Heat “Wave” in DC—Grassroots 2006 Gets Hot
On February 8, members of the AIA Executive Committee, the Council of Architectural Components Executives (CACE) Executive Committee, and AIA national staff started the 2006 Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., off on the right foot—er, hand—warming up the conference with a wave and salute to the AIA members they serve. AIArchitect will bring you updated highlights from the Grassroots conference in this issue and the next.

Welcome Session Sets Ambitious and Optimistic Tone for Grassroots 2006
Kicking off the welcome session of the AIA’s Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference, AIA First Vice President and Conference Chair RK Stewart, FAIA, outlined the next three days of the conference, themed on “advocacy, leadership, and knowledge.” “My hope is that we inspire one another to achieve more than we believed possible,” he said. Launching Stewart’s hope to a good start, the AIA’s new Executive Vice President/CEO Christine McEntee spoke about her wish for open communication and building on “One AIA,” and AIA President Kate Schwennsen, FAIA, addressed the “how, what, and who” changes necessary to reach our full potential.

(The Washington Post on February 7 published Kate Schwennsen’s letter to the editor under the banner “Forgetting the Pledge to New Orleans.” She described how 700 AIA architects would be visiting the Hill on February 9 to urge passage of H.R. 4100 to establish the Louisiana Recovery Corp. Read the text of Schwennsen’s letter.)

Four “Asks” Top Legislative Agenda: Health Plans, Community Restoration, La. Recovery Corp., Sustainable Design
Sens. Landrieu, Coleman offer advice for bringing issues home
Four major topics topped AIA members’ lists as they prepared to meet with their members of Congress on Capitol Hill on February 9, the AIA Grassroots Leadership and Legislative Conference’s annual Legislative Day. Of paramount concern to architects right now is legislation to: allow formation of association health plans to offer affordable insurance to small businesses; enhance the current historic rehabilitation tax credits; create the Louisiana Recovery Corporation, a federal entity that will purchase properties damaged by last year’s devastating hurricanes; as well as support for market-based incentives to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases nationwide.

Meet the 2007 Candidates for AIA National Office
Candidates for 2007 office delivered their initial campaign statements at the 2006 Grassroots and Legislative Conference on Friday morning, February 10, in Washington, D.C. From the left, the candidates are: George H. Miller, FAIA (for vice president); John C. Senhauser, FAIA (for first vice president); Marshall E. Purnell, FAIA (for first vice president); Glenn H. Fellows, AIA (for secretary); Miguel A. Rodriguez, AIA, (for vice president); David R. Proffitt, AIA (for secretary); and Paul D. Boney, FAIA, (for first vice president).

AIA QUARTERLY HOME DESIGN SURVEY
Residential Architects Report Strong Design Focus on Kitchens and Baths
Larger sizes, greater numbers, upscale features grow in popularity
Kitchens and bathrooms traditionally have been the areas in homes that get the most design attention, and this trend is unlikely to change anytime soon. Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA, reports that more than 40 percent of residential architecture firms participating in the AIA Home Design Survey indicate that the size of kitchens, as well as the size and number of bathrooms, is increasing in U.S. homes. Survey results also point to an easing in the homebuilding market following 2005’s record performance.

AIA Westchester/Mid-Hudson Honors 10 Outstanding Projects
AIA Westchester/Mid-Hudson honored 10 outstanding projects for design excellence at its annual “Celebration of Architecture” Gala last November. The jury comprised Chair Andrew Tung, Esq.; Jhane Barnes; David Busch, AIA; Scott Hollas AIA; and Susan Rodriguez, FAIA. The chapter’s board of directors also awarded two special honors: the first annual “Celebration of Architecture” award to ESTO Photographics and a special posthumous “Service to the Profession” award to Louis Goodman, longtime head of the New Rochelle (N.Y.) Building Department.

Demographic Data Analysis Affirms Anecdote and Perception
An audit of existing research and demographic data concerning the architecture profession conducted by the Holland & Knight Corporate Diversity Counseling Group for the AIA affirmed what many believed through anecdote and perception: that the barriers to diversity within the profession are remarkably similar to those identified as barriers to the growth of the profession in general. The authors call the report a “significant first step” in a process of “systemic, persistent, long-term efforts to diversify the profession that will require cultural transformation across the continuum of architecture education, internship, licensure/registration, practice, and professional development.”

“A House for an Ecologist” Ideas Competition Registration Due March 1
Entries due March 31
The AIA Committee on Design and the Committee on the Environment challenge architects and students everywhere to propose a unique dwelling that “combines integrity and inspiration.” The program calls for a live/work dwelling for an ecologist in residence at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on the grounds of the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, W.Va. (The NCTC also is the site for the Architecture of Sustainability conference to be held May 4–7.) The campus sits on Terrapin Neck along the West Virginia shore of the Potomac River. For more information, visit the COD Web site.

Project watch
Watergate Hotel to Be Converted into Luxury Residences
The Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C., part of a mixed-use complex adjacent to the Kennedy Center and overlooking the Potomac River, will undergo a renovation that will transform the 13-story, 251-room property into 96 world-class luxury residences. Washington D.C.-based developer Monument Realty has hired the Dallas and Washington D.C.-based architecture firm ForrestPerkins to be the lead interior design architecture firm on the project. The Watergate Hotel’s luxury residences are expected to be completed by summer 2007.

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only, AIA.org login required)
The economy: Not much of a slow-down, but expect less spending from middle-income earners.
Business costs: Lower tariffs will increase supplies of cheaper Mexican cement; lumber and plywood will be more affordable, too.
White House: State of the Union promises of increased funding for alternative energy are likely to bear fruit.
AIArchitect offers AIA members exclusive access to three stories a week to help them manage their practices and plan for the coming year. Nonmembers may subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.

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