Hudson Yards, a series of buildings to be built over the rail yards on Manhattan's West Side, will add a new neighborhood with the population of downtown Detroit to the Big Apple

Can Architects Create a New Neighborhood of Skyscrapers in New York? Image:

By Greg Lindsay

Hudson Yards, a series of buildings to be built over the rail yards on Manhattan's West Side, will add a new neighborhood with the population of downtown Detroit to the Big Apple. How do you create a city within a city?

While thousands of New Yorkers struggle to rebuild in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, a much larger project is poised to begin construction on a new neighborhood from scratch on the city's west side. The Manhattan-based developer The Related Companies expects to break ground this month on Hudson Yards, the $15 billion city-within-a-city built atop a platform over the eponymous rail yards. Cities built from scratch have been popping up in Asia, but what will happen to New York when it adds an entire new high-rise city into an already thriving metropolis?

We will soon find out. The mega-project reportedly received its first $400 million of financing last month to cover phase one of what will eventually include 12 million square feet of offices, condos, hotels and retail enfolded into a quartet of towers--the tallest of which will rise higher than the Empire State Building. Picture Columbus Circle's Time Warner Center (another Related project) scaled up and re-conceived in Rockefeller Center's image.

Related chairman Stephen Ross has drafted a passel of architects to bring the projection to fruition, including Elizabeth Diller of starchitects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the consummate showman David Rockwell, and Skidmore Owings and Merrill partner David Childs, who designed One World Trade Center. But the task of master planning a neighborhood from scratch has fallen to the less flashy firm of Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, best known as the builder of such "supertall" skyscrapers as Shanghai's 1,614-ft. World Financial Center or Hong Kong's 1,588-ft. International Commerce Center.

Hudson Yards may shock New Yorkers with its instant addition of a neighborhood the size of downtown Detroit to the north end of the Highline, but this is exactly what KPF--among legions of other western architects have been doing in Asia for years. "This isn't really a supertall," KPF co-founder Bill Pedersen said while glancing at a model of the project in his office; Manhattan's skyline has some catching-up to do. While Pedersen insists the plan for Hudson Yards "is pure New York," i.e. not a New York version of the Korean city New Songdo, the project bears unmistakable traces of the firm's decade-long building spree abroad.

The project's closest predecessor, for instance, might be Tokyo's Roppongi Hills--a similarly supersized live-work-play development that opened in 2003. Like Hudson Yards, Roppongi Hills was built largely at the insistence of one man, the late real estate tycoon Minoru Mori, who dedicated the Mori Tower's uppermost floors to an arts center and museum. And like Mori, Related's Ross has expressed a similar personal interest in making culture a centerpiece of the project, including both the "Culture Shed," a city-managed arts complex designed by Diller and Rockwell, and a public monument which so far only exists in Ross' head.

Of the two towers designed by KPF, one will host the headquarters of Coach (with an assist from creative director Reed Krakoff), while the taller will boast a cantilevered observation deck, hotel, and other amenities at the top reminiscent of the firm's work at the World Financial Center. Shanghai's tallest skyscraper contains a Park Hyatt (formerly the world's highest hotel) and an observation deck running the length of the "can opener," including vertiginous glass panels in the floor on which visitors are invited to jump. (They're several feet thick.)

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Can Architects Create a New Neighborhood of Skyscrapers in New York?

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The American Society of Landscape Architects has released its 2013 Awards Call for Entries for the 2013 professional and student awards, the premiere awards programs for the profession. Award recipients will receive featured coverage in the October issue of Landscape Architecture Magazine and in many other design and construction industry and general-interest media. Award recipients, their clients, and student advisors also will be honored at the awards presentation ceremony during the ASLA Annual Meeting and EXPO in Boston, November 1518, 2013. The award-winning projects will be featured in a video presentation at the ceremony and on the awards website following the event.

The prestige of the ASLA awards programs relies on the high-caliber juries that are convened each year to review submissions. Members of this years professional awards jury are:

Members of the student awards jury are:

Both the ASLA Professional and Student awards feature five categories: General Design; Residential Design; Analysis and Planning; Communications; and Research (the Professional Awards are co-sponsored by the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture). The Professional Awards also include The Landmark Award, while the Student Awards include the Student Community Service Award and Student Collaboration categories.

