Building Design articles from October 2008

Building Design archives from October 2008

Government fails on pledge for good design.
October 3, 2008... BD and British Council survey reveals depth of architects' despair over UK housing policy Will Hurst & Marguerite Lazell The Labour government has failed in its pledge to champion high standards of design in UK housing, architects...

LEADER: Stirling masks the real issues.
October 3, 2008... AMANDA BAILLIEU The Stirling Prize is great... but the man in the street wants quality public buildings, and architects must take responsibility If the Stirling Prize is meant to honour the building which has made the greatest...

LEADER: There are other ways to save.(National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty wants to save Seaton Delaval Hall)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... The National Trust is roping in architects to help save Vanbrugh's masterpiece, Seaton Delaval Hall. The house is in a sad condition, butthe trust says that if it was sold and allowed to fall into private hands, it would be lost to the public...

IN BRIEF: Board restructuring defended.(Architectural Review Board's Mike Starling )(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Arb chairman Mike Starling has defended proposed changes to the structure of Arb's board (News September 28). Starling said the existing process results in an unrepresentative group being in charge, and that architecture would be better off...

IN BRIEF: Corb season takes off in Liverpool.(Royal Institute of British Architects's exhibition )(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... The RIBA's Le Corbusier season kicked off this week with the opening in Liverpool of Le Corbusier: the Art of Architecture exhibition in Edwin Lutyens' crypt at the city's Metropolitan Cathedral. The first major British show of Le Corb's...

IN BRIEF: Land extension shortlist revealed.(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Norman Foster and Daniel Libeskind are in the lead to win an #8 billion project to extend Monaco out to sea. A shortlist of five architects, including Frank Gehry and Rem Koolhaas, has been revealed for the contest to increase the...

IN BRIEF: Three on Ebbsfleet Landmark list.
October 3, 2008... Three artists - Daniel Buren, Richard Deacon and Mark Wallinger - have been shortlisted to create the #2 million Ebbsfleet Landmark, the largest public art commission since Antony Gormley's Angel of the North. Buren's proposal is a tower...

IN BRIEF: Ministers review Scots watchdog.(Architecture and Design Scotland)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... The Scottish governmentis to review the work of its design watchdog, Architecture & Design Scotland, looking at policy, financial management and remit. Sebastian Tombs, chief executive of A&DS, said: "This should allow for a refinement of...

Top names rally to save Seaton Delaval.
October 3, 2008... A roll call of some of Britain's leading modern architects - from Terry Farrell and Peter Cook to Will Alsop - have backed a National Trust campaign to buy one of John Vanbrugh's most renowned buildings for public use. The trust has barely...

Faint praise damns Architecture Week.
October 3, 2008... Future of event is questioned in light of Arts Council England review Marguerite Lazell The full scale of the industry's disillusionment with Architecture Week has been revealed this week as Arts Council England published the full...

WHAT'S WEAK ABOUT ARCHITECTURE WEEK.
October 3, 2008... * Failed to engage with the general public and was too introspective. * Never lived up to potential for facilitating relationships between Regional Development Agencies, architecture centres, local Arts Council offices and local...

Parliament Square paving bugged Boris.(Boris Johnson )(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Plans to pedestrianise Parliament Square had already cost #2 million when London mayor Boris Johnson scrapped the scheme. It was blocked as much because of Johnson's "aesthetic" concerns on paving over the green as by traffic and money...

Findlay returns with eco-houses scheme.(Kathryn Findlay)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Kathryn Findlay has returned to practice after three years' sabbatical, with this residential project in Preston, Lancashire. The scheme, which has just received planning permission, is the first of a series of collaborations between her...

Yaya longlist unveiled.
October 3, 2008... There are 28 architects on the long list for BD's 2008 Young Architect of the Year Award. They are: Adam Richards Architects; Ali Hanghool; Amenity Space; AOC; Architects in Residence; Architecture 53 Seven; Barnaby Gunning Architects;...

