Access Board Issues New ADAAG
The U.S. Access Board released the latest Americans With Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines, which cover a wide range of public and private facilities. Changes to the previous ADAAG, such as for better ATM accessibility, are the results of a decade-long initiative that included an extensive period of comment and review. The Access Board update, which brings the guidelines more into alignment with model building codes and industry standards, such as ANSI 117.1-1998, also includes revision to the guidelines for federal buildings under the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968. Although these are final guidelines from the Access Board, they do not become enforceable standards until the various federal agencies charged with enforcing the ADA and ABA adopt them, which will be done in separate rulemakings. For a detailed explanation of the changes and their implications, visit the Access Board Web site.

AIA Grand Valley Honors Five Buildings With Six Awards
This spring, the AIA Grand Valley, Mich., chapter chose to honor five projects: two with Interiors Awards, two with Building Awards, and one with both a Building Award and a Sustainability Award. A jury from nearby Huron County composed of Tamara Burns, AIA; Damian Farrell, AIA; Rick Herrmann, AIA; and David Milling, AIA, chose the Building Awards, and hometown chapter members (Mike Corby, AIA; Steve Hamstra, AIA; Lorissa MacAllister, AIA; Jeff Remtema, AIA; Bill Stough, AIA; and Scott Vyn, AIA) selected the winner of this year’s Sustainability Award.

NCARB Passes ARE “Rolling Clock” Requirement
Incoming President Frank Guillot, FAIA, to expand international efforts
The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) passed several measures at its annual business meeting June 26 in Portland, Ore., including implementation of a five-year “rolling clock” for completion of the Architectural Registration Exam (ARE). The new rolling clock requirement allows licensure candidates five years to complete all portions of the ARE.

Gruzen Samton’s El Museo del Barrio Renovation
Receives Art Award From NYC Mayor
New York City’s Gruzen Samton received the prestigious Art Commission Award for Excellence in Design from Mayor Michael Bloomberg July 12 for their plans to renovate El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem. The architects strove to strengthen El Museo’s role as the northern anchor of Museum Mile by projecting its visual presence onto 5th Avenue and make it more accessible by creating a more visually vibrant space. A new glass wall replaces the masonry wall of the existing façade to allow natural light to flood into the lobby during the day and project a glowing light to the exterior at night. The swanky space also wears a “wrap,” an undulating white-metal surface that functions at various points as a canopy, wall, display space, and eating area, where it is surfaced with stone. A prominent courtyard pylon does double duty as a lighted beacon and structural support for El Museo’s Fifth Avenue banner.

Inaugural BSA Research Grants Recipients Announced
The Boston Society of Architects (BSA) recently awarded nine grants totaling $65,000 from a field of nearly 50 applicants to the BSA’s inaugural research grants program. BSA solicited proposals for projects that focused on “design as research,” encouraging “inquiry not only on specific research topics but also on how design itself (the design process and the results of design) constitutes research as well.”

project watch
Pugh + Scarpa Solve Film-Editing Puzzle in LA
Pugh + Scarpa, Santa Monica, Calif., report that they faced a unique challenge in the design of Jigsaw, a Los Angeles film-editing studio that needed “to provide a stimulating workspace and create an environment that allows for social interaction and provides a place of seclusion.” A film editor lives in a fictional world, represented by the computer screen reflected upon them, the architects maintained. Distractions, like light reflections, need to be blocked out, and so, typically, a film editor’s world revolves around a hermetically closed black box.

Your Kiplinger Connection (members only)
The economy: The deficit will narrow slightly while continuing to fuel growth. Housing finance: Mortgage rates will creep back up to 6.5 by year end. Office tech: Voice ID is the next big trend.
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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