The Architect Newswire is an aggregation of news from media outlets around the world, intended to keep you abreast of all of the industry’s important developments. The stories we feature are not reported, edited, or fact-checked by Architect’s staff.
THE BALTIMORE SUN
Maryland looks to land FBI HQ
Government officials in Maryland are working hard to make sure that a new $1.2 billion FBI headquarters will be located in the state—if and when the federal agency decides to vacate its trouble-prone Washington, D.C. offices. John Fritze reports that a recent Senate Environment and Public Works Committee resolution stipulates that a new complex must be at least 55 acres in size and located within two miles of a Metro station and two-and-a-half miles of the Washington Beltway. “I'm very bullish on this being located in Maryland,” Sen. Ben Cardin, D–Md., says. “If you look around the Beltway, you'll find that there are not many 55-acre sites,” says David Ianucci, Prince George’s County, Md., economic development aide. “We are essentially the last guy standing when it comes to having large acreages at a Metro station.”
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THE HUNTSVILLE TIMES (AL)
Preservationists vs. preservationists
Members of the Alabama Historical Commission have put the Huntsville Historic Preservation Commission on notice. Steve Doyle reports that recent actions by the local body demonstrate a “lack of understanding of due process and lack of familiarity with your own guidelines ... resulting in decision making based on personal opinions,” according to a letter between the commissions. It’s the opinion of the state commission that Huntsville should have professionally trained staff available to prevent some seemingly uninformed recent decisions. “There's just not another city of like size that doesn't provide professional planning staff support at the meetings,” says deputy state preservation officer Elizabeth Ann Brown.
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BOULDER DAILY CAMERA (CO)
Proposing green neighborhood in Colorado
Denver-based architect and planner Michael Tavel, AIA, is designing a New Urbanist community for an 80-acre site west of Erie, Colo. John Aguilar reports that property owner Susan Weems’s late husband purchased the property in 1960. “Sue wants to do something that is a legacy and a gift to the natural environment,” Tavel says. “She wants the area to be coherent and walkable and have communities be connected to each other.” The proposed site straddles several governmental jurisdictions, but Erie Mayor Joe Wilson is already on board. “We welcome growth, we look to attract technically innovative projects. And this project certainly qualifies as that.”
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THE NEWS-GAZETTE (EAST CENTRAL, IL)
Tower proposed for Urbana
Champaign, Ill., architect Gary Olsen, FAIA, is proposing a $14 million to $16 million mixed-use project for downtown, Urban, Ill. Tom Kacich reports that the Metro Center proposal includes 241,083 square feet in two buildings that would have commercial, office, and residential uses. The larger building will be six stories tall. “This would be a very significant project,” Urbana community development director Libby Tyler says. “It's a beautiful design and we're quite excited about it.” The initial review by the City Council is scheduled for tonight.
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SIGN ON SAN DIEGO
Planning under threat
The San Diego County Red Tape Reduction Task Force has recommended diminishing—and in some cases, eliminating—each of the county’s 26 local planning groups. Christopher Cadelago reports that the initiative could remove obstacles to developers. “The planning department doesn’t believe in planning anymore,” says San Dieguito Community Planning Group chairman Paul Marks. “The Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors believe in a permit granted for anyone that wants it and will change the standards to fit the request.”
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THE WASHINGTON POST
Planners assailed for sea-rise changes
Planners for Virginia’s Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission are facing a very vocal minority against their plans for dealing with rising sea levels in the region. Darryl Fears reports that the geology of the area includes the Chesapeake Bay Impact Crater area—which puts Hampton Roads at the highest risk of sea rise in the U.S., except for New Orleans. Commission executive director Lewis L. Lawrence has coined the term “new activists” for the opponents, who include Virginia Campaign for Liberty leader Donna Holt. “Environmentalists have always had an agenda to put nature above man,” Holt says. “If they can find an end to their means, they don’t care how it happens. If they can do it under the guise of global warming and climate change, they will do it.”
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LOS ANGELES TIMES
An ecumenical “miracle”
Nicole Santa Cruz reports that Orange County, Calif.’s Roman Catholic Bishop Tod Brown considers his recent purchase of the Philip Johnson–designed Crystal Cathedral from bankruptcy court a “minor miracle,” citing the ecumenical cooperation between the Catholic Church and cathedral’s builder, the Rev. Robert H. Schuller. “I think, over time there's been a sense of opening up to the idea that we perhaps have a lot more in common than perhaps we realize,” Diocesan Council chairman Jeff Urbaniec says. “I know when I called it the Crystal Cathedral, they said it's not a cathedral,” Schuller says. “And I said, 'not yet.' It wasn't yet, but it has become one.”
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THE ARIZONA REPUBLIC
New show on Wright focuses on 21st century
This week the Phoenix Art Museum is opening an exhibition titled “Frank Lloyd Wright: Organic Architecture for the 21st Century.” Richard Nilsen reports that the show coincides with the 75th anniversary of Scottsdale, Ariz.’s Taliesin West and the centennial of the original Taliesin in Spring Green, Wis. The exhibit is organized around three categories that remain relevant today: site and climate; efficiency and design issues; and technology and materials. “People are still learning from Frank Lloyd Wright and his work,” says museum director James Ballinger.
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LANCASTER FARMING (PA)
Designing for the holidays
Southeastern Pennsylvania is becoming a hot spot in the world of holiday gingerbread competitions. Sara Miller reports that two local organizations—the Adams County Arts Council and Peddler’s Village—held contests this year. For the arts council, it was just the second edition, but Peddler’s Village has been sponsoring theirs for 30 years. Categories include “Traditional Gingerbread,” “Authentic Reproduction of a Significant Building,” “Incredibly Unusual Three-Dimensional Gingerbread Creation,” and “Go Green.” The last one is the newest to be introduced and was represented by a gingerbread smart car last year.
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CURBED CHICAGO
Preservationists purchase Wright house
The Laurent House Foundation successfully purchased the Frank Lloyd Wright–designed Kenneth Laurent House in Rockford, Ill., last week. Ian Spula reports that the handicapped-accessible home—Wright’s only one—sold for $578,500. The non-profit plans to renovate the house and convert it to a museum.
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