Reinventing Grand Army PlazaReinventing Grand Army Plaza Open, international, ideas Brooklyn, New York Apr 2008 – Submissions Deadline (online) SPONSORS: Design Trust for Public Space; The Grand Army Plaza Coalition TYPE: Open, international, ideas LOCATION: Brooklyn, New York TIMETABLE: Feb 2008 – Submissions Accepted (online) Apr 2008 – Submissions Deadline (online) Mar 2008 – Jury Deliberations May 2008 – Winner Announced Jun 2008 – Awards Ceremony, Competition Exhibition ELIGIBILITY: Open to all Jury: Jonathan Butler, Founder and Editor, Brownstoner.com Elizabeth Meyer, Professor, Univ. of Virginia, Dept. Landscape Arch. Ellen Salpeter, Director, Heart of Brooklyn Ken Smith, Ken Smith Landscape Architects Alex Washburn, Chief of Design, NYC Dept. of City Planning Jury Chair: Michael Van Valkenburgh, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates AWARDS: First Place: $5,000 Second Place: $2,000 Third Place: $1,000 FEE: $30 DESIGN CHALLENGE: Grand Army Plaza is New York City’s greatest unrealized asset. Home to fabulous architecture, the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch—Brooklyn’s version of the Arc de Triomphe, the elegant Bailey Fountain, the entrance to Frederick Law Olmsted’s greatest park, and a major transit hub, the sum of these parts is today emphatically less than the whole. This competition will generate ideas for the redesign of Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn, NY. Top submissions will be exhibited in the summer of 2008 at either the Brooklyn Public Library or Brooklyn Museum of Art (TBD). Submissions will also inform the program for a new schematic plan for the Plaza, to be created in late 2008 in partnership with New York City’s Departments of Parks and Recreation and Transportation. Grand Army Plaza was designed by urban planning and landscape architecture masters Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux to be Brooklyn’s premier public gathering space. Situated at the convergence of six major arteries and several subordinate streets, Grand Army Plaza must circulate an inordinate amount of motorized traffic. The Plaza’s function as a traffic hub overshadows and impedes use by pedestrians, bicyclists, and the surrounding cultural institutions. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.reinventingGAP.org
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University of Florida’s College of Design Construction and Planning’s New Addition 
Development phase image courtesy ©Brooks + Scarpa
If architects have had one complaint concerning the planning and realization of a project, it has been with planners and especially construction managers, both of whom often display a lack of knowledge about architecture. The survival of a well-conceived design can hang in the balance when there is a knowledge gap at the planning and realization end.
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Young Architects in Competitions When Competitions and a New Generation of Ideas Elevate Architectural Quality 
by Jean-Pierre Chupin and G. Stanley Collyer
published by Potential Architecture Books, Montreal, Canada 2020
271 illustrations in color and black & white
Available in PDF and eBook formats
ISBN 9781988962047
What do the Vietnam Memorial, the St. Louis Arch, and the Sydney Opera House have in common? These world renowned landmarks were all designed by architects under the age of 40, and in each case they were selected through open competitions. At their best, design competitions can provide a singular opportunity for young and unknown architects to make their mark on the built environment and launch productive, fruitful careers. But what happens when design competitions are engineered to favor the established and experienced practitioners from the very outset? This comprehensive new book written by Jean-Pierre Chupin (Canadian Competitions Catalogue) and Stanley Collyer (COMPETITIONS) highlights for the crucial role competitions have played in fostering the careers of young architects, and makes an argument against the trend of invited competitions and RFQs. The authors take an in-depth look at past competitions won by young architects and planners, and survey the state of competitions through the world on a region by region basis. The end result is a compelling argument for an inclusive approach to conducting international design competitions. Download Young Architects in Competitions for free at the following link: https://crc.umontreal.ca/en/publications-libre-acces/ Houston Endowment’s New Headquarters on the Bayou
Southwest view Houston Endowment Headquarters – Photo Ivan Baan, courtesy Kevin Daly Following in the footsteps of other major non-profits—The Ford Foundation and LA’s California Endowment Center in particular—the Houston Endowment’s new headquarters, located on a grassy knoll just above the Buffalo Bayou in the city’s outskirts, has also made a strong architectural statement. Similar to the California Endowment, this project was also the result of a design competition, won by the California firm, Kevin Daly Architects. Read more…
The Makasiiniranta South Harbor Competition
 Helsinki South Harbour and Tori Quarter Suomen Ilmakuva Helsinki. Image credit/ Tietoa Finland, Janne Hirvonen
As a prelude to a competition for the design of a new Architecture and Design Museum to be located in Helsinki’s South Harbor, the City of Finland staged an open competition to establish a roadmap for the future redevelopment of the Makasiiniranta harbor area, the last old harbor area to be transformed for public use in Helsinki. The competition for the museum is scheduled to take place later this year; but the entire surrounding area has come up with a plan to review improvements for the entire harbor environment.
Read more… Vltava Philharmonic Hall Design Competition 
View to Concert Hall from bridge ©BIG
Classical music is still part of a vibrant musical scene in Prague, with at least four principal venues hosting concerts, ballet and opera. As a modern European city, the only missing venue from these choices is a state of the art concert hall. Other European neighbors have also recently staged competitions for such projects: Munich, won by Cukrowicz Nachbaur Architekten of Bregenz, Austria; Belgrade, won by AL_A of London; and Vilnius, Lithuania, won by Arquivio Architects of Spain. It should be noted, however, that one of the most important competitions for a concert hall, not only in Europe, but the world, was the 1961 Berlin Philharmonic hall competition, won by Hans Scharoun (below). It was the interior of that building, in particular, that served as a model for many others that followed, one of the first being Los Angeles’ Disney Hall by Frank Gehry. Read more… Budapest’s Nyugati Rail Station Competition 
Image courtesy Budapest Development Agency ©Grimshaw
Completed in 1877, Budapest’s Nyugati Railway Station has witnessed many of the twists and turns of Hungarian history: the Austro-Hungarian Empire, revolutions of post-World War I and 1956, and various shades of expansion and shrinkage in their territory. Its important location in Europe’s history as a contested land in southeastern Europe has not only served as a path for armies of conquest, but as a matter of great interest for major powers. Amid all the changes it has experienced, Hungary, and Budapest in particular, has retained a fascination for outsiders, making it one of Europe’s high profile tourist attractions. Read more… |
