Jessica Cejnar / Monday, Feb. 1 @ 3:28 p.m. / Infrastructure, Local Government, Parks Public To Weigh In On Revamped Beachfront Park In City's Pursuit Of $8.5 Million Grant

An expanded Kid Town is on a new masterplan for Beachfront Park. Photo: Andrew Goff

Crescent City will seek public input for a final time Tuesday in their quest to obtain $8.5 million in Proposition 68 dollars for Beachfront Park.

Staff will present residents with cost estimates for amenities included in a masterplan based on more than a year of surveys, meetings and focus groups. This will give people a chance to choose where grant dollars should go if the city is lucky enough to receive them, according to Recreation Director Holly Wendt.

Weve done a lot of community input sessions, she said. We know certain key amenities showed up as top priorities. Its important to engage the community at every level, showing them the (cost) would be really important to move forward. Just so people know how much certain things cost.

The public, and Crescent City Council, got their first glimpse of the new Beachfront Park masterplan in December.

Consultant Cathy Garrett, of Bay Area landscape architect firm PGADesign, said she wanted to capture a park that reflects the local cultural and natural beauty of the area. This includes memorials and monuments, a traditional Tolowa slab house and dance platform as well as an expanded KidTown with climbing features for older kids.

Other proposed amenities include a labyrinth, an amphitheater, a bike park with a pump track and dirt jumps as well as a community-size picnic structure with updated bathrooms.

The city presented the new Beachfront Park masterplan to the Tolowa Dee-ni Nation and Elk Valley Rancheria.

Following Tuesdays public Zoom meeting, which will include ways to offer an opinion on the parks development via Menti and Google Forms, Wendt said. The public can look at the amenities and their costs and click on the ones that are important to them, she said.

The Proposition 68 application for the $8.5 million will go before the City Council on Feb. 16 before staff submit it to the state in March.

We want to get as close as we can to the full amount, Wendt aid. Its a competitive grant. As the community knows, were trying to do our due diligence as a government entity, really vetting what the community wants. That makes us competitive, were hoping to go forward as much as possible.

The state will inform the city if it received that grant in November.Crescent City may be eligible for other Proposition 68 grants. This includes a $3 million grant focused on recreation and tourism.

In 2019, before the novel coronavirus pandemic began, Crescent City had been holding in-person town hall meetings to seek input on Beachfront Park projects to focus a third, non-competitive, Proposition 68 grant on.

Because of the pandemic, that grant application process was postponed, Wendt said. Now, the per-capita grant, $177,952, is due in December, she said.

Thats where each city and county gets an allotment of funds they can use, she said. Now the larger grant is due before the per capita grant, so we can see what happens with that and if we want to improve a different park area we have other parks in the city theres other projects we can do with it.

The Beachfront Park meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. To participate via Zoom, click here.

Documents

Beachfront Park Masterplan

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Public To Weigh In On Revamped Beachfront Park In City's Pursuit Of $8.5 Million Grant - Lost Coast Outpost

During a Monday morning community meeting centered around the continued development of downtown Albemarle, Albemarle Economic Director Keith Tunnell presented an update on arguably the biggest project taking place in the city: the Albemarle Business Center.

Having been in the works for the past several years, the ABC is a287-acre business park at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 52 and N.C. Highway 24-27 that can hold up to 2.5 million square feet of industrial and warehouse space.

Initially designed by previous economic director Mark Donham, who retired last summer, the business park is modeled after the Monroe Corporate Center, which Donham helped create during his time as economic development director for the city.

During the city councils Dec. 21 meeting, the council approved a phased buildout of the ABC which included construction on only the front section of the industrial park, partial road build and provided infrastructure to the property. The estimated cost of this was around $8 million.

In the presentation, Tunnell explained that the construction of the Center is set to begin in the third quarter of 2021 with completion projected to occur by third quarter of 2022.

The industrial park is estimated to create 2,800 manufacturing jobs and generate under $1 billion in total new investment. Revenues from the new industry could be earmarked to support future downtown development.

Tunnell presented a long list of several initiatives he and his economic development team will be focused on this year. They include: establishing free public WiFi throughout downtown Albemarle; creating a standalone Economic Development/Main Street website; improving marketing and promotion of both city and ADDC events; working to assist women, youth and minorities seeking to open a business; developing an Albemarle Downtown app; and launching City of Albemarle Small Business Revolving Loan Fund.

Upcoming downtown projects

Assistant City Manager Nyki Hardy presented two downtown projects that are in the pipeline. She is a member of the Downtown Vitality Project Team, which is working to implement the projects to help revitalize the area.

The city is working to establish a placemaking project for people to enjoy at the King alleyway behind Off The Square restaurant. Placemaking projects are created to bring people together in a public space and can range from the small (installing adult-size board games in a park) to the very large (the Cloud Gate structure located at Chicagos Millennium Park).