Entry forms and payment must be received by:

Submission binders must be received by:

In need of inspiration? View the ASLA 2012 professional and student award-winning projects.

About the American Society of Landscape Architects

Founded in 1899, the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is the national professional association for landscape architects, representing nearly 16,000 members in 49 professional chapters and 76 student chapters. The Society's mission is to lead, to educate and to participate in the careful stewardship, wise planning and artful design of our cultural and natural environments. Members of the Society use their ASLA suffix after their names to denote membership and their commitment to the highest ethical standards of the profession. Learn more about landscape architecture online at http://www.asla.org.

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ASLA 2013 Awards Call for Entries

Originally published November 27, 2012 at 9:02 PM | Page modified November 28, 2012 at 6:08 PM

The new Seattle sports arena proposed for the Sodo neighborhood will be a landmark building with a strong sense of place, architects told a city Design Review Board Tuesday night.

Brad Schrock, senior principal for 360 Architecture, which is designing the new facility, said arenas in the past were "black boxes" with little connection to their surroundings.

"They weren't good neighbors. ... We're doing everything we can to encourage connection on all sides of the building so it becomes a gateway and a beacon," Schrock said.

Other architects on the design team said they wanted "transparency" inside the arena so that fans could see out to Mount Rainier and the cranes along the waterfront and locate themselves in the city.

The arena design team released conceptual drawings earlier this month of a 725,000-square-foot arena that seated 18,000 to 20,000 people. The detailed architectural drawings are expected to be released Friday.

The Design Review Board questioned how pedestrians could access the facility using public transit that was mostly located along Fourth Avenue South on the opposite side of train tracks. They also questioned how the arena would sustain activity in the neighborhood even when events weren't scheduled.

The architects said they plan strong pedestrian connections along First Avenue South and Occidental Avenue South. They said they also plan a restaurant or bar along First Avenue South.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com. On Twitter @lthompsontimes.

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Architects visualize new Sodo arena as a 'good neighbor'

The Landscape Legacy of the Olympics, Part 9: The Olympic Soil Strategy
An interview with Tim O #39;Hare of Tim O #39;Hare Associates. This is the ninth of a series of ten interviews on the role of Landscape Architects in the Olympic Games. To find out more visit: http://www.landscapeinstitute.org Use the links below to skip to a specific question: 0:14 How did you get involved with the Olympic Project? 0:38 When did you apply for the work? 1:11 Describe your involvement at each stage of the project. 3:14 Briefly outline the soil strategy you developed. 7:11 How many types of soil were required? 8:23 How did the soil cope with the adverse weather conditions before the games started? 8:57 How much soil was used to construct the landscape scheme throughout the Olympic Park? 9:24 Why was subsoil such an important part of the design? 10:26 Was the soil strategy site wide or were different parts of the park treated differently? 11:05 How was the soil strategy implemented? 12:30 What kind of research or experimentation did you need to do to develop your solution/strategy? 13:20 Were any of the soil trials carried out onsite? 13:36 How much topsoil was recycled/created through the remediation process? 14:20 Explain the topsoil manufacturing process. 15:35 Where did the other soils come from? 15:48 What materials are taken from the quarries? 16:19 How did the soil reach the Olympic site? 17:19 What was your role during the construction phase of the landscape scheme? 18:28 What areas do you think have not been successful or could be improved? 19:17 What innovations ...From:landscapeinstituteukViews:0 0ratingsTime:31:23More inEducation

