the doubts the Commission had the first time around (although most of the commissioners did agree that significant improvements had been made). The alternations to the plans included stretching the double hung windows vertically in order to give the building less of a squat look, raising the base by six feet...and moving the tower forward slightly." — Curbed NY

The global engineering firm envisions a "smart" building that will plug into "smart" urban infrastructure and cater to an increasingly dense and technology-savvy urban population. — planetizen.com

Thom Mayne of the Los Angeles firm Morphosis Architects wants to inspire curiosity about science, the natural world and technology. And he succeeds. The Perot’s architecture evokes wonder, the way ancient ruins, animal skeletons or petroglyphs do.

A lot of people wish wilfully spectacular architecture like the Perot’s would die off. Mayne, who recently received the American Institute of Architects’ Gold Medal, shows us what it can do at its best. — bloomberg.com

The new Cathedral of the Northern Lights, situated in the Norwegian town of Alta over 300 miles north of the Arctic Circle, has just been inaugurated by the Crown Princess of Norway, Mette-Marit. The 154-foot-high cathedral, designed by Link Arkitektur in collaboration with schmidt hammer lassen architects and Haldde Arkitekter Inc., is perceived as a symbol and an architectural landmark for the entire area. — bustler.net

Designed by the legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1955 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991, the Gerald B. and Beverley Tonkens House was listed for the first time ever this week, with an asking price of $1.788M. — curbed.com

Contrary to the unfortunately all too typical scenario that finds large western companies exploiting the inexpensive, and often unethical, labor practices in China, at Lafayette 148 the architects are dependent upon but also develop the local tradition. The product is not, however, exported for profit but rather stays on site. In fact, this mode of fabrication could only occur in a situation such as the one in Shantou. — Domus

Last time around the focus was Southern California's art history; now homegrown architecture is getting its time in the sun. Getty Trust leaders are announcing Monday the final roster of exhibition and event partners in its Pacific Standard Time spinoff, Pacific Standard Time Presents: Modern Architecture in Southern California, slated to run April through July. — latimes.com

Results have just been announced in the international architectural competition "Piraeus Cultural Coast - Museum of Underwater Antiquities" in Piraeus, the ancient Greek port city right outside of Athens.

The design proposal by Los Angeles firm Platform for Architecture + Research (PAR), in collaboration with ARUP, didn't quite make it among the top prize winners, but we're excited to feature it here. — bustler.net

Scientists and engineers from the Faculty of Ocean Engineering and Ship Technology at Gdansk University in Poland have teamed up with other Polish scientific and R&D institutions to come up with a landmark underwater hotel.

The Water Discus Underwater Hotel, as it is called, may not be the first but plans for the Dubai venue call for the biggest site of its kind. — DesignBuild Source

The residential development District//S in Beirut, Lebanon has been awarded the Francis Tibbalds Prize for best Practice Project at the UK's National Urban Design Awards 2013. The prize was presented to the designers of the project, London-based Allies and Morrison Architects, at a ceremony held last night at London’s Royal Overseas League. — bustler.net

One very fascinating runner-up for New York's MoMA PS1 YAP is MY HAIR IS AT MOMA PS1 by TempAgency, a collaboration between the two individual offices Kutonotuk (Leena Cho, Matthew Jull) and mcdowellespinosa (Rychiee Espinosa, Seth McDowell). — bustler.net

Yesterday we published a first image of OMA's latest competition win, the Essence Financial Building in Shenzhen. Here is the project now in more detail. — bustler.net

Luxury fashion will meet Roman architecture as Italian fashion house Fendi has pledged €2.1 million to restore five of Rome’s beloved fountains, including the iconic Trevi Fountain.

Fendi, founded in Rome in the 1920s, is now part of French luxury giant LVMH. The fashion house opted to invest in restoring one of Rome’s architectural treasures due to a self-described “deep bond with the Eternal City.” — DesignBuild Source