Hardy mentioned that the city wants to create numerous placemaking projects in downtown to help attract more people to the area.

For the King alleyway project, the team is working with an electrical engineer to install decorative poles for hanging string lights, banners and flags and is working with a landscape architect to flesh out a specific design plan. Elements of the plan that have been discussed include seating for dining/relaxing, areas for vegetation, board games, murals and a performance stage.

A pencil sketch of possible design elements that could be implemented to revitalize the King alleyway.

Hardy said the city expects the draft design plan to be ready in a few weeks and the decorative poles to be delivered by late spring. The design plan will be vetted by downtown stakeholders and city council before its finalized.

The goal is for the alley project to be completed by the end of the year.

Were really excited about that and we hope the community is as well, Hardy said.

The DVPT is also working on a wayfinding project to better help people navigate the downtown area. Wayfinding refers toinformation systems that guide people through a physical environment.

The city is working to create wayfinding signs that will help point people to destinations and attractions (restaurants, shops, historic locations).

It helps to prompt vehicular traffic and pedestrian traffic to the things that you want them to focus on and to areas that you want them to be, Hardy said.

Examples of some wayfinding signs for the city.

The team has been working with a consultant for the past year and is currently finalizing a draft plan. The goal is to present the wayfinding plan to council before the end of the fiscal year in June. They hope to implement the plan by the end of the calendar year.

Chris Miller has been with the SNAP since January 2019. He is a graduate of NC State and received his Master's in Journalism from the University of Maryland. He previously wrote for the Capital News Service in Annapolis, where many of his stories on immigration and culture were published in national papers via the AP wire.

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City staff give updates on Albemarle Business Center, downtown projects - The Stanly News & Press | The Stanly News & Press - Stanly News...

Some time during the 1920s, poet Hayim Nahman Bialik took an unauthorized shortcut through the grounds of Jacob Gluskas construction factory. Gluskas brother caught Bialik on the property and rebuked him. Bialik, an arrogant Tel-Avivian who was also Israels national poet, did not appreciate the remark, and they came to blows.

In 2009, almost a hundred years after the slap that stopped Bialik from taking any more factory shortcuts, Bialiks home was restored to its former grandeur and opened to visitors as a museum and cultural center. Gluskas son was the one who recreating its original patterned tiles.

In the early 20th century, Tel Aviv had a distinguished industry of beautiful decorated tiles, which can still be seen in some private homes, apartments, stairwells, and public buildings. After peaking in the 1920s, the tiles have become more and more scarce over the decades. Now, theres a renewed appreciation for them.

German Christians of the Temple Society sect, who immigrated to Palestine late in the 19th century, were the first to bring the painted tiles to Tel Aviv. But [d]uring World War II, the British army deported the Templar families to Australia, and that was the end of their involvement in the local tile industry, says Avi Levi, a landscape architect and hunter of derelict buildings and decorated tiles.

Between 1921 and 1925, Tel Avivs population went from 2,000 to 34,000. The new citys architects were European Jews who trained in art schools in Eastern and Western Europe. Their building style came to be known as Eclectic. Architect Professor Nitza Szmuk, the guru of historical building conservation in Israel, says Eclectic architecture represented the attempt to create a synthesis between East and West, thereby generating a local notional style. The architects perception of Palestine and the Near East remained Orientalist, even when walking in the Tel Aviv sunshine or buying a tomato at the local grocer. The tiles in their buildings were part of this European Oriental fantasy. In the words of Architect Yossi Klein in a Domus magazine article, the contrast between the Oriental style and the European building technique allowed Zionists to return to a sterile Orient, while maintaining European modes of living.

The European tile workshops developed a wide variety of patterns with floral and geometric motifs, influenced by renaissance, art nouveau and art deco styles, ancient Egyptian art and ancient Greek pottery. The Tel Aviv tile industry mimicked these motifs, but not all of them. Jews and Muslims in Palestine skipped the Christian motifs that were common in the European industry, such as the cross or the lily. Some of the local tile factories, mostly those owned by Muslims, were also influenced by the Moroccan tile industry, characterized by its vivid colors.

This was the golden age of the painted tile, says Avi Levi, a landscape architect and hunter of derelict buildings and decorated tiles. They became a local fixture and the connection to the European origins was forgotten. The decorated tiles prevailed during the early 20th century in houses in Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq. They were found in luxurious villas and humble apartments. However, after three decades, people started to think of the tiles as old-fashioned, expensive and excessive. Ultimately, this style flourished only for a short time, Klein writes, and as the conflict with the Arab community escalated, Modernist tendencies prevailed. The romantic, Eclectic style gave way to the clean, modernist Bauhaus. Decorated tiles were abandoned in favor of simple, cheap, industrial tiles. As a result, most of the factories have closed. But at the end of Herzl Street, a street of woodworkers and craftsmen in southern Tel Aviv, the small tile factory of the Gluska family is operating to this day.

