Renovating an Industry
from The New York Times
In a business where tradition can squelch creative ways of doing things, it is often difficult to introduce fresh ideas, but the economy is encouraging experimentation. Designers who say they are doing well in the recession are taking risks and changing the way they do business. More

29 Great Solutions to Clients' Building Issues
from Building Design & COnstruction
The editors of Building + Construction have compiled a list of inventive and innovative ways that builders and designers are addressing some of the most complex problems and issues clients face today. More

Credit Crunch Delays Hotel Development
from Hospitality Design Magazine
According to Lodging Econometrics' latest report on Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, worldwide economic turmoil, unsurprisingly, continues to squeeze the region's hotel construction pipeline. With the credit market still out of reach for most developers, hotel properties that should have moved into the construction start phase have either been delayed or confined to the early planning phase. In the first quarter of this year, 116 projects throughout EMEA were delayed or called off altogether. More

Winners of the 2009 Business Week/Architectural Record Awards Announced
from the Architectural Record
Business Week and Architectural Record announce the winners of the 12th annual "Good Design is Good Business" Awards. An urban park in Houston, a law office in London, and a university restaurant in Los Angeles are among the winners. More

Georgia Tech Proposes Big "D" Degree
from Georgia Tech College of Architecture
Recognizing the increased interdisciplinary nature of design work of all kinds, the College of Architecture at Georgia Tech has proposed to the university’s Board of Regents a four-year bachelor of science degree in Design that would prepare students for graduate professional degrees in architecture, building construction, city and regional planning, and industrial design. It would also be open to students planning to pursue graduate degrees in law, business, and public policy who seek an introduction to the issues that face the designed and built environment. The proposal has already sparked opposition from some faculty and alumni. More

Commercial Real Estate Valuation Slid in First Half of 2009
from Commercial Property Executive
U.S. commercial property valuations have dropped more in the first six months of 2009 than in all of 2008, according to a report by the Investment Property Databank. Office and industrial properties took the hardest hit, tumbling 18.2 percent, while (somewhat counter-intuitively) retail properties dropped less that 14.1 percent. Pressure on the market, however, appears to be easing. More

Architecture for Humanity Announces Finalists for Design Challenge
from Interiors & Sources
Eight teams were recently recognized as finalists of the 2009 Open Architecture Challenge: Classroom. Finalists submitted designs ranging from an outdoor classroom for children in inner-city Chicago, learning spaces for the children of salt pan workers in India, safe spaces for youth in Bogota, Colombia, and a bamboo classroom in the Himalayan mountains. More

Flexible Fridge Passes as Urban Furniture
from PSFK.com
Samsung is offering a refrigerator that resembles a piece of furniture and can be oriented either horizontally or vertically. Is it a harbinger of what’s to come as the popularity of small, open spaces increases with urban dwellers? More

Applying the Lessons of Retail to Restaurant Design
from L.A. Weekly
Architect Barbara Bestor fell into restaurant design, but found that her experience in designing retail spaces, as well as residential and commercial environments, put her in touch with the people issues involved. More

Flow Kitchen Minimizes Waste, Maximizes Sustainability
from Inhabitat
Oregon-based Studio Gorm has created a complete kitchen in which energy is conserved and cooking waste is recycled and used to grow plants. Dubbed the flow kitchen, the design successfully integrates nature and technology into a system where drying dishes helps water plants and composting food waste helps to fertilize them. More