Mia Lehrer has been nominated as the L.A. Department of Water and Power Commissioner by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. Her extensive expertise, spanning nearly four decades, will help the city in its plans towards sustainability, planning, and resiliency efforts. A photo of Mia Lehrer's... View full entry
At the end of 2019, Second Home Hollywood opened its doors to the Los Angeles area as a remedy for flipping the script on co-working spaces and a community-driven work environment. Designed by the Madrid-based studio SelgasCano, its fresh take on integrating the indoor-outdoor aesthetic... View full entry
Predicting the future of cities is risky, especially if one heeds the words of the American baseball legend, Yogi Berra, that “the future ain’t what it used to be”.
In the period since the start of the pandemic it might seem as if everything is different, but in the long term, I would suggest that rather than changing anything, it has merely hastened and magnified trends that were already apparent before the virus struck.
— The Guardian
In his opinion piece for The Guardian, architect Norman Foster ponders how current and past pandemics have influenced and will continue to shape the infrastructure, and subsequently culture, of our cities. Foster briefly touches on a number of trendy topics, including electric vehicles, ride... View full entry
In response to the idea of the “city of tomorrow,” one that will become carbon neutral by 2050, French architecture firm Rescubika created a proposal for a 2,418-foot tower on Roosevelt Island. With wood construction materials, 36 wind turbines, 8,300 shrubs, 1,600 tress, 83,000 square feet of plant walls, and nearly 23,000 square feet of solar panels, it would be the world’s tallest “carbon sink” tower–one that absorbs more CO2 than it releases. — 6sqft
2020 has brought an increase in activism as the public reached its final tipping point from the racial and social injustices happening across the nation. With the inexcusable deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain, and others caused by police brutality, individuals... View full entry
In a recent interview with Boston's NPR station, WBUR, 91-year old architect Frank Gehry discussed his thoughts and perspectives on the "complicated" Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial. With the dedication ceremony that took place on Sept 17th, the famed architect has expressed much irritation... View full entry
Heatherwick Studio together with Earthprise and a team of experienced local waterfront and biodiversity specialists have unveiled The Cove, a new vision for San Francisco's Piers 30-32. The part of the bay has been closed for over 36 years due to a devastating fire that decimated the original... View full entry
There have been countless unknowns surrounding LACMA’s vast rebuilding project: the nature of the landscaping, whether the underside of the massive concrete structure would feel like a pleasant, shady spot or an oppressive freeway underpass, where the museum’s playful Alexander Calder fountain sculpture might go.
The biggest question mark has hovered over the form and nature of the galleries...
— Los Angeles Times
With the fate of Los Angeles' beloved LACMA museum making headlines since Swiss architect Peter Zumthor received the bid, public response to its redesign has been primarily negative and controversial. With construction well underway despite the recent pandemic, images of museum... View full entry
What are architects and urban planners foreseeing as people cautiously gather? Streets “curated” for various uses and dynamic cityscapes that both advance wellness and knit communities together. [...]
Architects and other designers who have devoted efforts to creating public places that encourage gathering and sociability now say their task is to make congregating in these spaces possible again — and perhaps to achieve some community-enhancing goals in the process.
— The New York Times
SOM's design for Jiuzhou Bay—a new mixed-use neighborhood located along the Pearl River Delta in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province—will transform the waterfront of the Greater Bay Area’s burgeoning tech hub and create a blueprint for future development in China. The low-carbon community... View full entry
According to Infrastructure, Technology and Mayors' Priorities for confronting a Health, Economic and Societal Crisis, a new U.S. conference of Mayors (USCM) study conducted in partnership with Siemens USA by The Harris Poll, the majority of mayors believe that investing in infrastructure is... View full entry
The 2020 International Housing Design student competition has announced its winning entries. The HERE+NOW: A House for the 21st Century: 2020 Student Design Competition, led by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) in collaboration with Custom Residential Architects... View full entry
Progress on Los Angeles's very own aerial tramway has made some headway as the City of LA's Department of Recreation and Parks prepares a feasibility study on the project. Intending to provide increased access to Griffith Park and alleviate urban congestion, the Aerial Transit System for Griffith... View full entry
Supporters saw [SB 1122] as a way to ease California’s affordability problems that most economists blame on a lack of supply that has forced people to bid up home prices and rents to find a place to live. [...]
But like previous efforts to upend California zoning rules, SB 1120 faced pushback from community groups concerned it would ruin single-family neighborhoods, making them into denser places with too much noise and traffic.
— The Los Angeles Times
Another attempt to bring statewide housing reforms to California's zoning code has failed after a last-ditch effort to pass a bill that would allow homeowners to build two units per lot fell short. SB 1122 was created as response to the failure of the recent SB 50 densification plan, which... View full entry
MVRDV and The Why Factory at TU Delft have announced the release of Le Grand Puzzle, a book showcasing the result of intensive research of Marseille. The project was made from 2018 to the beginning of 2020 by an international team of architects and urbanists from MVRDV and The Why Factory in... View full entry