Avner Gluska, 82, started working in his familys Tel Aviv tile factory as a child, with his father Jacob Gluska. Today, he toils there with two workers, using materials and equipment developed 150 years ago. The tiles are handmade, and each worker at the small factory is capable of producing up to three square meters (30 square feet) of tiles a day.

My grandfather had two wives back in Yemen, recounts Avner Gluska. When one of them died, he embarked for Israel with his second wife and his eight children. The family settled in the Yemenite Neve Tzedek neighborhood in Tel Aviv. My father Jacob, who was eight years old, went to work in construction, carrying buckets of clay. Jacob Gluska worked odd jobs until he opened a factory. In 1936, he teamed up with Abu Khalil Shindy, a Palestinian Arab living in Jaffa, and the pair specialized in tiles. The Jewish and Arab workers didnt get along, Gluska recalls, so they divided the factory and worked in two locations. My father and his Arab partner were as close as brothers, and we, their children, grew up as one family.

Some Palestinians were expelled by force in 1948. Many others believed that the Arab armies would retake their towns and villages. They abandoned their homes and left for other countries to wait for victory. The wait became permanent. Abu Shindy made the biggest mistake of his life: He left everything and fled to Amman, says Gluska. This was the moment that destroyed the camaraderie between him and my father. One was furious that the other was leaving him to the mercy of the Arab armies, and the other never forgave the Israeli armies. After the Six-Day War they met again once, for the last time, in Gaza.

Avner Gluska replaced Abu Shindy at his fathers side, while also studying art. During that time, the factory was manufacturing terrazzo tiles, which became the most common tiles in Israel up until the early 1990s. The demand for painted tiles declined. The large orders I get today are from house conservation projects, says Gluska. Over the last two decades, Tel Aviv skyscrapers with doormen in the lobby have lost their popularity in favor of a new status symbol: Historical buildings, restored and renovated at great expense.

Meanwhile, Avi Levi wanders the city, exposing the original tiles. My love for painted tiles started about 20 years ago, he says. My work as a landscape architect brings me to the alleys of Tel Aviv. My love for photography, along with a great fetish for old and deserted buildings, join my love of the first Hebrew city and related nostalgia. So I created a large collection of photographed materials, including tile photos.

Before Tel Aviv-Jaffas 100th year celebrations in 2009, City Hall decided to create a huge carpet of flowers that would represent the city definitively. According to Levi, The brilliant idea came from veteran landscape architect David Skali: Building a huge flower tile, with decorations inspired by tiles and wall paintings from the homes of the founders of Tel Aviv. Levi, who participated in the project, was sent in 2008 along with his colleagues to a flower carpet laying event in Brussels, to learn how it was done. About a year later, on the morning of September 16, 2009, trucks unloaded 500,000 begonias, tuberoses and dahlias in Rabin Square, and an hour later, a colorful carpet stretched over 1,250 square meters, says Levi. After years of hunting old tiles, it was a mystical moment of closure.

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Secrets From Tel Avivs Eclectic Era Are Hiding All Over the City - Atlas Obscura

Im often asked to recommend a horticultural professional or company for tree care, landscape maintenance or landscaping. Its not really appropriate for me to endorse particular businesses or individuals, but I am more than happy to provide some advice on what to look for when choosing businesses that provide these services.

First, you need to know that the green industry in Louisiana is regulated by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, specifically by the Louisiana Horticulture Commission. The following statement is from their website: The Louisiana Horticulture Law states that no person shall receive fees, advertise, or solicit business in a regulated profession or occupation unless they hold the appropriate license or permit, or have a regular employee who holds the appropriate license or permit, or is employed by a person who holds the appropriate license or permit.

This law authorizes the commission to govern the qualifications and practices of people engaged in the green industry. The commission is empowered to prevent fraudulent practices, to encourage participation in continuing education and to ensure that only high-quality products and services are provided to the public by green industry professionals.

Hire professionals who have the equipment and training to do the job safely if your trees need trimming after a storm. By law in Louisiana, the individual or company you hire to do tree work must be licensed by the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

The following professions require licenses: landscape architect, landscape horticulturist, landscape irrigation contractor and arborist. Also, utility arborist, retail florist and wholesale florist are licensed through the commission, and the commission permits the occupations of nursery stock dealer and cut flower dealer.

In order to obtain a license, individuals must pass a test specific to their field of work. Passing the test indicates that they have a basic level of knowledge and helps ensure quality work. When hiring a green industry professional, always ask to see a copy of their state license to make sure the person you are hiring is practicing legally.

Also, feel free to interview more than one licensed professional, as there are differences in prices, levels of experience and ability to understand and carry out what you need done. Ask for references. Ask to see examples of their past work. Check with the Better Business Bureau. Its always best to have signed contracts that clearly spell out the work to be done and fees. If you can, it is a good idea to be on-site when work, such as tree pruning, is being done.

