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.
LOS ANGELES TIMES
Strong housing starts rallies market
The U.S. Commerce Department announced 685,000 housing starts in November, up by 9.3 percent from October. The Associated Press reports that the rate is the highest since April 2010. Building permits for the month were up by 5.7 percent. “It’s great news,” says S&P Capital IQ chief equity strategist Sam Stovall, noting that the growth should help the U.S. economy from entering another recession. U.S. markets were up sharply Monday based on the news.
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THE DETROIT NEWS
Scrapped transit center creates outcry
The Troy, Mich., City Council voted 4-3 to not award an architectural and engineering contract for a proposed transit center that would have consolidated train, bus, taxi, and proposed light rail service. Christine Ferretti reports that the project was first proposed in 2000, but that by missing the deadline for awarding A/E services, Troy forfeits $8.4 million in federal funding. “We are already experiencing some fallout and disinvestment in Troy, and we need to preclude that from happening,” says Troy Chamber of Commerce president Michele Hodges. Locally headquartered Magna International’s manager of government affairs Frank W. Ervin III referred to local legislators as “narrow minded when it comes to the future of Troy and the future of Southeastern Michigan.”
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LOS ANGELES TIMES
Hollywood thinks tall
New zoning guidelines approved by the Los Angeles City Planning Commission encourage bigger and taller buildings in downtown Hollywood near transit hubs. Kate Linthicum reports that the plan builds on enhanced transit in Hollywood, which includes five rail stops that were built during the 1990s. Current zoning has led to “piecemeal” development in the area, according to Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. “This drawn-out, uncertain process was holding Hollywood back from revealing its full potential,” he says. The plan still requires City Council approval.
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HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Urban Village approved
The Bellaire (Texas) City Council has approved zoning for a 29-acre light industrial district to be developed as an Urban Village–Transit Oriented Development zone. Robin Foster reports that Kendig Keast Collaborative prepared the plan for the mixed-use area with the Bellaire Planning and Zoning Commission, encouraging “a pedestrian-friendly, high-quality mix of multiuse buildings where people can live, work and find entertainment.” Maximum building height within the district has been set at 16 stories.
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BUSINESS COURIER (CINCINNATI)
Designs for Cincinnati’s streetcar shelters
DNK Architects will design the shelters for Cincinnati’s downtown streetcar project. The Business Courier reports that 18 shelters will be part of the initial $99.5 million “starter line” planned to connect Fountain Square and Findlay Market. “We designed the station structures to call to mind what the streetcar will bring to Cincinnati—a public transportation system that everyone can use to connect to neighborhoods,” DNK’s David Kirk says. “We want people to look at the stations and see how easy, safe, and comfortable it is to explore all that Cincinnati has to offer.”
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CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Downtown tower unlikely soon
Chicago’s commercial real estate market is getting better, but that doesn’t mean a new office tower in the Loop is on the horizon for the new year. Alejandro Cancino reports that office vacancy rates are shrinking, but remain near 16 percent. “Increased activity is a testament to the fact that companies are feeling more comfortable about the economy,” says Cushman & Wakefield of Illinois executive director Marilyn Lissner. But even developers who have designs on the boards don’t expect construction to start on a new tower until 2013 or so—when more companies should be looking for space and credit might be more freely available. “[A new building] makes everybody feel better about the climate, but there is still a fair amount of vacancy in the market,” says Michael Svets, division manager of Wells Fargo’s Commercial Real Estate Group.
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CURBED NY
Pier 15 open to (almost) all
The second phase of New York City’s $167 million East River waterfront project is now open. Jeremiah Budin reports that the SHoP Architects–designed Pier 15 includes two glass pavilions and three arched grass lawns, with “lots of things to sit on.” While the public is very welcome, skateboarders are being excluded by design. Benches have been fitted with “L-shaped pieces of metal” to keep the skateboarders away.
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CURBED NATIONAL
Starbucks in a box
Starbucks has joined the trend to build with shipping containers. Rob Bear reports that their newest store in Tukwil, Wash., is called the Reclamation Drive-Thru and that its LEED-certified design uses rainwater harvesting. But Bear has his doubts. “The desire to recycle is certainly admirable, but only calls attention to the many miles your precious beans have travelled—and the many gallons of fuel used in the process,” he writes. Let’s hope they’re not using the gray water for brewing coffee, too.
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