Blears faces challenge to Doon decision.(Hazel Blears)(English Heritage and Westminster City Council )
October 3, 2008... Helen Pow English Heritage and Westminster City Council have launched a joint legal challenge against communities secretary Hazel Blears' decision to grant planning permission to London's Doon Street tower. After a public inquiry,...

Duggan Morris aims for brew of old and new at Sussex oast house.(Duggan Morris Architects)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Plans for an unusual oast house conversion in an area of outstanding natural beauty have been unveiled by Duggan Morris Architects. The proposed 167sq m residence, set within 26 haof land for a private client in East Sussex, connects two...

Architects vulnerable to claims as economy slows.
October 3, 2008... Architects have become a "natural target" for litigation by cash- strapped clients due to the worsening economic climate and rising professional indemnity insurance premiums, experts have claimed. Construction consultancy Cyril Sweett...

Relax... up on the roof.(Great Ormond Street Hospital's contract with Spacelab and Andy Sturgeon)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... A contemporary rooftop pavilion and garden for staff at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital has been completed by Spacelab in collaboration with award-winning gardener Andy Sturgeon. The design - which uses plants to create semi-private...

Controversy as multifaith centre set to fail planning.(Mangera Yvars Architects)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Will Henley Plans for a dramatic #20 million community centre in the north London suburbs by Mangera Yvars Architects faced planning permission refusal this week. The proposal, to be considered at Thursday's meeting of Harrow...

The Modern House moves into lettings.(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Estate agent the Modern House, which specialises in the sale of 20th century homes, has launched a new rental service in the face of the country's dramatic housing slowdown. From this week, the firm has made seven homes available to rent,...

New look at the Temple.(Wilkinson Eyre Architects)(Horden Cherry Lee )(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Proposals for a mixed-use development near London's Temple Station by Wilkinson Eyre and Horden Cherry Lee have been submitted for planning. The 9,000sq m Arundel Great Court scheme, for developer Land Securities, will create two new buildings...

Funding blow could cancel Castleford Forum plans.(Niall McLaughlin Architects)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Marguerite Lazell Niall McLaughlin Architects' ambitious scheme for a new museum, library and community building in the West Yorkshire town of Castleford has been turned down for lottery funding for a second time. Despite a vow by...

Prasad joins climate change trip to Arctic.
October 3, 2008... RIBA president Sunand Prasad last week set sail for the Arctic, joining an eclectic bunch of scientists and artists including Jarvis Cocker and Martha Wainwright on the seventh Cape Farewell expedition. The voyage, to Disko Bay on the west...

MIDDLE EAST: RTKL starts on Jordan project.
October 3, 2008... Planning has begun on a 12ha mixed-use development in Jordan by London- based architect RTKL. The masterplan for the site in the port city of Aqaba will feature low- and mid-rise buildings comprising residential, hotel, office and retail...

PLANNING: Move to get rid of student ghettos.(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... The government has called for new planning mechanisms to tackle the overconcentration of student housing in neighbourhoods. In a report published last week, the DCLG recommended "houses in multiple occupation" be brought under greater...

SCOTLAND: Piersland adds bedroom pavilion.(Piersland House Hotel)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Lawrence McPherson Associates has received planning permission for a garden pavilion at Scottish country hotel Piersland House Hotel near Troon, Ayrshire. Designed by William Leiper in 1899, the building sits opposite the Royal Troon golf...

LOTTERY FUNDING: Armed forces memorial voted best heritage project.
October 3, 2008... A major armed forces memorial at Alrewas, near Lichfield in Staffordshire, has been voted the UK's favourite Lottery-funded heritage project. The memorial, by Liam O'Connor, won the best heritage project award and #2,000 at the recent...

Four on list to revive Manchester city square.
October 3, 2008... Marguerite Lazell Glenn Howells Architects, Flacq, Stanton Williams and Austin Smith Lord have been shortlisted in a competition to design a major commercial development in Manchester city centre. The project in St Peter's Square, once...

