University of Arkansas′ Big-Box Bacalaureate
Walmart on Campus in Arkansas (Photo courtesy Walter Lang)
Walmart has been trying to expand into cities like New York and Washington, D.C. for a while now sparking debate about big box retail in urban centers along the way. To find space, Walmart will likely have to abandon the supercenter in favor of a more petite space, but slimming down to a mere 3,500 square feet sounds pretty extreme.
Solar Decathlon Booted From the National Mall?
Setting up shop on the National Mall in 2009 (Annie Coghill/Solar Decathlon)
The U.S. Department of Energy, sponsor of the prestigious Solar Decathlon — devised to encourage ideas for a more cost-effective, energy-efficient solar house— has announced mid way through this year’s student design competition that they will be abandoning post on the National Mall, where the previous four events have been held since 2002. 20 teams totaling more than 1,000 students have been developing their site-specific entries for over a year, and the news comes as a huge disappointment, and inconvenience. Some have threatened to drop out. Others are working to reverse the decision before a new site is named.
And the Water Came Rushing In
Brisbane underwater (Courtesy ABC AU)
The water-logged city of Brisbane, Australia continues its massive clean up effort after January floodwaters devastated the region. ABC Australia, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that is, has assembled two amazing sets (here and here) of interactive before and after photography showing just how bad the flood event really was. Before and after aerial photography for the entire city is posted online at NearMap.
[ Via Information Aesthetics. ]
Helsinki Asks for a Guggenheim
Central Railway Station in Helsinki (Photo courtesy Paul Allais/flickr, additions BK/archpaper)
The Guggenheim could be headed to the land of a thousand lakes. Helsinki’s Mayor Jussi Pajunen announced today that the city is commissioning the venerable museum to conduct a concept and development study to be completed by the end of the year to determine the potential museum’s economic impact and mission.
St. Louis Throws Car-Oriented Planning to the Curb
The City of St. Louis in 1912
Like many cities around the country, St. Louis is in search of a more sustainable, more dense city that promotes walkability and public transit. With the help of $150,000 in stimulus funds, St. Louis will soon be evaluating its zoning codes to affect such land-use changes in unincorporated areas around the county. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch described plans to densify the county focusing on redeveloping currently built-up areas.
Broadly Speaking, Old Veil, New Twist
American Cement Company in Los Angeles (Courtesy kurious kite / Flickr)
The recent unveiling of Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s Broad Art Foundation has been generating a lot of buzz in the past couple weeks. The defining architectural element of the museum is its porous structural concrete veil which the architects hope will create an interplay between interior and exterior spaces. The Broad’s concrete skin won’t be Los Angeles’ first, however. Sitting just two miles away on Wilshire Boulevard, the American Cement Building features a mid-century veil of its own.
Quick Clicks> Lost, Super, Speed, Parking
Hotel Grand Prospect rendering (Courtesy Curbed)
Parking Slope. A parking lot in Park Slope, Brooklyn could soon sprout an 11-story, 166-room hotel designed by Doban Architecture (pictured above). Curbed stopped by a community meeting last Thursday and reports Hotel Grand Prospect has extended the neighborhood an olive branch in the form of a 400-car parking garage which has won over some community members. The project is still in its early phases and traffic and environmental studies have yet to be completed. (More at Curbed.)
Peering into Architecture′s Crystal Ball
As architecture emerges from the depths of recession, the future remains uncertain. The latest covers of Architectural Record and Architect magazine have both emblazoned their covers with such deep questions as “What Now?” and “What’s Next?” While the magazines may be inquiring into the future of architecture, with the recent departure of Robert Ivy from Record and ensuing transition, one must wonder if the questions are more applicable to the magazines themselves.
Quick Clicks: Ruination, Context, Issues, Movement, Resolutions
Obelisk in Central Park (Courtesy Thom Watson/Flickr)
[ Quick Clicks> A hand-selected tour of links from around the world. ]
Ruination. Mayor Bloomberg received an angry letter in the mail last week from Zahi Hawass, the secretary general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities. According to the NY Times, Hawass is threatening to take back the circa-1500 B.C. monument if the city doesn’t properly care for the inscribed hieroglyphics. Heavily eroded, the obelisk was a gifted to the United States in 1869 to celebrate the completion of the Suez Canal.
Robert Moses Goes to the Opera
Robert Moses in 1938 (Courtesy CUNY)
This Saturday, January 15, the Knickerbocker Chamber Orchestra will lift their bows and the ghost of Robert Moses will flood the World Financial Center Winter Garden. Gary S. Fagin composed Robert Moses Astride New York from which the music will be drawn. A vocal performance by Rinde Eckert will accompany the score, but best of all, it’s free.
Unveiled> Henning Larsen in Nigeria
Rendering of the Calabar International Conference Center in Nigeria (Courtesy Henning Larsen)
Danish architects Henning Larsen have designed a convention center for a major city in Nigeria. Consisting of four volumes resembling sculptural rocks atop a plinth, the Calabar International Conference Center offers flexible space that can accommodate growing conference activity in the city as well as offer the community cultural space for concerts, festivals, and exhibitions. Check out a couple more renderings after the jump.
One Year In: Five Healthful Homes for Haiti
Breathe House, First Place (Courtesy Archive)
One year ago, a catastrophic earthquake tore through Haiti killing 200,000 people. Today, some progress has been made to return to normality but a Goliath mountain of rubble that was once Port au Prince still must be cleared and housing built for the vast population living in ruins and tents.
Toward that end, ARCHIVE, Architecture for Health in Vulnerable Environments, has announced the winners of a housing competition and will build five houses that promote healthy living in Haiti this year. Winners from around the world paid special attention to limit the transmission of tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, the leading deadly diseases in the country.
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