Eichler Home Tours

From AIA SF:

Eichler Home Tours
October 8, 11:00-4:00 pm
This tour showcases exceptional examples of Eichler residences throughout San Francisco and Marin. Participants will have the rare opportunity to view homes in the Terra Linda and Lucas Valley developments in Marin as well as single- and multi-family developments in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley and Diamond Heights districts.
SF ONLY or Marin ONLY: $20 AIA Members; $25 Nonmembers
BOTH SF and Marin: $40 AIA Members; $50 Nonmembers
Visit http://www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaID=94811 to purchase tickets.

For more information: Call 415/362-7397

Mentors Needed

The UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design CED Alumni Association (CEDAA) is looking for a few good mentors for CED students. Now in its 14th year, the program offers CED students a direct link to the world of professional practice. Your professional and career experience is invaluable to students trying to understand how they may fit into a professional context after graduation. The program is open to all CED students in the college's three departments -- architecture, city and regional planning, landscape architecture and environmental planning -- as well as college programs specializing in visual studies and urban design. Cross-departmental mentoring is highly encouraged.

For more information: www.ced.berkeley.edu/alumni/alum_relations/mentorship_prog.htm or call 510/642-7459.

Tsunami Memorial International Competition

From the Government of Thailand/Council of Architects, Thailand:

Call for entries: Tsunami Memorial International Competition
Registration deadline: November 15

For more information: http://www.tsunamimemorial.or.th/

Small Project Call for Submissions

This just in from the AIA Small Project Practitioners (SPP) Knowledge Community :

"The AIA Small Project Practitioners (SPP) Knowledge Community requests articles (approximately 400–1,200 words) and practice tips (approximately 100–400 words) for the next SPP Journal. Please share a case study (there is value in both successes and lessons learned from less-than-success) or a proven best practice.

Getting It Built—The Best and the Worst
In the end, no matter how inspired the design, it is all just a theory until it gets built. The construction phase of a project can be the most exhilarating and rewarding, or it can be the most frustrating, demanding, and disappointing. It can be an exercise in synergistic collaboration or it can represent struggle and constant compromise.

SPP wants to hear your best and worst experiences of the construction phase. Tell us about those exceptional contractors that really make your visions “sing.” How do you work with those contractors that make the process difficult? Do you have clients who do not want your involvement during construction? What are the special demands of small-project construction? Share your secrets. Compare your battle scars."

For more information: Email Sidney for the full Call for Submissions Email.

From Dorit Fromm, AIA:

SMPS-San Francisco Bay Area Chapter invites you and other members of your firm to consider attending this upcoming two-day "Step Up to Leadership" educational program being offered by PSMA (Professional Services Management Association).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PSMA Northern California Chapter's popular leadership seminar - Step Up to Leadership - will kick off this year with Dr. Karen Stephenson delivering the keynote address. Setting the tone for the next two days, Dr. Stephenson will describe how we can foster and take advantage of our employees' social networks to advance and grow our businesses. Corporate anthropologist and frequent lecturer at Harvard and MIT's Sloan School of Management, Dr. Stephenson studies the impacts informal networks among people have on company performance. For more information about Dr. Stephenson's work, please visit http://www.netform.com.

When and Where? Thursday 29 September - Friday 30 September, 51st Floor, Bank of America Center, San Francisco
Why this program? PSMA's 2005 Faculty, comprising executive practitioners and some of the top national management consultants serving our industry, presents this up-to-date overview of current "best practices" in all areas of management. And, as a not-for-profit organization, PSMA Northern California Chapter can deliver a rich program for lower-than-average tuition fees.
Who should attend? Current company leaders-- whether in business, team management, or project roles-- AND emerging company leaders interested in better understanding the big picture.
How do we register and How much does it cost? Attached is the Step Up to Leadership and this year's concurrent executive track, West Coast CEO Roundtables, PLUS registration information. You'll see the tuition table on page 5 shows deep discounts for multiple student attendance. (Email Sidney for this PDF)

CEU's! Need continuing education credits? PSMA Educational Programs are recognized by most professional associations with learning credit requirements. PSMA confers 12 continuing education credits (CEU's) to all participants who complete both program days.

For more information: contact PSMA Directors at the information provided below. They look forward to seeing you in September! Liz Halton, CFO, Forell/Elsesser Engineers 415.837.0700 or liz@forell.com Kathryn Sprankle 415.307.9799 or kathryn@sprankleleadership.com Directors, PSMA Northern California Chapter

Symposium: "Designing for Memory"

Wednesday, November 16 in Boston, MA

Join AIA's Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art and Architecture for a day-long examination of the role of public memorials in shaping a community’s persona, how memorials are developed, memorial design before and after 9/11, and elements of commemorative design since the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

Workshops include:
Boston's sacred ground — the role of public memorials in shaping a community's persona
Memorials — how are they developed?
A monumental shift — commemorative design since the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Memorial design — before and after 9/11

For complete details and registration information, go to www.buildboston.com/memorials.
For more Information: 800-544-1898

CSI EastBay/Oakland -- September Chapter Meeting

The regularly scheduled (third Tuesday) CSI EastBay/Oakland Chapter Dinner Meeting will take place Tuesday, September 20, 2005, at H's Lordships Restaurant, 199 Seawall Drive, Berkeley, CA 94710, (510) 843-2733.

