Calatrava sues Bilbao
Santiago Calatravo has sued the city of Bilbao for adding to a footbridge he designed in the Spanish city, reports the New York Times. The new extension is a "copyright violation," according to the renowned architect. Bilbao isn't amused at the lawsuit. Mayor Inaki Azkuna blasted Calatrava. “We’ve had enough of the dictatorship of Calatrava saying we can’t touch his little bridge," Azkuna says. "We’ve had enough of this superstar.”

Strib: More Jim Dayton please
Jim Dayton must have enjoyed having coffee yesterday, reading the Star Tribune at home. In a Withering Glance column in the Sunday Source section, reporters Rick Nelson and Claude Peck beg for more buildings designed by the Minneapolis architect.

"RN: As long as we're talking urban design, I vote for more buildings by architect James Dayton. Have you seen his sparkly new MacPhail Center for Music? Dang, that thing is looking good. It's a bummer that the Portland -- his totally cool loft condo project just down the street -- just got yanked off the drawing boards.

CP: The new concert hall inside MacPhail is très beau."

Nelson and Peck also longed for the opening of the Shubert ("some arts-loving Santa Claus ... write the check") and complained about ugly planters next to the Hennepin County jail and along Third Avenue, both in downtown Minneapolis.

Here's an interview I did with Jim Dayton this summer about his design philosophy and the new MacPhail Center for Music, which is due to open in January.


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AIA Minnesota convention
"Tomorrow is Today" is the theme of the 73rd annual AIA Minnesota convention, which is scheduled for November 13-16 in Minneapolis. One of the many speakers will be Robert Ivy, editor in chief of Architectural Record. He'll speak on the "major forces affecting the design and construction of major architectural projects and the communities that they serve." You can register for the convention online.

Cement: Big source of global warming
Did anyone else know about the connection between cement and carbon dioxide emissions before reading this morning's New York Times? In a front page article in the Business section, reporter Elisabeth Rosenthal writes that 5 percent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions occur during the production of cement, a key ingredient in concrete. "Cement poses a basic problem: the chemical reaction that creates it releases large amounts of carbon dioxide. Sixty percent of emissions caused by making cement are from this chemical process alone," writes Rosenthal.

She also asserts that making cement plants "greener" only increases the amount of cement production at those plants and doesn't decrease pollution. (The European Union provides economic incentives for companies in EU member nations to buy outdated cement plants in Eastern Europe and upgrade them.)

The article raises many questions in my mind. Does the U.S. Green Building Council take into account the pollution spewed into the atmosphere by concrete plants when determining which projects deserve LEED certification? Is it possible to build green with concrete? What do you think?

Condos, condos, condos ... empty, uncompleted, scratched
Business reporters in the Twin Cities have written a lot about the sagging condominium and housing markets in recent days. We point you to a small inventory of their work in this post. On October 3, the Twin Cities Business Journal said the "Condo market may become overbuilt," which isn't exactly saying it's overbuilt now, but isn't a positive sign either. On October 17, the Star Tribune reported on trouble with Mosaic, a mixed-use development in the Uptown area of Minneapolis. On October 18, the Pioneer Press reported that the "Twin Cities housing glut awash in new condos." And on October 20, the Star Tribune analyzed which projects will succeed and which are doomed to remain forever on paper.

Drawn Here Design Talks
The Walker Art Center is sponsoring two talks with architects next month. Called Drawn Here, the talks will feature David Adjaye of Adjaye/Associates in London on Thursday, November 8 and Vincent James and Jennifer Yoos of VJAA in Minneapolis on Thursday, November 29. Adjaye has created the Nobel Peace Center in Oslo, the new Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver (above) and has plans for a five-star hotel and residences in downtown St. Paul. (Who would have thought you could use the words "five-star" and "St. Paul" in the same sentence?) James and Yoos are featured in a current Building Minnesota podcast and post. VJAA designed the Dayton House (1997) in Minneapolis, Minneapolis Rowing Club Boathouse (2001), Tulane University Center (2007) in New Orleans and is working on "residential loft projects in New York and Chicago ... and an upcoming gatehouse for the University of Cincinnati."

Adjaye's new Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver aims to be the first museum in LEED certified museum in the U.S. LEED is a measure of a building's energy efficiency.

Lustron homes bulldozed in Indiana
PreservationNation, The National Trust for Historic Preservation's blog, reports that 34 Lustron houses in Indiana will soon be gone. “I’m really disappointed. It’s just a huge loss for Lustron owners across the country,” says Todd Zeiger of the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. Minneapolis is home to 10 Lustron homes, including one on Cedar Avenue South that was updated by IOTA, a local architecture firm. A documentary film about Lustrons is now showing on PBS television stations. I have no idea if Twin Cities Public Television is planning on airing that doc, but I hope they do.