COMPETITION: Homes expo has 12 on shortlist.
October 3, 2008... DRMM, Fat and Sarah Wigglesworth Architects are among 12 practices shortlisted for the RIBA's Scotswood Expo architectural competition. More than 140 proposals were submitted to design 60 homes in four terraces for the UK's first...

SUSTAINABILITY: M&S wins highest Breeam rating.
October 3, 2008... 3D Reid's design for a Glasgow branch of Marks & Spencer has achieved the highest-ever Breeam retail fit-out rating. The 6,500sq m Silverburn store, the first of Marks & Spencer's "green" stores, has been fitted with low-volume, dual-flush...

RESIDENTIAL: Luxury homes go underground.(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Thomas de Cruz Architects has won planning permission for two 500sq m houses in west London. They will occupy a site in Chiswick between two Edwardian buildings formerly occupied by garages. They feature a sunken "upside-down" plan,...

CARBUNCLE CUP: Who will get the wooden spoon this year?
October 3, 2008... BD's annual Carbuncle Cup is to the Stirling Prize what the Golden Raspberries are to the Oscars. So while the RIBA searches for architecture's most sublime, we set out to uncover the most reviled. Here is the 2008 shortlist we have chosen from...

LETTER: Playing politics.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... I was horrified to read in BD last week of Arb's plans to examine the replacement of elected architect members with those appointed by the government. During my two three-year terms as an elected architect member of the board, I have...

LETTER: Sensible savings.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... Jack Pringle and Amanda Baillieu are critical of Arb for having substantial reserves in the bank. When the government was minded to wind up the Architects Registration Council of the UK, it was concerned to find that there were...

LETTER: Waste free.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... It is right to raise the retention fee increase as a matter of concern but wrong to suggest that Arb is on a spending spree. As a critic of Arb, elected on a mandate for reform, I have paid close attention to expenditure and can honestly say...

LETTER: No style.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... With reference to your web video "Adam hails start of a classical revolution - traditional architecture prospers as New Palladians exhibition launches", and several other recent articles in the architectural and national press, I would like to...

LETTER: On the job.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... Thanks for the half-term report (News Analysis September 19) and the headteacher's note in the leader. I quite agree that it is among UK architects that perception of the RIBA is hard to shift. That will not have been helped by you saying I...

LETTER: Tie breaker.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... Both correspondents missed the point in their answers to the question of architecture and the old boys' club (Debate September 26). The clubability of British architecture - as opposed to any inherent discrimination - stems not from...

LETTER - Arb's extra #8: worth it or not?
October 3, 2008... Can someone please tell me why it is worth my while remaining a member of Arb? With a 10% fee hike on the cards (News September 26), it reminds me of all the downsides to being a registered architect in this country. Our job function is...

LETTER: Arb inflation.(Letter to the editor)
October 3, 2008... The #8 rise in the Arb retention fee actually equates exactly to an inflation-indexed rise for each of the past three years, up from #76.50 in 2006 to #86 for 2009. What is the problem with that? The week before, you criticised architects...

OPINION: Join the transition from fear to hope.(Viewpoint essay)
October 3, 2008... CAROLYN STEEL As peak oil and climate change threaten our way of life, transition towns look to the future Do you live in a transition town? And if not, why not? Transition towns are the hottest new trend in urbanism. Or rather in...

DEBATE: Was Boris wrong to axe the Parliament Square scheme?(Boris Johnson)
October 3, 2008... YES Sally Hamwee, Lib Dem Baroness of Richmond on Thames I have always been somewhere between ashamed, embarrassed and uncomfortable about what London presents to our visitors when they visit the Palace of Westminster and Westminster...

WORKS: LIVERPOOL - If paradise is half as nice.
October 3, 2008... The new 2.2ha Chavasse Park sits atop a car park and is dominated by an apartment building by Pelli Clarke Pelli with Brock Carmichael. The long awaited retail project at Paradise Street is a last-ditch attempt to recharge Liverpool's city...

