In designing a studio for a philosophy professor and writer in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, Erin Moore, of FLOAT Architectural Research and Design in Eugene, wanted to create a structure that would leave no permanent mark on the lush natural landscape.

The MacArthur Foundation recently announced it is injecting $32 million into the preservation and creation of affordable housing in the U.S. The organization is giving $9.5 million worth of grants, plus an additional $23 million in low-interest loans, to programs in 12 different states that approach the issue from various angles. MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton, during a February 26 press conference, cited a number of alarming statistics regarding affordable housing: a net loss of 1 million affordable homes over the last ten years, an 80 percent decline in government subsidies, and a standing deficit of 12 million units. “For many

President-elect Barack Obama was one of the most vocal advocates on the campaign trail for sustainability, with respect to both the environment and economic stimulus. The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has wasted no putting together a progressive green agenda to push in Washington, consisting of a variety of measures Obama has supported on record. The USGBC has singled out four major nodes on which to base an aggressive sustainability agenda. Green building is at the forefront, and Obama has proposed the expansion of federal grants that assist states and municipalities to build LEED-certified public buildings. Furthermore, Obama has planned

After two open comment periods on LEED 2009, formerly known as LEED V3, the new comprehensive standard has been revised and put to a vote. The first comment period opened up in March 2008, and due to the high volume of community response, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) implemented a second comment period in late March. After sifting through over 7,000 suggestions, as well as eight years of market and user responses, the USGBC posted the final revisions to the standard. Member balloting opened on Oct. 14, 2008, and will close at 5 PM EST on Friday, November 14.

Chicago just got a little colder as the end to a decades-long building boom has left two of the city’s tallest building projects stuck in limbo, leaving their owners scrambling to seek alternative methods of financing. Developers of the 1,047-ft-tall Waterview Tower and 2,000-ft-tall Chicago Spire bet that enough sales would come through before the market turned sour, but they lost that round—at least for now. Construction of the two supertall residential projects may be on hold until the market rebounds, but industry observers believe the buildings will not be left out in the cold forever. Photos © Tudor Van

The American Institute of Architects has released six new contract documents, five of which address integrated project delivery issues. The sixth is a first-edition “Building Information Modeling Protocol Exhibit” designed to help project organizers define their BIM development plan for integrated project delivery. It has features designed to help organizers define model management arrangements, as well as authorship, ownership and level-of-development requirements at various project phases for the many elements that must be placed into BIM as it evolves. “I believe the framework we have provided is as complete a solution as anyone can provide at this time,” says Bradley

In a white paper released last week, Michelle Kaufmann Designs, a California-based firm, laid out the case for a “sustainability” labeling system for houses that mimics the labeling system for packaged food.

The U.S. Green Building Council recently announced the 13 recipients of grants totaling $2 million. After identifying an alarming dearth of research in the field of sustainable design and construction, the USGBC created the Green Building grant program to further the development of sustainable building practices and increase green market share. The grants range from $90,000 to $250,000. Speaking of the winning proposals, USGBC president Rick Fedrizzi said that they “drive knowledge, policies, tools, and technologies and inspire corresponding industry and government-wide action.” The field of contenders was competitive and diverse, with 216 pre-proposals and 38 full proposals. The winning