A conversation with Vincent James and Jennifer Yoos
Vincent James Associates Architects (VJAA) is a firm that's probably better known outside Minneapolis than here at home. "We're not really marketers," says Jennifer Yoos, a principal at VJAA in a conversation with Todd Melby for a Building Minnesota podcast. "All of our projects seem to come to us from other architects. Our personalities, we're not really that outgoing."

Recent projects include a student center at American University in Beirut and Tulane University in New Orleans. To secure the Beirut project, VJAA won an international competition. Vincent James, another VJAA principal, believes the Beirut project "will put us on a level to compete internationally ... because it is very substantial."

The Tulane University project is complete, American University in nearing completion and a guesthouse at Saint John's Abbey (here in Minnesota) is under construction. In another post and podcast, you'll learn more about the Tulane and American University projects, but for now, we're going get to know Vincent James and Jennifer Yoos a little better.


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In this podcast, we learn about James and Yoos' history, influences and philosophy. Yoos studied with Winy Maas at MVRDV. She says Maas is critical of the ego that many architects bring to their work, especially those that believe that their work should have a certain style. Yet, to be successful, some clients demand that you have a style. It's an interesting conversation. Listen in.


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You can also listen to these interviews via podcast. That's a simple audio recording that you can download for free to your mp3 player of iPod. You can do that at iTunes and the podLounge.

Marina City Towers, Chicago
This post has absolutely nothing to do with Minnesota architecture. It does, however, have everything to do with architecture that I love. During a visit to Chicago a few days ago, I signed up for the Chicago Architecture Foundation river tour of the city and fell in love with Marina City, those corncob-shaped towers that rise from the concrete to tower over the river like a pair of State Fair blue ribbon winners.



Now that I'm home again in Minneapolis, I found several great online resources about the building, including this page on architect Bertrand Goldberg and a 1959 speech he made in Edmonton explaining his thoughts on the project. The buildings, completed in 1965, are 56 stories high, the first 19 stories of which are parking. Each tower has 448 units of housing, according to this website. (Photos by Todd Melby)

Getting Down at Marina City Towers

Ever wonder what it would be like to live in Marina City Towers, one of the corncob-shaped icons in downtown Chicago? Well, this video won't show you that. But it will show you what the dizzying drive is like from the 19th story of the parking garage. (Around, around and around we go!) PS: If I lived there, I'd just take the CTA.

Fergus Falls mental hospital gets new marker
The state mental hospital in Fergus Falls, now known as the Fergus Falls Regional Treatment Center, gets a new National Register of Historic Preservation plaque on Monday, according to an article in the Daily Journal. The sprawling site, which was built in 1890, is said to be the "most compete example of Thomas Kirkbride-inspired architecture in the nation," said Otter Tail County Historical Society Executive Director Chris Schuelke. (Kirkbride believed the mentally ill could be helped by placing them in soothing surroundings in the countryside.) I visited the building in 2004, producing a two-part series on the mental hospital building and grounds for Building Minnesota. My tour included an abandoned playground, windswept tunnels, a coffin for carrying the dead to a nearby anonymous graveyard, peeling wallpaper and a sadness and reverence for the past. The site contains many redevelopment challenges. To learn more, check out the June 1, 2007 post, which has the audio stories. Simply click and listen.

NYT weighs in on I-35-W bridge design
It's too utilitarian. It's a B+. It's a causeway.

The New York Times had its reporter talk to Minneapolis residents about the proposed design for the I-35W bridge. She found a range of opinions from a UM architecture student, UM architecture professor, Mayor R.T. Rybak, WCCO-AM radio host Don Shelby and the wife of a man who died in the bridge collapse. Said Jennifer Holmes of Mounds View, “I just hope when they rebuild it, they build it right.”

What do you think? Share your comments with Building Minnesota readers about the impact this bridge will have on Minnesota architecture.

DeAngelo, Kodet criticize I-35W bridge design process
MnDOT chose a contractor before it allowed public comment on the design of the new I-35W bridge, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2008. That's one of the complaints architects and others have about MnDOT's choice of Flatiron Construction.

"It seems like the public input is pretty well controlled and restricted to simple things like color and shape," said Tom DeAngelo, president-elect of Minnesota AIA in the Star Tribune earlier this week.

The same article quoted Minneapolis architect Ed Kodet as saying the design "borders on a disgrace because it doesn't really have enough inspiration to serve as a memorial."

However, the Pioneer Press says architecture critic Larry Millet has "no complaints" about the design and that the bridge's location doesn't bode well for a showcase project. Meanwhile, the Star Tribune editorial board calls it a design to "respect more than love."

To comment on the bridge design, complete this MnDOT form. You may want to view both options (A and B) here.