SOLUTIONS: AYLESBURY ESTATE - `People don't know your values'.(Interview)
October 3, 2008... `People don't know your values, they don't understand where you're coming from' Urban Initiatives' Kelvin Campbell has spent nearly two years masterplanning the #2.4 billion redevelopment of south London's Aylesbury Estate. It's the sixth...

Ailing Aylesbury.
October 3, 2008... * REPLACING SLUMS In 1967, after major slum clearances in south-east London, the #11 million Aylesbury, one of the largest housing estates in Europe, is begun on a 28.5ha site near Elephant & Castle. Designed by Derek Winch of Southwark...

PRACTICE: How do I resolve this impasse over extra costs and delays?
October 3, 2008... ASK US A QUESTION Richard Brindley Executive director, RIBA Professional Services Patrick Perry, Partner with London law firm Barlow Lyde & Gilbert As the architect on an office extension I am administering a JCT Minor Works...

ROLL ON FRIDAY.(Healey Associates)
October 3, 2008... `We have food from the region made by people in the office, music, and a few beers' Practice: Healey Associates Location: Leeds Size: Eight people Healey Associates does not let the mere matter of earning a living get in the...

DEAR IRENA: Should we drop part II students?
October 3, 2008... Irena Bauman tackles your ethical dilemmas We always take on at least one part II student, but times are tough. Should we keep supporting students when business is slow? What is the relationship between the profession and students? Is...

CULTURE: California dreaming.(John Lautner)
October 3, 2008... LA's current John Lautner exhibition finds an integrity in his response to landscape, says Niall Hobhouse EXHIBITION BETWEEN EARTH AND HEAVEN: THE ARCHITECTURE OF JOHN LAUTNER Hammer Museum Los Angeles, October 12 ...

CULTURE: Past, present and future.(Histories of the Immediate Present: Inventing Architectural Modernism)(Book review)
October 3, 2008... Anthony Vidler plots the influence of four architectural historians on their time, says Thomas Muirhead BOOK HISTORIES OF THE IMMEDIATE PRESENT: INVENTING ARCHITECTURAL MODERNISM Anthony Vidler, foreword by Peter Eisenman MIT...

HOT TIPS: Essence of Ritchie.
October 3, 2008... Poetry, drawings, photography, models, components, materials and books capture the essence of 20 international projects by Ian Ritchie Architects. This new show takes an unusual approach to understanding the architect's work. *...

HOT TIPS: Social snapper.(John Maltby)(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... John Maltby's first commission to photograph Odeon cinemas in the thirties began a career that embraced work for architects, manufacturers and designers, among them Tecton, the Design Research Unit and Terence Conran. His works appeared in...

HOT TIPS: Unbuilt greats.(Brief article)
October 3, 2008... Unrealised designs by leading architects for projects in London are on show at the AA. Unbuilt speculative and experimental schemes from Foreign Office Architects, Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners, OMA, Zaha Hadid, Foster & Partners and Cedric...

HOT TIPS: Saatchi reopens.
October 3, 2008... The new-look 6,500sq m Saatchi Gallery, by Stirling Prize nominee Allford Hall Monaghan Morris, opens next week with an exhibition of new art from China. The gallery boasts the world's largest interactive exhibition, and entrance is free. ...

JONATHAN GLANCEY: Will recession bring revolution?
October 3, 2008... With banks and building societies being nationalised, the economic clock appears to be ticking backwards to the time when the state directed much of our national finances, industry and, yes, architecture. Such days, when the state and local...

THIS WEEK: NUCLEAR GLOW.
October 3, 2008... Nuclear power plants are better neighbours than you think. Those living nearby are more in favour of new stations being built in their area than the general populace of the UK, on account of having more trust in the operators. Copyright:...