If you are not satisfied with the work done by a licensed professional, you may file a complaint with the state Department of Agriculture and Forestry. This affords you protection from inferior work, shoddy materials or unscrupulous practices.

What a year 2020 was. During time working from home, home schooling and dealing with COVID-19, many people turned to gardening as a way to kee

Many of the licenses require licensees to obtain continuing education hours annually to renew their licenses. This ensures that they are keeping up to date with current research and recommendations.

An arborist license authorizes the holder to make recommendations or execute tree surgery-type work including tree evaluation, removal, pruning, trimming, cabling, fertilization and cavity work. Licensees must enter into a written contract with property owners specifying work to be done and the sum to be paid. Continuing education hours required.

Working on trees is one of the most dangerous professions in the green industry, and arborists are required to carry liability insurance $25,000 per person for bodily injury and $50,000 per person for property damage. Before you hire an arborist, ask to see a current copy of the arborist's certificate of insurance.

The landscape architect license authorizes the holder to prepare landscape plans, grading plans, studies, designs, construction details and more for a fee. This license requires the most extensive educational background and testing.

After moving from LSU in Baton Rouge to New Orleans when I began my career as a horticulture educator, I soon realized that the locals used ma

While there are avenues to get a landscape architect license without it, the vast majority of licensees have a degree in landscape architecture from an accredited university (such as LSU ). Licensees are required to pass the national Landscape Architect Registration Examination and the Louisiana Landscape Architect Examination. Continuing education hours are required.

The landscape horticulturist license allows licensees to install and maintain interior or exterior landscapes. To that end, they may sell or lease nursery stock (plants), prepare beds, install plants, lay sod, prune, fertilize and other landscape maintenance and operate a nursery.

While they may prepare drawings that indicate plant selection and placement, landscape horticulturists are not landscape architects and cannot draw designs for a fee. They must have the licensee's name, the words landscape horticulturist and license number on all drawings. While landscape architects have intensive education in landscape design, licensed landscape horticulturists have no design education requirements.

Note the Department of Agriculture and Forestry does not regulate simple yard work, such as cutting lawns, edging and hand weeding beds. People carrying out only this type of work are not required to be licensed.

My three lemon trees have borne a ton of fruit but really look raggedy. They are in desperate need of pruning, but I dont know how. Any info

If you are having an irrigation system installed or worked on, the person must have an irrigation contractor license. This authorizes the holder to construct, install, connect, repair, maintain, improve or alter any portion of a landscape irrigation system, including the required wiring for that system.

This license requires the licensee to obtain a water supply protection specialist endorsement from the State Plumbing Board before connecting to a public or private water supply system or installing a backflow prevention device. Licensees must enter into a written contract with the property owner specifying the landscape irrigation services to be performed and the sum to be paid for the services. Continuing education required.

None of these licenses permit the use of pesticides. If insecticides, fungicides or herbicides will be applied, a separate commercial pesticide applicators license is required. Ask to see it.

See more here:
For landscape projects, know which type of professional you need to hire and how to find one - NOLA.com

Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter designs the Breitenbach Landscape Hotel in Breitenbach, France, with Scandinavian traditions and builds on the regions culinary, wellness, and nature opportunities.Photo Florent Michel

The Breitenbach Landscape Hotel proposes a holistic ecotourism experience in Alsace, a historical region in northeastern France. The project is inspired by Scandinavian traditions and builds on the regions culinary, wellness, and nature opportunities.

The hotel was designed by Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter, an architectural firm based in Norway and Denmark, in collaboration with ASP Architecture.

Perched on the heights of the Alsatian village of Breitenbach, the landscape hotel 48 Nord reinterprets the traditional Scandinavianhytte, a place of retreat and reconnection with wild nature. At the heart of a protected Natura 2000 site, the project was designed to fit into a preserved setting without ever disturbing it.

The project is born from the meeting of two cultures (France and Scandinavia), two passions (nature and architecture),two men (Emil Leroy and Reiulf Ramstad), and the enthusiastic and supportive local community of Breitenbach.

A Franco-Danish client, a Norwegian architect, and a common attraction for design and natural materials: it was from this meeting that the 48 Nord project was born. The Breitenbach Landscape Hotel encapsulates daring architecture and design, a spirit of well-being, and a sharp culinary culture. By uniting local identity with the landscape through forms still unseen in the region, the architect gave 48 Nord a unique architectural expression.

The project goal was not to build a hotel per se, but create a place to live, a habitat to welcome people, and take them on a sensual journey by experiencing a new universe in natural surroundings. It is a place where guests come to meet people and have a moment, whether to share a meal, a weekend of rest, or to hike the Vosges hills and valleys. The architectural approach of 48 Nord echoes this philosophy. The projects clean design and signature lines evoke the Nordic countries. However, the vision is also to disseminate an art of living in harmony with the landscape. Despite its simplicity, the Breitenbach hotel 48 Nord does not go unnoticed, but surrounded by nature, sobriety guarantees integration within its landscape.