Solutions
Twin Cities
Solutions Twin Cities, a series that showcases "leading edge" work by local designers, architects and others, has scheduled a program for October 19.

Organizers say it's the only place you'll find "glocal and citizen journalism, do-it-yourself bio-diesel vehicles, urban camouflage street art, sustainable architecture and humanitarian design, Minnesotans rebuilding the Gulf Coast, transformative homeless theater, artistic street culture for urban youth and sustainable sexuality."

Wow. That's some promise.

The fast-paced program will provide a series of presenters called "solutionists" 6 minutes and 40 seconds each to "wow" the audience with their work. The tight time frame allows each presenter just enough time to present 20 rapid-fire slides, ensuring a high impact exchange of ideas.

Doors will open for Solutions Volume 2 at Studio 1414 at 7 p.m., Friday, October 19. Presentations will take place from 8 to 11 p.m. The evening will wind up with a reception until midnight with music from local DJ, Booka B. Tickets are $6 online or with a student ID and $8 at the door. Studio 1414 is located at 1414 Marshall Street NE, Minneapolis.

Malcolm and Nancy Willey House
It's not often one gets access to an architectural jewel. But yesterday was such a day. The owners of the Malcolm and Nancy Willey House, 255 Bedford Street, Minneapolis, opened the doors of their restored Frank Lloyd Wright house to the public. For $5, I got to take a peek inside, have the top of my head graze Wright's notoriously low entry ceilings (he was short), stand in the kitchen and imagine what it must have been like to live here in 1934, the year the house was completed.



Malcolm Willey worked at the University of Minnesota, eventually becoming dean. He and his wife weren't rich. But they enticed Wright to draw up plans for a house for them. Here's an excerpt from Nancy Willey's letter to Wright (June 27, 1932):

"I want to build a house in Minneapolis for about eight thousand dollars. What do you think are the chances of my being able to have a --- 'creation of art'? ... I have little hope you would take on anything so trivial that was also not near you, but perhaps the description of the lot will interest you enough to deserve a helpful suggestion or two ..."

Wright was intrigued (and probably needed the money). Just a few days after receiving Nancy Willey's letter, he wrote her a letter (July 5, 1932):

"Nothing is trivial because it is not 'big.' And if I can be of any service to you neither the distance nor the 'smallness' of the proposed home would prevent me from giving you what help an architect could give you."



In his AIA Guide to the Twin Cities, Larry Millett calls the house "among the most important of Wright's career" because "it was in many ways a prototype of his so-called Usonian houses, which were intended to be high style but relatively inexpensive homes for the masses." (Or at least university professors living in Prospect Park.)

I'm going to continue to quote Millett here because he does a great job of describing the walk-through. "What might be called the Wright experience begins here with an elaborate entry sequence that takes you up brick steps to a sheltered walkway ...



... and then to an all-but-hidden front door. Just past the entrance is one of the house's most dramatic features: a cantilevered trellis hovering above a brick patio."



Here's another view of the brick patio from the opposite side ...



The owners, Lynette Erickson-Sikora and Steve Sikora, didn't permit photography inside the house, but I was able to snap a few additional shots of the exterior. This is a shot from the south side of the house (near the front door) looking out onto Bedford Avenue.



This is a view looking into the bedroom window on the east side of the house ...




This is the sculpture tucked in front of the bedroom wall. The sculpture faces south towards the highway ...



Exiting the bedroom, looking south ... (The sculpture in the above photo is just to the left, but out of view of the camera)



Looking onto the brick patio ...



And this is the garage/front of the house as seen from Bedford Avenue ...



The Willey House recently won a Minnesota Preservation Award. (Photos by Todd Melby)

Brighton cancels The Portland
The Star Tribune reports that Brighton Development has pulled the plug on The Portland, a proposed condo project designed by James Dayton Design. The most expensive parcels in the 43-unit building near the Guthrie Theater in the Minneapolis Riverfront district had sold, but most of the cheaper units hadn't. It's far from the only condo project to be cancelled due to the downturn in the housing market. The "Sexton, Mill Trace Condominiums and a project proposed for Park Avenue and 10th Street" have also been nixed, the Strib says. To listen to interviews with Jim Dayton about his other Riverfront project, MacPhail Center for Music, check out the Building Minnesota podcast at iTunes or the podLounge.

Early UM campus drawings at Weisman
In conjunction with the National Trust for Historic Preservation conference field session highlighting historic preservation efforts at the U of M, the Weisman Art Museum will present an exhibition of original architectural drawings from the 1880s focusing on some of the earliest U buildings located in the historic knoll area that were designed by Minnesota architect Leroy Buffington.

