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Today's News - Thursday, June 26, 2008

-- Skepticism lingers over plans for Toronto's waterfront.
-- Hume says there's never been a better time to visit the city.
-- Saffron hopes Philadelphia will finally take PennPraxis waterfront plan seriously.
-- Fears that U.K.'s eco-town plans might lead to eco-slums.
-- Zandberg finds debate over Calatrava's bridge in Jerusalem has pushed more important issues about the project to the sidelines.
-- There's no question that his projects in NYC and Jerusalem "are expressions of urban ambition" - but NYC is "in a better position to afford such hubristic follies," yet it's still struggling.
-- Prasad takes on Jenkins in defending Robin Hood Gardens.
-- Rose says don't knock Brutalism; maybe it's time to come up with a new name.
-- Pei's Silver Towers: some find hideous, others say they're important examples of postwar modernism.
-- Gensler gets the nod for Shanghai Dragon - to be China's tallest tower (for now, anyway).
-- Glancey on the Dynamic Tower: "With enough money, there's no reason why it can't work" (if sandstorms play nice).
-- ECB's HQ hits a snag - finding a contractor to build it.
-- Another thumbs-up for Libeskind's Contemporary Jewish Museum: there's "a lightness to this project that is rare in the architect's work."
-- Final designs unveiled for first slide of NYC's High Line.
-- It's good to recycle salvaged fixtures, but there's a Catch-22, warns Gellner.
-- Call for entries: Design Exchange Awards. -- University of Baltimore to launch competition for law center (we'll try to find details).
-- We couldn't resist: an eyeful of Foster's fleet of yachts.

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Toronto's City in the Sand: How big is 2,000 acres? Waterfront Toronto...has been planning the remediation and redevelopment of this vast stretch of industrial and (mostly) former industrial land as a mixed-use, green-oriented project – essentially a new city...there’s still lingering skepticism about whether any or all of such a large project is actually going to happen.- The Slatin Report

Hip and sophisticated? Say hello to the new T.O.: In the past five years Toronto has added a number of visible gems to its landscape...There's never been a better time to visit the city. By Christopher Hume -- Alsop; Gehry; Libeskind- Toronto Star

Call to reform Penn's Landing Corp.: PennPraxis' plan for the Delaware waterfront is expected to turn on a major reconstitution of the faltering agency...Harris Steinberg stressed...would be only a vehicle for achieving other goals outlined in...10-point action plan...intended to deliver quick results before city residents lost heart again. By Inga Saffron- Philadelphia Inquirer

Report warns of 'eco-slums': Local Government Association attacks the way eco-towns programme is bypassing the planning system..."the whole concept is just greenwash"...- Building (UK)

Heat over troubled bridge: In the heat of the dispute over the external appearance of the bridge...is the much more important issue which has been pushed to the sidelines: the question of the light rail line itself, and what it will, or will not, do to Jerusalem. By Esther Zandberg -- Santiago Calatrava- Ha`aretz (Israel)

Don't lower the bridge, raise the city to its heights: It's a sobering thought that New York City...is also struggling with the ambitious scope of a Calatrava project, even as the capital dedicated its own last night...There's no question that both are expressions of urban ambition, although NYC is arguably in a better position to afford such hubristic follies than Jerusalem... [slide show]- Jerusalem Post

This estate wasn't designed by cynics - it reinvented social housing: The architects of Robin Hood Gardens had people and their personal space in mind...Simon Jenkins' condemnation...may entertain but contributes little to the debate about the re-use of historic buildings... By Sunand Prasad -- Peter and Alison Smithson- Guardian (UK)

Don't knock brutalism: This stark architectural style became synonymous with 70s ugliness, but is it about to undergo a Renaissance? Perhaps Birmingham Central Library and Robin Hood Gardens are also just a makeover away from becoming national treasures. Maybe...we'll realize that brutalism wasn't so bad after all. Perhaps it just needs a new name. By Steve Rose -- John Madin (1974); Alison and Peter Smithson (1972) [links]- Guardian (UK)

A Picasso Muse Wants to Protect Pei Towers: Some fans of Jane Jacobs’s philosophy of urban spaces find Silver Towers hideous. Others see the towers as important examples of postwar modernism. -- I.M. Pei (1966)- New York Times

580 m Shanghai Dragon to be China's tallest skyscraper: The new Shanghai Center...with 118 floors of steel, concrete and glass, will tower over the nearby Pudong landmarks... -- Gensler [image]- Danwei (China)

Bored by the view? Why not take your flat for a spin? Will the Dynamic Tower ever happen? ...With enough money, there's no reason why it can't work...Hunger for architectural novelty is growing... By Jonathan Glancey -- David Fisher- Guardian (UK)

ECB's new home on hold: Euopean Central Bank says contractor estimates far exceeded budget...plans for a new 43-floor headquarters have hit a snag -- finding a contractor to build it. -- Coop Himmelb(l)au- Wall Street Journal

Daniel Libeskind Opens A Jewish Museum for All: There is a lightness to this project that is rare in the architect's work...Contemporary Jewish Museum...shifts in tone as the light changes and relieves the surrounding district's glass and steel tourist-mall monotony. [slide show]- Wall Street Journal

City Unveils Final Plan on First Slice of the High Line: The park — modeled loosely on the Promenade Plantée in Paris...stretches 22 blocks -- Field Operations; Diller Scofidio + Renfro [slide show]- New York Times

It's good to recycle salvaged fixtures, but do they stand up to current codes? ...well-intentioned green builders caught in a classic Catch-22: many progressive cities encourage the recycling of building materials, yet as a matter of administrative practice they make their use either economically impractical or else outright illegal. By Arrol Gellner- San Francisco Chronicle

Call for entries: Design Exchange Awards, presented by Canadian Business; early bird deadline: July 31- DX/Design Exchange (Toronto)

Design competition due for University of Baltimore law center: ...to pay three finalists $50,000 each to take part in a competition....enticements to bring in highly sought-after designers who might not pursue a project in Baltimore without that level of compensation. By Edward Gunts- Baltimore Sun

Foster designs a fleet of yachts - down to the teaspoons: ...has extended his brand still further by designing yachts for a new timeshare venture. [images]- The Architects' Journal (UK)

INSIGHT: Bowling Alone in Urbanistaville: Is living in suburbia the social antidote? By Richard Carson- ArchNewsNow

-- Foster + Partners: Elephant House, Copenhagen Zoo, Copenhagen, Denmark
-- Zaha Hadid Architects: Guggenheim Hermitage Museum, Vilnius, Lithuania

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