Election Results
• Purnell Elected 2008 President.
• Miller, Rodriguez to serve as AIA vice presidents.
• Proffitt elected AIA Secretary.

HOME DESIGN TREND SURVEY: Q1
“Bigger Is Better” No Longer Ruling Home Design
Residential architects see greater attention to property improvements, accessibility
AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA, reports that although the size of new U.S. homes has been steadily growing over the past several decades, recent signs indicate that home sizes have stopped growing, at least for certain home building segments. The first quarter 2006 AIA Home Design Trends survey determined that although 32 percent of residential architecture firms report that home sizes are continuing to increase, 17 percent are seeing them decline, and the remainder sees them holding stable. Additionally, as most of the construction sectors are showing weakening, the largest drops have been in the townhouse/condo segment—which was reported as very strong a year ago—as well as in the first-time buyer/affordable segment, which was weak a year ago and has gotten a lot weaker over the past year.

Tune in to AIArchitect for Continuous Convention Coverage
AIArchitect will post continuing coverage of the events taking place at the AIA National Convention and Design Expo in Los Angeles, including the election results on Friday evening, as well as reports from the Friday sessions. Updates can be found here.

Mayors Adopt AIA Position on Sustainability
Call for reduction in fossil fuel use in buildings
The U.S. Conference of Mayors voted unanimously to approve a resolution prompted by the AIA position statement that calls for the immediate energy reduction of all new and renovated buildings to half the national average for that building type, with increased reductions of 10 percent every five years so that all buildings designed by the year 2030 will be carbon neutral—meaning that they will use no fossil fuel energy.

Architecture on the Edge: Day One Celebrates “Innovation”
“On this day in 1867, Frank Lloyd Wright was born; on this day in 1887, Herman Hollerith received a patent for his punch card calculator; on this day in 1948, Milton Berle hosted the debut of The Texaco Star Theater; on this day in 1959, the USS Barbero and the United States Postal Service attempted the delivery of letters via Missile Mail. And on this date, here in Los Angeles, it’s my privilege to welcome you to the opening of the 137th National Convention of The American Institute of Architects,” said AIA Executive Vice President/CEO Chris McEntee, as she set the tone for Day One of the convention, themed “Innovation.” Above, AIA President Kate Schwennsen, FAIA, begins proceedings.

Architecture on the Edge
LA matures by blending icons with far-flung communities
Turning away from a legacy of car-centric sprawl, Los Angeles is at the cusp of becoming a mature, connected city, agreed theme panelists on day one of the AIA 2006 National Convention in that city. Keeping with the “Innovation,” as the theme of the first day of the convention, June 8, “We’ve brought together three trend setters who work at the edge, declared AIA President Kate Schwennsen, FAIA. “Their thinking about this city is matched by their extraordinary contributions as catalysts of change.”

Members Voice from the Convention Floor
AIA members and guests seek out the latest and greatest for their architecture practices as they peruse the products and services of more than 800 exhibiting companies at Expo 2006 at the AIA Convention in Los Angeles June 8–10. AIArchitect asked members about the exhibits they plan on seeing and what caught their attention first among the exciting innovations offered by the design and construction industry vendors and Cornerstone Partners. Several members identified the many new and improved technology applications, an increase they perceived from prior years.

What’s That? They’re Hired?!?
Say, are those the new “apprentices” conferring with their boss, Donald Trump? Have no fear—College of Fellows Vice Chancellor Frank E. Lucas, FAIA, and Chancellor Ted P. Pappas, FAIA, are abandoning neither their COF duties nor their architecture practices. They merely paused for a pose on June 7 with “The Donald” at the 10th annual Chancellor’s Cup Golf Open at the Trump National Golf Club, Ranchos Palos Verdes, where a good time was had by all.

project watch
California Academy of Sciences Evolving Green
Building becomes an exhibition itself
The California Academy of Sciences (CAS), with its unique suite of exhibitions, including a planetarium, aquarium, and natural history museum in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, is seeking to become the city’s “greenest” building, a feat the natural history museum turned to Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano to help realize. The Renzo Piano Building Workshop (RPBW), in collaboration with San Francisco-based Chong Partners, is unifying the academy’s 12 separate buildings into a single 410,000-square-foot structure to provide more space on a smaller footprint and return one acre of land to the park. A hallmark of the project is its two-acre undulating “green” roof, just one of the many sustainable strategies the team is implementing with a goal of a U.S. Green Building Council LEED®-Platinum rating.

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only, AIA.org login required)
The economy: Not tanking, just shifting; most growth is in port cities.
Jobs and workers: Worker verification is becoming a big problem.
Tech: A $200 million computer will run at a quadrillion Hz by 2010.
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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Special new millennium price: Architects of the New Millennium, edited by Images Publishing Group (Images Publishing Group Pty Ltd, 2000) displays the most recent and best works of 100 of the most renowned architects today, including the firms' design philosophies and histories. The book lists for $65.00; AIA members may purchase it for $32.50. Order online or phone 800-242-3837, option #4.

See The Light: AIA eClassroom’s “Light, Daylight & Productivity: The Design of Buildings” distance learning course features instructor Joel Loveland explaining how to integrate daylight and electric light in the work or learning place to greatly increases the productivity of building occupants. This course, which offers 2 HSW CES credits, is available through June 16 at a 10-percent-off discounted price, $118.75 AIA members/$161.95 nonmembers (regular price: $131.95 AIA members/$179.95 nonmembers).

Questions About The AIA’s Design-Build Documents? Go to the online Knowledge Base and type “design-build” into the Search window. Or use the Table of Contents and select Content of AIA Contract Documents/Documents by Project Type/Design-Build. Either way, the Knowledge Base will respond to your Frequently Asked Questions with answers that are at your fingertips 24 hours a day.

Free Summer Job Postings: Are you looking for extra help in your office this summer? The AIA Career Center again allows firms to post limited-time summer job offers for free on its popular job board. Click “Post Jobs” on the Employers page; log in if you are a regular user, or register if you are new to the service; then enter all relevant information. When you get to “Type” option, be sure to check “Summer Job.” You will not be charged for the listing. Offer runs through July 31. The AIA is working with the American Institute of Architecture Students to get the word out to candidates.

Yes, You Can Earn Credit! A refresher course on the Self-Report Form.

You are #1: Receive Hertz’s #1 service, double upgrades, and more. Call 800-654-2210 or visit Hertz’ Web site.

Free Continuing Education: After reading the standards and other information on environmental issues and products, references, and more in each MASTERSPEC topic, licensed users can access online tests to earn AIA/CES learning-unit hours.

Integrated Practice: Technological change is one catalyst accelerating radical improvement through the entire construction industry, from owner to architect to contractor to facility manager, through the full length of the project and building lifecycle. Learn more about how this change will transform architectural practice into Integrated Practice at www.aia.org/ip.

Press Tap News Service: Reporters from The Wall Street Journal to Michigan Construction News have signed on to get full access to AIA’s news service. Post your news today.

Free Condo Risk Management Tools: The AIA Trust commissioned attorney-architect Bill Quatman, FAIA, to develop “Risk Management Ideas for Condominium Projects,” a white paper now available on the AIA Trust Web site along with contract clauses, risk management tools, sample letters, statutes and an overview of the high risk condo market. Visit the AIA Trust site for more information.