THIS WEEK: PAPAL POWER.
October 3, 2008... The Vatican City is looking to the heavens for energy. Pope Benedict XVI has given the go-ahead for photovoltaic cells that convert sunlight into electricity to be installed on the Vatican roof. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

THIS WEEK: SCHOOLS SPLURGE.
October 3, 2008... When not entertaining the troops at the party conference, London mayor Boris Johnson is shaping up his schools policy. He has pledged #20 million for 10 new city academies in the capital, drawing on his chief of staff Simon Milton's...

THIS WEEK: FLAMING STUPID.
October 3, 2008... An 80-year-old's elaborate attempt to avoid the planning system by burning down his bungalow has backfired. Instead of the two-storey observatory with a telescope to look at the sea which the pensioner had wanted, he instead got twoand a half...

THIS WEEK: GREEN BLUSH.
October 3, 2008... The UK is blushingafter being ranked 31 out of 35 countries for cheap renewable power. The International Energy Agency calls its strategy "ineffective and very expensive". Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

Lords call for design to be at heart of planning bill.
October 10, 2008... Former architecture minister leads demands to make planners consider design quality Marguerite Lazell & Will Henley Design quality must be placed at the heart of the new planning bill, peers in the House of Lords demanded this week....

Murphy's law prevails as council overturns refusal.(Richard Murphy, Edinburgh City Council )(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Edinburgh City Council has overturned a recommendation to refuse planning permission for a house designed by and built for Richard Murphy. The controversial scheme for his proposed home in Hart Street, within the city's world heritage...

LEADER: Tough times need ingenuity.(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... LIZ BURY The housing and architecture ministers are taking the reins at a testing moment For a sector with not many women in it, lots of female faces popped up in high places this week. Margaret Beckett's housing brief is about as...

LEADER: At last, the RIBA hails Siza.(RIBA Gold Medal, Alvaro Siza )(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... About time too, will be many people's reaction to the news that Alvaro Siza is to be awarded this year's RIBA Gold Medal, a full 20 years after he won the Mies van der Rohe Award and 16 since he picked up the Pritzker. Never let it be said that...

IN BRIEF: Foster, Rogers join NT campaign.(Norman Foster, Richard Rogers, National Trust for Historic Preservation)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... A campaign to save John Vanbrugh's grade I listed masterpiece, Seaton Delaval Hall, has been boosted by support from Richard Rogers and Norman Foster. Last week, BD revealed that the National Trust had used the inspiration of BD's Robin...

IN BRIEF: AHMM's Saatchi gallery opens.
October 10, 2008... The new AHMM-designed Saatchi Gallery in the listed Duke of York's Headquarters building in Chelsea opened to the public on Thursday. The building has over 3,135sq m of gallery space, making it one of the world's largest private,...

IN BRIEF: Hopkins' exemplary aim for WWF.(Hopkins Architects, World Wide Fund for Nature)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Hopkins Architects isto design a UK headquarters for conservation body WWF-UK in Surrey that aims to be an exemplar of sustainable design. Bill Taylor, director at Hopkins, said: "WWF has set us a marvellous challenge to design a building...

IN BRIEF: Book at table for BD awards.
October 10, 2008... BD will celebrate the creme de la creme of UK architecture at the annual Architect of the Year Awards on 30 October at Park Lane's London Hilton. Architects in 14 specialties from affordable housingto education to retail will be vying for...

IN BRIEF: Siza wins RIBA Royal Gold Medal.(Alvaro Siza, Royal Institute of British Architects)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Portugal's Alvaro Siza has been awarded this year's RIBA Royal Gold Medal. Making the announcement at Tuesday's RIBA Council meeting, president Sunand Prasad said: "Alvaro Siza is simply a profoundly complete architect. "In Siza's...

Eyre and Wilkinson devolve control.
October 10, 2008... Wilkinson Eyre founders Jim Eyre and Chris Wilkinson have transferred company control and substantial shareholdings to the firm's board of directors as part of a "succession strategy" for the future. The internal restructuring sees...

