work-on-the-boards
Business Upturn at Firms Becoming More Broadly Based
Eleven percent of firms use offshore outsourcing, generally to balance workloads
Architecture firms reported even further improvements in business conditions in April, according to AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. Overall, 29 percent of firms indicated that their billings had significantly increased, while 17 percent reported a comparable decline. Overall billings have increased every month this year, and in some cases the increase has been very dramatic. Current business conditions also have prompted an increase in offshore outsourcing.

Senate Passes Hutchison Tax Amendment, Protects Historic Credit; Bill Now Goes to Conference
AIA grassroots efforts produce Capitol Hill victories
The U.S. Senate on May 12 approved an AIA-supported amendment to the corporate tax bill that put architects into the legislation’s tax-cut provisions. The amendment, sponsored by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.), would extend a $200 million tax cut to architects and engineers. To become law, the tax cut must survive a House-Senate conference committee and be signed by President Bush. In another key victory, the Senate also stripped from the JOBS/tax bill a provision that would have repealed the 10 percent tax credit for preservation of historic buildings.

Freedom Tower Groundbreaking Set for July 4
New York Governor George E. Pataki announced May 5 that the official groundbreaking on the 1,776-foot Freedom Tower office building will take place July 4, months ahead of schedule, according to the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC). The governor also announced that the Fulton Transit Center design unveiling will take place at the May 26 AIA New York Chapter meeting. The new hub will link 12 subway lines serving Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens.

AIA Florida Gulf Coast Chapter Honors Five Projects
The AIA Florida Gulf Coast Chapter 2004 Design and Honor Awards program honored five outstanding local projects, chosen from a field of 41 entries. The winning architects received their awards at the chapter’s annual ceremony earlier this year. Chair Annie Chu, AIA, Chu + Gooding, Los Angeles, was joined on the jury by Monica Ponce de Leon, Office dA, Boston; Nanako Umemoto, Reiser and Umemoto, New York City; and Michael Webb, Los Angeles.

The AIA Angle
The AIA Angle, the AIA members’ source for government news, offers these stories in the latest edition. Survey Examines Electronic Permit Review Trends: A new survey aims to understand how technology can shorten the time to deliver and manage building plans and share this information. Industry, Congress Look at Terrorism Insurance: The insurance and real estate industries have joined with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to call for an extension of the 2002 law that provides government financial support for terrorism insurance. AIA Fort Lauderdale Fights Code Amendments: The Broward County Board of Rules and Appeals adopted two code amendments that would increase the number of architectural documents requiring an engineer’s seal.

Maximize Your Learning Power, Go a Day Early to the AIA Convention
The pace of registration is ahead of the curve compared to past years for the AIA Convention June 10–12 in Chicago, and programs are filling fast. You can still earn all your AIA Continuing Education learning units for the year, though, especially if you go a day early and take advantage of one or more of the 29 full- and half-day education programs. The American Architectural Foundation is convening a full-day symposium on K–12 design education as well. Here is a review of that program and a small sampling of the others that still have spaces available.

PROJECT WATCH
Istanbullu Combines Park and Library Space to Build Community
Santa Monica’s Aleks Istanbullu Architects took on design of the Westchester-Loyola Branch Library as a challenge “to build a center for the community that would create a sense of intimacy for its users and provide a park for the neighborhood.” The new 12,500-square-foot, $3 million library just north of Los Angeles International Airport sits on the former site of the Loyola Village Branch Library, adjacent to the Westchester Municipal Hall. It combines two branch libraries to serve 12 elementary schools, 4 junior high and high schools, and a large local population.

AIA Officer Nominations
Eleven architects have been certified as candidates for three offices

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only)
The economy: Suppliers are raising prices, causing a rise in consumer-goods prices. Jobs: More jobs won’t lower the jobless rate much. Energy: Renewables continue to gain ground as gas prices climb.
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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