Amidst the trees, natural hedges and wild grasses, and heirs to the Norwegian hytte, 14 cabins dot the hillside like boulders on a slope, balancing privacy and outlook. Small, light, discreet, they are simply placed on the hillside. Built on stilts, they are even removable, so the landscape stays preserved and natural, untouched. The untreated and locally sourced chestnut tree (cut on the hill opposite the hotel) clads all volumes, combined only with large glass openings.

Four distinct typologies compose a family of forms with diverse qualities. The Grass hytte, on one level universally accessible, are grouped near the main building. The Tree and Ivy, towering thin and slender, combine verticality and offer panoramic views. Lastly, the Fjell, atop the hill, welcomes families with protected outdoor spaces.

When entering the site, you meet the main building dedicated to hospitality, catering, and wellness. Its volume is wrapped in Alsatian chestnut shingles fashioned in an integration workshop in Saverne. Responding to the Passivhaus construction label, this intimate setting padded with dark stained wood and finely detailed opens widely onto the landscape and offers a unique place of meeting, exchange, and contemplation.

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French hotel combines nature and architecture - Construction Specifier - The Construction Specifier

Nottinghamshire and London-based landscape architect Influence is starting the year on a high following a record year in 2020 which saw a 50% increase in projects compared to 2019.

The practice recently hit the headlines with its bold and ambitious green vision for Nottinghams now redundant Broadmarsh, on behalf of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust.

The plans showed a transformed and reimagined Nottingham city centre, with a proposed 100% greenspace in place of the shopping centre. Put forward to Nottingham City Council, the plans have attracted hundreds of comments from members of the public backing the scheme.

Despite the challenging conditions of 2020, the chartered landscape architect which delivers landscape architecture, urban design, environment planning and expert witness services has had a record 12 months in business during that time and plans for further team expansion this year.

Last year, the company worked on major developments across the country. In the midlands, projects included; Special Educational Needs schools in Lincolnshire, the countys major flood defence scheme the universitys medical school. In Northamptonshire, the team worked on the recently designated High-Street Heritage Action Zones.

The team are also delivering residential developments in Manchester and are the go-to practice for specialist tall building assessments in London protecting the capitals famous skyline.

Sara Boland, managing director of Influence, said: While 2020 was a year of uncertainty, it was also a year that I saw the very best from our team who worked together to achieve our record year in business.

Due to a number of challenges last year the pandemic, social distancing measures and mental wellbeing green space has been catapulted to the forefront of peoples minds, and we have seized the opportunity to respond. Green, open space plays an incredibly important role in our wellbeing and more of a balance needs to be found within commercial schemes to accommodate this.

2020 was a real journey of highs and lows but we are so pleased to be able to share such positive business news going forward into 2021. There is still plenty of opportunity and movement in the property and construction sector and we are seeing this across all areas of our business.

Shona Hatton, director of the practice, added: It goes without saying that we are proud of our teams achievements in delivering brilliant work over the past 12 months, and to work on such an incredibly important and high-profile project with Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, is really the icing on the cake.

We have worked hard to provide the best possible training for our team and further build our portfolio and this strategy is reflected in our results this year. We have lots of exciting plans for 2021, and wish to thank our clients who choose to work with us.

Influence supported a number of charitable causes throughout 2020 including mental health charity Mind and will be choosing its charity of year in early 2021.

Originally posted here:
Midlands landscape architect begins the year on a (green) high - Premier Construction Magazine

Architectural practice is a difficult task at all times. Architects should understand their clients needs and desires and work with urban or regional designers, surveyors, engineers, landscape architects, and even interns or technicians who might be able to design some of the structures detailed components.

Gloria Kotlers name has been associated with some of the most excellent and luxurious properties in the US and the rest of the world because of her unique design elements and precision with construction. She likes to design spaces that inspire and excite all the senses, but with strict discipline and structure, remain true to traditional and formal architecture.

She is a well-known architect and designer in Florida who has registered her name as an award-winning architect and interior designer at AIA, NCARB, CODIA. With a Bachelors degree in Architecture Design and a Masters degree in Interior Architecture, Kloter is a leader in the architecture and design industry and currently operates as an architectural licensing consultant for AIA, Florida.

The work of Kloter is recognized by top magazines worldwide, she has been seen in several magazines and blogs, which ranked her as the most suitable and reliable architect for any given project. Thanks to more than 15 years of national and international architectural and design experience, Kloter can design any large or small project at a given time.

As one of Florida and the Dominican Republics best architects and interior designers, Kloter often finds a way to give back to society and has been instrumental in helping foreign architects get the license to practice in the United States.

She says, I became the Florida State Architect Licensing Advisor through AIA Florida, and that gave me a lot of attention from other immigrants who were trying to get their Architect License in the USA. I did a lot of one-on-one, but at some point, I felt overwhelmed. I woke up one day and had over 100 WhatsApp messages with people asking me questions about the process.