Mayne warns Dubai set for `ecological disaster'.(Thom Mayne )
October 10, 2008... Pritzker Prize winner blames a lack of control by city's political class Phil Clark & Anna Winston Pritzker Prize winner Thom Mayne has predicted that Dubai will become an "ecological disaster" if development there continues in its...

WOODS BAGOT PLANS WORLD'S TALLEST TOWER.
October 10, 2008... The 1km-high tower, by developer Nakheel, would dwarf the 818m-high Burj Dubai, designed by SOM's Adrian Smith, and currently under construction. Part of a 270ha development known as New Dubai, the 200-storey building is expected to cost...

Downsizing threat to 2012 media centre.(Allies & Morrison's Olympic media centre)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Allies & Morrison's Olympic media centre could be replaced with a slimmed-down version in the Stratford City development, the ODA admitted this week. Speaking at a London Assembly meeting on Wednesday, ODA chief executive David Higgins...

St Patrick's bold plans.(Saint Patrick's College)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... RMJM, in collaboration with Irish practice Taylor Architects, has submitted plans for a #40 million redevelopment of St Patrick's College, the education department at Dublin City University. Four new buildings on the 11ha site in...

Radisson wins Carbuncle Cup.
October 10, 2008... The Radisson SAS Waterfront Hotel in Jersey by EPR Architects has won the wooden spoon in BD's Carbuncle Cup 2008. The Carbuncle - announced on the eve of the Stirling Prize for the best in contemporary British architecture - is voted for...

Cambridge gives 6a its first big UK commission.(Cambridge University)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Vikki Miller Up and coming practice 6a Architects has seen off a host of big names to land its first new-build project in the UK. The young firm secured the 60-unit student accommodation project at Cambridge University's Churchill...

Hidden hideaway wins planning as area's `best design statement'.
October 10, 2008... Architects Sarah Featherstone and Jeremy Young have designed an idyllic second home for themselves that takes full advantage of its riverside location in Pontfaen, a small Welsh hamlet. The #500,000 house was granted planning permission,...

EH lists its top 20 heritage projects.(English Heritage)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Liverpool's Bluecoat arts centre, King's Cross Central in London and Sheffield's Park Hill have been named in an English Heritage list of England's 20 best conservation-led developments. EH revealed the list - which includes Ryder HKS'...

Lottery Fund to give #4 million to Vindolanda Trust.(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... The latest funding round of the Heritage Lottery Fund will give #4 million to the Vindolanda Trust to transform the central section of Hadrian's Wall in Northumberland, and #5 million to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich to create a #35...

Bath adds a black splash.
October 10, 2008... Bath & North East Somerset Council has granted planning for Mitchell Taylor Workshop's complementary health clinic and martial arts centre in Bath city centre. The 680sq m project features cantilevered boxes over the river, with large...

Reed warns economy will undermine her promises.
October 10, 2008... Will Henley RIBA president-elect Ruth Reed has warned that the economic downturn is set to cut the RIBA's programme of activities, and could also make her election pledge of raising architects' incomes unachievable. In her election...

Welsh Assembly should use architects to cut CO2.
October 10, 2008... The Design Commission for Wales has called on the Welsh Assembly to use architects to help address the country's carbon reduction and house- building agenda. Speaking during a design charrette for Roath Basin Southside, the last major...

US to hold competition for new embassy in UK.(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... Anna Winston The US government is to launch an international competition for its new London embassy building after opting to leave its current Grosvenor Square base, by US-Finnish architect Eero Saarinen, which opened in 1960. The...

CZWG's Croydon citadel.(CZWG Architects)(Brief article)
October 10, 2008... CZWG has released the first images of Piers Gough's tallest-ever building, in the heart of Croydon. The Odalisk, a #350 million mixed-use scheme for developer Guildhouse- Rosepride, has two interlinked towers of 51 and 35 storeys each. The...