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The Landscape Legacy of the Olympics, Part 10: Writing an Olympic Brief
An interview with Peter Neal FLI and Annie Coombs FLI. Annie was tasked with drafting the original brief for the Olympic Park and Peter is co-author of #39;The Making of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park #39;. A book which reveals the philosophical context and technical insights that went into the creation of this sustainable and contemporary urban park of international significance. This is the last of a series of ten interviews on the role of Landscape Architects in the Olympic Games. To find out more visit: http://www.landscapeinstitute.org Use the links below to skip to a specific question: 0:12 How and when did you get involved with the Olympic Project and what was your role? 3:35 What were the past Olympic precedents that informed the design of the Park? 5:04 What were the central ingredients of the vision for the Park? 10:15 What was the process in drafting the design brief and what were the key elements? 20:00 How did the ODA choose to structure an integrated design team and how did the various design teams collaborate to deliver a highly integrated scheme? 28:07 What was the role of design advisors and the value of the design reviews? 32:08 How were you involved with or how did you contribute to the procurement of the Landscape? 35:40 What are the lessons from the Olympics in preparing design briefs for future urban landscapes and what are the lessons on procurement? 43:06 How do you think the Olympic Park will influence the design of 21st Century Parks and in fifty years time ...From:landscapeinstituteukViews:1 0ratingsTime:01:09:08More inEducation

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Concepts Middle East 2013 - naseba
Concepts Middle East is a professional design conference designed specifically for time restricted purchasing professionals seeking new concepts and solutions. This focused gathering provides the ideal platform for design professionals and international suppliers to meet and establish lucrative business relationships. In three previous editions, over 90 interior fit-out and sustainable equipment suppliers networked with more than 550 architects, interior designers, construction consultants and fit-out specifiers -- securing both immediate business and quality leads.From:nasebaTVViews:0 0ratingsTime:01:37More inTravel Events

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The Cavern 2012.wmv
CSKO Architects #39; 2012 year end function at The Cavern in the Drakensberg mountains of Kwazulu Natal, South Africa. csko.co.zaFrom:John Mc FiresViews:1 0ratingsTime:08:26More inTravel Events

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Bere architects, Ebbw Vale future homes - Lime house Soft Landings workshop
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Floating Cemetery Proposal in Hong Kong
See the new floating cemetery proposal in Hong Kong. Many areas around the world are complaining about space crunch when it comes to cemetery plots. Now, a new cemetery in Hong Kong could be placed in an unusual spot. The design firm, Bread Studio is proposing an Offshore Cemetery, which is essentially a floating area for the deceased. Dubbed #39;Floating Eternity #39;, the structure will house 370000 compartments which will hold urns containing human remains. The wall containing the niches will rotate, allowing the maximum amount of urns to be held. The floating cemetery is modeled similar to a cruise ship and it would dock at a designated pier on the coastline. The moving walls utilize a rail track, which is empowered by tidal power. The walls rotate slowly and they are positioned at an angle towards the cruise deck, revealing a beautiful view of the sea. The floating cemetery also boasts several amenities including a restaurant on the lower level and a grass deck for visitors of the deceased to enjoy a picnic. The architects state that Floating Eternity is "far more sustainable than reclamation and offers serenity and breath-taking scenery which inland could compete with". What do you think of the idea?From:geobeatsViews:8 1ratingsTime:01:13More inTravel Events

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Skyscraper Design Resembles Crumbling Building
This new Bangkok skyscraper will resemble a crumbling building. Designers and architects are constantly pushing the boundaries of skyscrapers #39; design. Soon to be constructed in Bangkok is a luxury skyscraper dubbed MahaNakhon. The structure will stand 77 stories high on a 3.6 acre site in the central business district of the city. The look is rather unique as the building appears as though it is crumbling. The architect states "With its distinctive sculptural appearance, MahaNakhon has been carefully carved to introduce a three-dimensional ribbon of architectural #39;pixel #39; that circle the tower #39;s full height, as if excavating portions of the elegant glass curtain wall to reveal the inner life of the building. The design for MahaNakhon dismantles the typical tower and podium typology to render not a tower in isolation but instead a skyscraper that melds with the city by gradually #39;dissolving #39; the mass as it moves vertically between ground and sky." The skyscraper base and surrounding grounds will house luxury retail shops and fine dining along with indoor and outdoor visually appealing terraces. How do you like it?From:GeoBeatsNewsViews:1 1ratingsTime:01:08More inNews Politics

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