Between now and next fall, Mr. Holl’s office will dedicate five major arts projects in the United States. In the same period, dozens of new cultural commissions will open around the world, many by the biggest names in the architectural business, including David Adjaye, Herzog & de Meuron, Rem Koolhaas/OMA, Thomas Heatherwick, Fumihiko Maki, Mecanoo, and Robert A. M. Stern. — NYT

Now, after more than five flush years, oil prices are in a prolonged slump, the flow of workers has reversed [...] But Williston believes it can build something more enduring. [...]

The city used its newfound wealth to build a $70-million high school, a $68-million recreation center, and new water and sewer systems. It renovated Main Street and created a city position for someone to write parking tickets. Highways have been widened, and an airport is under development. — latimes.com

Seventy years after the end of the war, Berlin is finally filling the last gaps left by Allied bombs, which destroyed more than two-thirds of the buildings in the city center. Architects say the construction boom offers Berlin a chance to make up for decades of bad planning and mediocre architecture. “This is a new time in Berlin,” says Libeskind [...]. “It’s one of the great cities of the world, and we expect it to compete. We don’t expect it to be some backwater.” — bloomberg.com

In 2010, the Fondazione di Venezia—a well-endowed and entrepreneurial foundation with its historic roots in Italy’s regional banking system—launched an architectural competition for a cluster of buildings in the centre of Mestre, one of the mainland urban areas of Venice. [...]

The three accompanying essays, by Marco De Michelis, Aaron Betsky and M9 architect Matthias Sauerbruch, are less granular. They provide an overview of and perspectives on the museum-building boom [...]. — theartnewspaper.com

Seventeen years ago, when Kazakhstan moved its capital here, the city of Astana didn’t even exist. [...]

But after years of rapid economic growth fueled by Kazakhstan’s oil and gas riches, the skyline of Astana [...] is now punctuated by gleaming skyscrapers and Western-style shopping malls. The city has become a hotbed for architectural experimentation, attracting big names like Norman Foster and Manfredi Nicoletti who have transformed it into what locals now call “Manhattan on the Steppe.” — nytimes.com

The Spanish region of Valencia has been called the "California of Spain" for its gorgeous Mediterranean coastline and modern architecture.

But now Valencia epitomizes the worst of Spain's problems. It had the country's most inflated property market and the biggest crash. Its landscape is littered with empty and half-finished buildings. — npr.org

Williston used to build about five new homes a year. This year, Williston built 2,000 new homes. Next year, they're aiming for 4,000.

SHAWN WENKO: This is similar to the California gold rush.

Shawn Wenko is the Workforce Development Coordinator for the city of Williston. He shows me a dozens of ceremonial "ground breaking" shovels stacked in the corner of the office. He says they used to make special shovels for every groundbreaking, but they've had to go generic because of all the projects. — marketplace.publicradio.org