St.Louis Gateway Arch upgrade to cost $578 million

Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates(MVVA) recently presented the update plans for the Gateway Arch upgrade and a new estimate of $578.5 million was announced almost double the 2009 estimate (Parks Estimate before the Design Competition). The design has been updated since MVVA won the competition  in September and  has added key features such as the aerial gondola and a ‘lid’ on the I-70 interstate road.

Read more at stltoday.com

HNTB & MVVA win ARC Wildlife Crossing Competition


Announced in Washington DC at the Transportation Research Board’s Annual Conference on January 23rd, 2011, the ARC jury of internationally-respected professionals with expertise in design, ecology, and engineering selected the team led by HNTB with Michael Van Valkenburgh & Associates (New York) as the winner of the ARC International Design Competition.

Continue reading HNTB & MVVA win ARC Wildlife Crossing Competition

ARC Wildlife Crossing Design Competition Designs revealed

The ARC International Wildlife Crossing Infrastructure Design Competition unveiled its five finalist designs for a next generation wildlife crossing at West Vail Pass. The first-ever international design competition is intended to solve the problem of ensuring safe travel for humans and wildlife. Collisions between vehicles and wildlife have increased by 50 percent in the past 15 years threatening human and wildlife safety, and costing Americans $8 billion dollars annually.

The  ARC International Wildlife Crossing Infrastructure Design Competition has selected five finalist teams to progress to Phase 2 of the competition, commencing September 7th, 2010. The finalist teams were chosen from 36 team submissions from nine countries, representing over 100 firms worldwide. The five teams in contention include more than a dozen firms in four countries.

The five finalist teams are:

ARC Vail - Balmori

Balmori Associates (New York)

Continue reading ARC Wildlife Crossing Design Competition Designs revealed

Land News 18 Nov 2010

James Howard Kunstler: The World is Going to Get Rounder and Bigger Again

Chris Martenson of Business Insider interviews James Howard Kunstler about oil, food, neighborhoods, economy and energy. The best quote from the interview

It ought to be self-evident. I mean, compare Phoenix and Portland, Oregon. Phoenix is utterly toast in a few years. They can’t grow any food there without expensive and heroic irrigation. They have water problems. They’re slaves to their cars. They’re in a place where even the hamburger flippers need air-conditioning to survive. It’s quite hopeless there. Portland, on the other hand, has turned itself into one of the finest walkable cities in the USA……

Read the full article at [Business Insider]

Rust Belt Cities Demolish Homes as Foreclosures Blight Cleveland, Detroit [Bloomberg]
Cleveland’s population has been shrinking for 60 years as the city lost manufacturing jobs. Now, after more than 33,000 foreclosures since 2005, it’s demolishing hundreds of deserted, derelict homes.

Lane-storming: Cities drive new ideas about public space [Globe&Mail]
A line has been drawn in the battle over city streets. On a busy Manhattan morning this spring, a comedy troupe drew a chalk divide down the edge of Fifth Avenue, creating one lane for “tourists” and another for “New Yorkers.” It was just a joke, but the news quickly spread around the world and inspired copycat initiatives.

College unveils Landscape Master Plan [Miscellany News] to be officially revealed next week

According to Urbanski, Van Valkenburgh (MVVA) approaches each institution individually, looking for a custom fit. “We don’t have a formulaic approach,” he said, “and that’s a loaded statement.” This approach, he said, separates Van Valkenburgh from other similar companies.

Shops and cafes along state roads of Armenia to have single architectural style
uring the November 18 sitting, the Armenian government approved introduction of a catalogue for architectural designs of trade and service facilities located at territories adjacent to the state and international roads.

Surbana International Consultants win Skyrise Greenery Awards 2010 [World Architecture News]

Seattle’s live-work spaces: Commuting is such a breeze [Crosscut]

Green roofs and rooftop gardens [KYPost]

MVVA wins Gateway Arch Competition

MVVA TEAM Site Plan

MVVA TEAM Site Plan

The multi-disciplinary team lead by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates have been selected over the other 4 teams to proceed to the planning stage of the competition. The jury chose the MVVA Team over four others competing to enliven the area around the Gateway Arch and connect it to downtown St. Louis, the Mississippi River and the Illinois bank. Based in New York, MVVA’s portfolio includes the redesign of Pennsylvania Avenue at the White House, the design of Brooklyn Bridge Park and many other prominent projects.

The MVVA Team’s design concept narrative describes their vision for the redesigned park as a “centerpiece of civic culture, an engine of regional economic growth, a showcase for sustainable ecological restoration and a celebration of the national significance of this historic place.”

MVVA TEAM - Historic Landscape Pond

MVVA TEAM – Historic Landscape Pond

The sponsoring group, the MVVA Team and others will host intensive reviews and workshops this fall to analyze the design concept and conduct a more detailed design exploration. At a minimum, the study will focus on the review of the technical advisory group, the impact on related downtown park properties and the Illinois side of the river, traffic and transportation and federal compliance issues.

For the next stage the MVVA tean will work over a 90-day period, in partnership with the sponsors, the City of St. Louis, the National Park Service and others to further define program requirements; begin developing a design that takes into account the feasibility and practicality of proposed solutions; create a construction budget and fundraising plan; and define the delivery expectations from now until 2015.  The sponsors also will study issues relating to cost and construction, traffic, financial resources and federal compliance.

The project will be constructed by Oct. 28, 2015, the 50th anniversary of the completion of the Arch.

For those of you in St.Louis the leaders of the MVVA team will be introduced, along with details on the next stages of the process, at 10:00 a.m., Friday, Sept. 24, 2010, at the Old Courthouse in downtown St. Louis.

SOURCE: The City+The Arch+The River 2015 International Design Competition

For Full MVVA team list

Continue reading MVVA wins Gateway Arch Competition

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