Kloter has also recently launched her design business in the United States. From turning private challenges to going beyond borders to building a great design and architecture brand, she is a growing market leader worth watching.

If you want to know more about her business, visit their website https://www.glowarchitects.com

If you want to know more about her personal life, follow her on Instagram: https:///www.Instagram.com/gloriakloter

Published January 19th, 2021

Opinions expressed here are the opinions of the author. Influencive does not endorse or review brands mentioned; does not and can not investigate relationships with brands, products, and people mentioned and is up to the author to disclose. VIP Contributors and Contributors, amongst other accounts and articles, are professional fee-based.

Original post:
Gloria Kloter: Bringing the Industry of Architecture and Design to Even Greater Heights - Influencive

New York, NY The New York Real Estate Journal (NYREJ) sat down with Thomas Perrino, this months executive of the month, for a question and answer session. Perrino is the president and CEO of the Spiezle Architecture Group, leading the companys nationwide expansion. The firm has opened two new offices since 2019, has hired 29 new employees and has been named one of the Fastest 50 Growing Companies in 2020 by NJBIZ. Spiezle is listed in the Top 100 Green Design Firms by Engineering News-Record and in the Top 300 U.S. Architecture Firms by Architectural Record.

NYREJ: Tell us a little bit about your background and how you ended up in the architecture space?

Perrino: I tell people I was born into architecture. My father is an architect and I grew up under his mentorship, studying architecture, reading plans, visualizing spaces, etc. Starting in middle school, I spent most of my summers working for his firm, CJP Architects, in various roles and continued this through college. The best advice he gave me was to get out and experience architecture by working for different types of architectural firms to build a diverse background and have a better understanding of the profession. Fortunately, I had some great opportunities to join and learn at growing firms where I helped contribute to their expansion and success. Ive been fortunate to have built good relationships with clients and many have followed me to Spiezle. In some cases, these are over 25-year-old connections that are still going strong today.

NYREJ: How would you describe Spiezle to a new client?

Perrino: Spiezle is a diverse, award-winning, employee-owned, 66-year-old architecture and planning firm with 95 employees and several offices across the U.S. We provide clients with a one-stop-shop, offering design, planning, construction administration services, interior design, landscape architecture, furniture procurement, urban planning and electrical engineering. Our primary focus is on academic, healthcare, corporate/commercial, government, hospitality, multifamily, recreational and religious market sectors.

NYREJ: What is the unique difference between Spiezle and other architectural firms?

Perrino: We provide clients with a robust team of professionals across multiple disciplines and we look at every project from a unique perspective. For example, a client may need us for an urban planning exercise, but we also consider the overall architecture and landscape architecture perspective the project warrants. Additionally, we have a great in-house Marketing and Graphics Department and we often help our clients collaborate on efforts to promote a project. Lastly, Id say that we have thought leaders in every market sector and practice groups who stay informed about trends within the industries we serve which helps drive innovative design and education to our clients.

NYREJ: What are some unique projects Spiezle is particularly excited about?

Perrino: While each market sector has experienced growth this past year, we have seen some of the largest amount in the healthcare space. As an example, we recently designed a pop-up hospital in response to the pandemic and we are working towards several major healthcare projects in 2021, especially in the Northeast. We are particularly proud of being able to support our healthcare workers during this crisis. Additionally, education and senior living continue to remain strong markets and we are excited that this year, we expanded our footprint in Florida where we are seeing a lot of new development and investment.

NYREJ: What is your vision for Spiezle?

Perrino: Spiezle has always taken a Smart Growth approach to expansion into new markets. We continue this approach while we plan our next phase of growth and delivery of exceptional service to our clients. Over the last few years, we have completed three acquisitions and hired numerous employees. As an employee-owned company, we feel that growth, both organically and by acquisition, is critical to our future. Recruiting the right talent from all parts of the country, especially since we have proven that working remotely can be successful, sets us apart from others in the industry.

NYREJ: What do you think are the biggest opportunities for Spiezle in the New York/New Jersey market?

Perrino: The pandemic has left us all with varied perspectives and we have seen a tremendous amount of redesign in the healthcare sector, especially in the Northeast region. We are helping our clients expand outdoor spaces, including nurturing places for healing and areas where families can spend time with loved ones and maintain social distancing. We have also focused on designing systems that mitigate the spread of infection such as touch-free entryways and new, properly engineered ventilation to keep everyone safe. Corporate workspaces are also adapting to provide employees with more dynamic, flexible environments that account for safety while still offering a pleasant working experience. Many companies may rethink their use of large office spaces and opt to provide smaller work hubs in 2021 and beyond.

NYREJ: What, in your mind, are some of the most important challenges facing the architecture sector now?

