What little new housing that's being built in this country right now is being closely geared to the ways the American economy -- and its society -- are changing. Fewer sprawling suburbs. More urban living.

And in Kansas City, Mo., a nod to demographics. Developers there are building homes that cater to a very specific changing family dynamic. — marketplace.publicradio.org

On the heels of a period of weakness in design activity, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) took a sudden upturn in August. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the August ABI score was 51.4, following a very weak score of 45.1 in July. — aia.org

The accelerating decline of suburban neighborhoods from Florida to California suggests that the contradictions of the system are finally catching up with it. The Great Recession is challenging not only the economics of homebuilding but also the essence of the suburban dream. Residential construction has slowed dramatically, and yet there remains a massive oversupply of single-family houses, especially on large lots. — places.designobserver.com

Following a drop of almost a full point in June, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) fell again by more than a point in July. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the July ABI score was 45.1 – the steepest decline in billings since February 2010 – after a reading of 46.3 the previous month. — aia.org

Deltek's "Federal Architecture & Engineering Market Outlook, 2011-2016" report shows that while overall agency budgets are under tremendous pressure, policy initiatives that drive cost savings will create opportunities specifically for architecture and engineering firms, and provide modest federal market growth over the next five years. — marketwatch.com

Three in four landscape architecture firm leaders reported steady or improving billable hours and inquiries in the Q2 2011 American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Business Quarterly survey. The national survey findings reflect continuing optimism for recovery in a key sector of the design and construction industry. — asla.org

For years debate about cities has focused on the economic side — steps they are urged to take to attract capital, recruit new businesses, lure creative professionals.
But what about justice? — Citiwire.net

Construction of a $1-billion NFL stadium and a new wing of the Convention Center in downtown Los Angeles would dramatically increase the number of convention bookings while generating $22 million annually for the city, according to the findings of two reports commissioned by the project's developer. — latimes.com

As the third anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers approaches — the event that delivered the knockout punch to an already reeling U.S. economy — a trend is emerging that may have once seemed unthinkable. Firms are hiring again. — Architectural Record

Market conditions continued to improve for landscape architecture firms, with firm leaders reporting renewed optimism for billable hours, inquiries and hiring in the first quarter of 2011, according to an American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Business Quarterly survey. — lawnandlandscape.com

New home sales rose 11 percent in March from February to a seasonally adjusted rate of 300,000 homes. It was the first monthly increase since December. — Alex Veiga, Forbes

“The traditional model of the Western international practice has been to have a shop window in developing countries but with the work executed back at home,” Declan O’Carroll was quoted as saying. “We are looking at a much more fluid, unorthodox model.” — C.J. Hughes, Architectural Record

“The age of bling is over,” said Shuttleworth, who led the team at Norman Foster’s firm that designed the seven-year- old tower in the City of London financial district. He said it would never get off the ground today. “Money now drives everything, so if you can build something for half the price, you will,” he said. — bloomberg.com

GRADUATE education is the Detroit of higher learning. Most graduate programs in American universities produce a product for which there is no market (candidates for teaching positions that do not exist) and develop skills for which there is diminishing demand (research in subfields within subfields and publication in journals read by no one other than a few like-minded colleagues), all at a rapidly rising cost (sometimes well over $100,000 in student loans). — nytimes.com

The firm, which designed the Scottish Parliament building, has been hit in recent months by the departure of 80 staff from its Hong Kong office, as well as senior personnel from its US operations, amid reports of unrest over late payment of salaries. — The Construction Index