Regent John S. Pillsbury led U of M campus development during the 1880s and 1890s. During this time, Buffington designed the campus landmarks Eddy Hall (1886), Pillsbury Hall (1889), Nicholson Hall (1890), and Burton Hall (1894). Buffington's relationship with Pillsbury began with the Pillsbury A Mill (1881) commission and other buildings designed for Pillsbury and his family members. The exhibition will display 28 drawings from the L.S. Buffington Collection at the Northwest Architectural Archive. They illustrate the range of Buffington's work for the U and the Pillsburys, including many drawn by his draftsman, Harvey Ellis. Historic photographs from the Minnesota Historical Society accompany many of the drawings.

The drawings will be on display through Oct. 21.

NYT critic Herbert Muschamp dies
Herbert Muschamp, architecture critic of the New York Times from 1992-2004, died on Tuesday. Muschamp, 59, died from a "fierce and unpleasant battle with [lung] cancer," according to Times Editor-in-Chief Bill Keller.

In an obituary posted to the NYT website, architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff called Muschamp "one of the most influential architecture critics of his generation" thanks to his "wildly ranging, often deeply personal reviews."

In 1999, Muschamp wrote about arriving in Bilbao, Spain to see --- what else? --- Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Bilbao and bumping into the architect outside his hotel. Gehry asked Muschamp if he wanted to check out the building with him.

"That was not what I'd had in mind," Muschamp wrote. "I love to arrive in a new town and just walk around, letting impressions sink in, before heading off to inspect a new building. But this was an occasion to let the unexpected happen: the designer of this museum, a building already celebrated months before it opened, also walking around by himself, checking the impressions his work made from different parts of the city -- streets, angles, distances.

"Anyway, how do you answer a question like that? Look at the building? What building? Oh, no, I came to Bilbao because somebody recommended the local variety of blood sausage, or because I'm interested in Basque separatism."

To read that 1999 article, click here.

Do you have a favorite Muschamp memory? If so, share it with Building Minnesota readers.

Minnesota Preservation Award winners
From affordable apartments to luxury hotels, mural restoration to urban archaeology, the 2007 Minnesota Preservation Awards offered up a diverse array of winners last night.

An unprecedented 64 award nominations were received this year more than twice the number of nominations typically received. “The sheer number of award nominations indicates that historic preservation is a growing community reinvestment tool,” said Bonnie McDonald, Preservation Alliance of Minnesota executive director.

The Alliance created a new award this year: the Charles Nelson Award of Excellence, which posthumously honors state historical architect and Alliance board member, Charles Nelson. Nelson, who died in January, was a founding member of the state’s preservation community.

The 2007 Minnesota Preservation Award honorees, in order of award category, are:

Adaptive Reuse Award
• Crane Ordway Apartments, St. Paul
• Riverwood Pines Apartments, Little Falls

Addition/Expansion Award
• Petters Pavilion, Collegeville

Advocacy Award
• Diane O’Brien-Berge, Kasson

Archaeology Award
• Diamond Point Park, Bemidji

Community Effort Award
• Deer Creek Historical Museum, Deer Creek
• Elliot Park Archaeology, Minneapolis
• Marty Aldinger and Deb Raiche, Amboy
• Central Avenue Buildings, Faribault

Restoration/Rehabilitation Award
• Jackson County Courthouse Mural Restoration, Jackson
• Farmers and Mechanics Bank – the Westin Hotel, Minneapolis
• Malcolm Willey House, Minneapolis

Stewardship Award
• Bloomington Old Town Hall, Bloomington
• University of Minnesota – Morris Historic Preservation Plan, Morris

Career Achievement Award
• Richard Berg, Minneapolis

One of the more intriguing winners was the Elliot Park Archaeology project in Minneapolis. Since 2004, Kent Bakken has been the driving force behind one of the most successful community outreach archaeology projects in state history. Bakken, a resident of the neighborhood, began the project as a way of fostering neighborhood awareness and a sense of historical connection. Over the last four years, the project has grown to become a widely-anticipated event in which many neighborhood residents and volunteers, professional archaeologists, and local officials join forces to uncover and appreciate the history of the Elliot Park neighborhood. For more on the project, check out this backgrounder (there are links to previous year's digs) and this Downtown Journal article.

Preservation begins today
The National Trust for Historic Preservation's annual conference got underway today in the Twin Cities. The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that about 2,000 people are expected to attend the event, which continues through Saturday. Linda Mack sang the praises of historic preservation of Minnesota architectural landmarks in Sunday's Star Tribune, citing St. Paul's Irvine Park, Grain Belt Brewery, Jones and Nicholson Halls at the University of Minnesota and Mills City Museum (above) as local preservation successes. If you want to keep up to date on happenings this week, check out the conference blog. You can also post updates or insights here to share with other Building Minnesota readers. (Photo courtesy of National Trust for Historic Preservation)

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