Above is an aerial photo of Baltimore showing some official green space and some potential alley green space - in green - quite a web if coordinated to work together!
‘Community Greens‘ is an organization which supports the ‘development of shared green spaces inside residential blocks in cities across the United States’ by taking the stand [...]
‘Community Greens’: Greening Baltimore’s Alleys
Ivanhoe Reservoir: Solving a problem / Illustrating another
Problem
Ivanhoe Reservoir (Los Angeles, California) has a problem. Bright sunlight, chlorine and natural bromides combined together to form the carcinogen bromate and now Ivanhoe Reservoir is contaminated. The only way to effectively remove the chemical is to drain the entire body of water and clean the bottom surface to remove all the bromate. In the [...]
Architecture School: A Documentary Series
Medical interns, fashion designers, criminals, apprentices, lumberjacks, crab fishermen, ice road truck drivers, have-been celebrities, and pet whisperers have all found a place in the bizarre world of reality television. We have followed their lives season after season and can now relate personally and emotionally with their struggles. Why is it that I can now [...]
Dongtan Eco-city
Dongtan, a entirely new city being developed by the Shanghai Industrial Investment Corporation (SIIC), is designed to be the first eco-city, sustainable environmentally, socially, economically and culturally.
The goal as stated by engineering and planning firm ARUP is to “create a development with low energy consumption that is as close to carbon neutral as possible.”
The island [...]
Consumers want Sustainable Communities!
A recent report by the AIA highlights trends in the housing market. The report, written by Kermit Baker and published in AIArchitect, concludes that:
With rising energy costs and longer commutes, community and neighborhood design trends are favoring greater diversity of land uses and increased accessibility to transportation and commercial opportunities. Homes are being designed to [...]
Farmadelphia
The “Urban Voids Grounds for Change” competition in 2006 (sponsored by the Philadelphia City Parks Association and the Van Allen Institute) sought to find a “compelling long-term vision for developing [Philadelphia's] vacant lots. This particular entry, named Farmadelphia, was submitted by Yen Ha and Michi Yanagisita of Front Studio. They describe their project as:
Farmadelphia proposes [...]
One Park: A Vision for Baltimore
One Park is a visionary master plan for creating a network of interconnected parks, boulevards, bike paths, and pedestrian ways throughout the city of Baltimore. The plan was conceived by the Parks and People Foundation of Baltimore as a way to “(allow every citizen) to benefit from a green network of open space.” Their [...]
Brownfield: Definition
What is a Brownfield?
The question came up in a meeting I attended last week while discussing the reasons behind the lack of LEED Certification. Here is the fruit of my research regarding the definition of a Brownfield.
General Definition:
According to Wikipedia, brownfields “are abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or [...]
High Point Neighborhood in Seattle
High Point is a new “green” neighborhood redevelopment project managed by the Seattle Housing Authority. This national award-winning design focuses on community and environmental sustainability, creating a safe, high quality and healthy residential environment. The completed project will contain a wide range of housing types each built to Green standards. The plan is designed to [...]
Dry Food Waste - Somnus Method by Lars Smedlund
A Swedish inventor has developed a way to remove most of the water content from food waste. That is significant because food waste, the organic material thrown out of kitchens everyday, is typically composed of up to 75% water when it is put into the garbage. The water present in the organic material causes [...]