Welcome to San Diego and the AIA National Convention and Exposition 2003!
We created a special section of AIArchitect just for convention news and we will update it frequently as the news comes in.

WORK-ON-THE-BOARDS
Architecture Firms Report Further Business Improvement in April
With tighter conditions, firms’ leaders focus on project management, business development
U.S. architecture firms reported an improvement in billings in April, continuing a recovery that began just in March of this year. Overall, a quarter of firms surveyed reported an increase in billings of 5 percent or more as compared to March levels, and 18 percent reported declines.

What You Think:
AIA Members Respond to Grassroots Poll Questions
In March, Grassroots Leadership Conference participants expressed their opinions on six topics—architecture education, financial alignment, the profession, communications, knowledge, and membership—during the annual Issues Forum. Following are responses to the same questions by AIA members who have responded to electronic polls offered in AIArchitect over the past six weeks. The number of questions varies per topic, as do the number of AIA members who answered them. Responses are presented as percentages of total responses received per question.

Design & Build Rochester Announces 2003 Design Awards
Design & Build Rochester, a collaborative effort of AIA Rochester (N.Y.), Builders Exchange Inc., the Construction Specifications Institute, and the Landmark Society of Western New York, announced this year’s seven design-award winners in four categories: preservation, new construction, un-built, and urban design.

PROJECT WATCH
Great American Ball Park Brings Nostalgia, Modern
Amenities to Cincinnati
The denizens of Cincinnati recently celebrated the opening of the latest addition to the Ohio Riverfront: the Great American Ball Park, by architects HOK Sport + Venue + Events and GBBN Architects, with project manager Parsons Brinckerhoff. The $280 million ballpark, which seats 42,000 people, is part of the city’s “Renaissance on the River,” the other cultural and recreational attractions of which include Paul Brown Stadium and the National Underground Railroad Center. The architects took great care to make the brick-and-stone, steel-frame structure and grounds express the tradition and history of baseball in Cincinnati, which was home to the first professional team in the country. The stands call to mind Crosley Field, the stadium the Reds called home from 1912 to 1979.

Like many ballparks built early in the 20th century, the Great American Ballpark makes use of a traditional break on the left-field line in the otherwise contiguous seating bowl, known as “the gap.” The park and grounds will soon incorporate “Crosley Terrace,” a one-acre plaza where bronze Crosley-era players will play eternally on a grass diamond. The west edge of the site eventually will house a Reds Hall of Fame, replete with a rose garden and a plaque to mark the exact spot where Pete Rose’s 4,192nd hit landed. Construction of these adjacent areas, to be built on the now-cleared site of the Reds’ former Cinergy Field, are slated for completion in July 2004.

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only)
AIArchitect links members to three stories a week from the pages of the renowned Kiplinger Letter. (Nonmembers may subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.)
Business Costs: Shipping rates to go up for trucking (6%), transpacific shipping (10%), and rail (3%). Continued dip in office rents means renters can afford space upgrades. The Economy: An expected 300,000 new jobs this year as economy gradually improves. Iraq War Fallout: U.S.-Russia relations won’t improve anytime soon.

Need to catch up on recent editions of AIArchitect This Week?
April 14 | April 21 | April 28 | May 5

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