Perrino: There are many unknowns and a great deal of conjecture right now. We dont know where clients will allocate their funds next or which public referendums will come back on the ballots. While the pandemic is a short-term issue, it has affected many areas from supply chain, to building codes, to project delays or postponements. For instance, senior housing has slowed down recently. There is an obvious demand for change in design; however, in the interest of resident safety, several facilities have restricted access of outside entities. It is for a good reason, but it has affected construction schedules. Additionally, we are seeing a need to redefine the physical workspace so that employees can come back into the office or adapt to a hybrid model with both onsite and work remote schedules. Once we have the vaccines in 2021, this should change, but for now we must wait and see.

NYREJ: What are some new trends we can expect to see in the architecture industry?

Perrino: Architecture is arguably one of the most transformative sectors of the economy. And it evolves, along with the human condition. Prior to the pandemic, we were focused on efficiency, culture and technology. Now, adding to that, we are reevaluating sustainability measures and integrating adaptations to keep everyone safe. We are designing spaces that seamlessly blend the indoors with the outdoors to help boost peoples morale and increase productivity. Our projects include usable green roofs, natural conditioning through cross-ventilation, photovoltaics, touch free devices and rainwater collection systems to name a few. As weve seen this year require more flexibility, agility and adaptability in our lives, we anticipate this trend continuing in our healthcare, educational and workspaces.

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Exec. of the Month: Thomas Perrino president and CEO of the Spiezle Architecture Group leads nationwide expansion - New York Real Estate Journal...

On Jan. 5, the Structural Engineers Association of Illinois hosted its virtual January dinner meeting on Zoom. Attendees saw a presentation from Eric Wheeler, senior associate at Thornton Tomasetti, and Lynda Leigh, project executive at Turner Construction, on the project requirements for the base transformation of the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), now nearing its 50th year of operation. The pair discussed the engineering and construction challenges in creating a new experience for tenants and visitors.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has named Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU) and James Corner Field Operations to lead the team designing a new expansion of the Rock Hall in Cleveland. Cooper Robertson is partnered with PAU as part of the design team and Robert P Madison International (RPMI) is on the design team as the architect of record. The addition to the museum will also serve as a connector to the Great Lakes Science Center.

The Illinois Tollway awarded Walsh Construction a $182.6-million contract for roadway and bridge reconstruction of the southbound Mile Long Bridge on the Tri-State Tollway (Interstate 294) during its August meeting. The contract also includes $34.7 million going to diverse and veteran-owned firms. The northbound lanes were completed last summer by contractor F.H. Paschen.

Northpoint Developments second distribution facility at Gateway Tradeport in Pontoon Beach, Ill., was recently completed. Contegra Construction Co. built the 544,000-sq-ft warehouse six months after completing the first distribution center at the development. Gateway Tradeport was launched in 2019. It is a 600-acre master planned industrial park with more than 7.5 million sq ft of distribution space.

Developer Eterra Plus residential mixed-use project at 525 S. Wabash Ave. in Chicago has cleared its first hurdle toward construction in the Chicago City Council. The $300-million, two-tower development will have hotel and residential units and be connected by a retail, residential and parking podium. The project was designed by BKV Group and its lead designer Renato Gilberti, along with landscape architect Site Design Group. Eterra hopes contractor Walsh Construction can begin construction this fall.

James McHugh Construction, acting as general contractor, recently completed NEMA Chicago for Miami-based developer Crescent Heights. Located in Chicagos South Loop and reaching 76 stories, NEMA Chicago is the tallest all-residential building in Chicago. The residential tower was designed by architect Raphael Vinoly.

Through constant collaboration with the owner, architect and subcontractors, the project met the intent of the designers and was delivered on budget and ahead of schedule, said Dave Steffenhagen, McHugh Construction senior project manager on NEMA Chicago.

The board of directors and the strategic council of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently honored Moody Nolan with its 2021 AIA Architecture Firm Award. The AIA Architecture Firm Award is the highest honor the AIA bestows on an architectural practice. The award recognizes a firm that has consistently produced distinguished architecture for at least 10 years. Moody Nolan is an African American-owned and operated design firm headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, with 11 offices across the U.S. AIA cited the firms history of serving clients with a knowledge of cultural sensitivities as well as a deep understanding of the impact its work has on individuals and communities.

The Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission selected Woolpert on Dec. 10 as design engineer for the replacement of two bridges over Tinkers Creek on the Ohio Turnpike (Interstate 80) in Summit County. Woolpert will provide bridge and roadway design, maintenance of traffic, survey, mobile lidar and unmanned aircraft system mapping as well as manage the geotechnical and environmental engineering for the project. The bridges will be designed in 2021, and construction is expected to take place in 2023 and 2024.

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Midwest On the Scene: January 2021 | 2021-01-18 - Engineering News-Record

The AIANY year began with the announcement of the winners in its 2021 AIANY Design Awards.AIA New Yorks annual Design Awards program recognises outstanding architectural design by AIA New York members, New York City-based architects in any location, and work in New York City by architects worldwide. Interestingly, this years awards were only given in four categories: Architecture, Interior, Projects, and Urban Design. The jury members did not give any awards in the Sustainability category, instead opting to make it a requirement for an honor award. Indeed, some of the projects submitted for the Sustainability category were moved to other categories for consideration. This emphasises the importance of sustainable choices in the world of architecture as the foundation for every design.So lets look at the winners in the Architecture category. Well be taking a closer look in a dedicated article at the Best in Competition winner, Newark Housing Authority Training Recreation Education Center (TREC), selected as the recipient of this unique recognition from the Honor Award winners across all the categories. In the Architecture category, these wereMuse Atelier Audemars Piguety BIG Bjarke Ingels Group; Muller Illien Landschaftsarchitekten (link), Bennington College Commons Renovation by Christoff:Finio Architecture and Reed Hilderbrand, and the Jones Beach Energy & Nature Center by nARCHITECTS, which stands out as a newly constructed landscape, reclaimed from 4.8 hectares of demolished concrete parking, which surrounds the buildings other sides with native plant species, immersing it in an expanding natural environment. Completing the Honor Awards are two projects located in Mexico City, Rooftop PRIM by PRODUCTORA; PLANTA and DL1310 Apartments by Young & Ayata, plus the Pollinators Pavilion by Harrison Atelier in the Projects category that seeks to elicit awareness from the farming, cultural and educational communities in the Hudson Valley for the vital role of native pollinators in supporting our ecosystems.The Merit Awards include architecture like New York Public Library Van Cortlandt Branch by Andrew Berman Architect, Boulder House by atelierjun, National Museum of the United States Army by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill with AECOM, Yale University Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking by WEISS/MANFREDI, Rhode Island School of Design Student Center by WORKac, and 6 Square House by Young Projects with Coen+Partners. The Merit Awards in the Interiors category are Yingliang Stone Natural History Museum by Atelier Alter Architects, New York Public Library Macombs Bridge Branch by Michielli + Wyetzner Architects andLMCCs Arts Center at Governors Islandby Pei Cobb Freed & Partners; Adamson and AAI. In the Urban Design category, the Merit Award went to St. Johns Park by Ballman Khapalova, reclaiming a traffic circle at the entry to Manhattan as a park that people can actually use. The River Ring urban design project by BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group; James Corner Field Operations received a citation in this category for providing connectivity between the city and the waterfront. The LAND Community Center by EID Architecture; ZHOYU and GZ.S.P.I. LANDSCAPE DESIGN CO., LTD also received a citation for the Formal Exuberance of the Exterior.The 24 winning projects and architecture studios that designed them represent the outstanding work of AIA New York members and architects operating in New York City, which always looks to the future. The jury members were Marlon Blackwell, Julie Eizenberg, Stephen Gray, Andrea Love (Payette), Maria Paz de Moura Castro, and the Italian architect Francesca Perani, founder of Francesca Perani Enterprise and co-founder & president of RebelArchitette.

Christiane Brklein

2021 AIANY Design AwardsImages: see captions01_HONOR_Jones Beach Energy & Nature Center_nARCHITECTS_Michael Moran

02_MERIT_RISD Student Center_WORKac_Bruce Damonte

03_HONOR_Musee Atelier Audemars Piguet _BIG_Iwan Baan

CITATION_LAND Community Center_EID Architecture_Lujing Architectural Photography, Yike Studio, Hu Yijie

CITATION_River Ring_BIG_BIG

HONOR_Bennington College Commons Renovation_ChristoffFinio Architecture_Scott Frances

HONOR_DL1310 Apartments_Young Ayata and Michan Architecture_Rafael Gamo

HONOR_Pollinators Pavilion_Harrison Atelier_Ariane Harrison

HONOR_Rooftop PRIM_PRODUCTORA_Onnis Luque

MERIT_6 Square House_Young Projects_Alan Tansey, Jamie Gray, Camilo Lopez

MERIT_Boulder House_Atelier Jun_Namgoong Sun

MERIT_LMCCs Arts Center at Governors Island_Pei Cobb Freed Partners

MERIT_National Museum of the United States Army_SOM_Dave Burk | SOM

MERIT_NYPL Macomb's Bridge Branch_Michielli Wyetzner Architects_Alexander Severin

MERIT_NYPL Van Cortlandt Branch_Andrew Berman Architect_Michael Moran

MERIT_St John's Park_Ballman Khapalova_Ballman Khapalova

MERIT_Yale University Tsai Center for Innovative Thinking_WeissManfredi_Albert Vecerka, Jeff Goldberg

Merit_Yingliang Stone Natural History Museum_Atelier Alter Architects_Atelier Alter Architects

Best of Competition Newark Housing Authority TREC_ikon5 architects_Jeffrey Totaro

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Winners of the 2021 AIANY Design Awards | Livegreenblog - Floornature.com