GETTING IT BUILT -- Facilitating the Building Permit Approval Process

Every successful construction project travels the winding path from initial concept to physical reality. One critical portion of the path is the City and/or County review of submitted documents, ideally resulting in issuance of all required Permits and Approvals. Another critical portion is the construction process itself, ideally resulting in a safe, durable and functional facility. A key component during both of these processes are the technical documents. The design team prepares these documents to define the required construction, guide the construction process, and provide a basis for executing a construction contract. Technical review staff working for Cities and Counties use these same documents to protect the public interest by checking for compliance with building, safety, zoning, and other applicable requirements. City/County field inspectors refer to the approved documents as they perform their duties during the course of construction.

If those who prepare the technical documents better understood how public agency reviewers and inspectors utilize the documents, much trial-and-error and second-guessing could be avoided, and all parties involved would benefit. Design teams could better serve the project owners whom they represent, and agency technical staff people could more efficiently protect the interests of the communities they serve. A substantive ongoing dialog between those on both sides of "the counter" would go a long way to helping all parties work more productively, efficiently, and harmoniously, but such a forum does not presently exist.

September's Meeting will be a first step toward establishing such a dialog, at least in the East Bay Area. Come prepared to exchange thoughts with the attending representatives of several East Bay jurisdictions. The issues raised on Tuesday night will be expanded in a Saturday Workshop to be held on November 5, 2005.

THE SEPTEMBER MENU

Caesar Salad, Rolls and Butter and
Prime Rib of Beef au Jus with Creamy Horseradish + Parsley Red Potatoes and Fresh Vegetables
or
Baked Salmon with Lemon Pepper Sauce + Rice Pilaf and Fresh Vegetables
or
Vegetarian Pasta Prima Vera
followed by
Coffee, Tea, Milk, and Carrot Cake

6:00 PM Networking / No-Host Bar 7:00 PM Dinner 8:00 PM Program

EB/O CSI Members - $10
Professional or Industry Guests, 1st dinner attended - $20
City/County Plan Checkers and Field Inspectors - $25
Other Guests and Non-Members w/ advance reservations - $35
Other Guests and Non-Members at the door - $40

For more information: RSVP and make dinner selection by 8:00 PM Sunday, September 18th by e-mail to eastbayoakcsi@aol.com or by voicemail to (510) 524-8818.
Indicate number of people, name(s), and entree choice for each name.
No Show Reservations will be billed $38, the actual cost of dinner to the Chapter.
Default entree is beef if no dinner selection is made.
E-mail questions to eastbayoakcsi@aol.com or call (510) 524-8808.

Furnish Eight Apartments in Oakland for Katrina Victims

An important message from Assemblywoman Wilma Chan:

"Please help us furnish 8 apartments in Oakland for families displaced by Hurricane Katrina.
Thursday, September 15, 4-7:PM
Downtown Oakland

Assemblywoman Wilma Chan and the Kiwanis of Grand Lake, Oakland will collect items to furnish apartments for eight families from the Gulf Coast who are on their way to Oakland. Please help us to help others.

Drop off items at the curb in back of the Elihu M. Harris State Building at 15th Street and Jefferson Street in downtown Oakland.

Please give what you would want to receive. Items must be in new or very gently used condition (no exceptions)
Items listed in order of need

Household Linens & Toiletries:
Towels: kitchen, bath, hand size and washcloths, new or clean and labeled
Bed Linens: new or clean and easily labeled for sorting – twin, full, queen, and king
Blankets and Comforters: new or clean and labeled for sorting
Toiletries: Shoebox or container filled with: shampoo, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc.
Cleaning supplies: A bucket filled with sponges, 409, Ajax, mop, broom, etc.

Kitchen items:
Small appliances: coffee makers, toasters, microwaves, mixers, crock pots, irons
Flatware, glasses, china sets, cooking pots and pans, etc. (Everything for a kitchen)

Clothing:
Women’s Clothing & Jackets– must be new or cleaned and size easily labeled
Men’s Clothing & Jackets– must be new or cleaned and size easily labeled
Children’s Clothing & Jackets– must be new or cleaned and sizes easily labeled for sorting
Baby items from newborn items – size 2T-shirts & Sweatshirts– new or clean and sorted by size. (Company logo items are fine)

School supplies & toys: Backpacks filled with supplies for all ages
Stuffed animals: games, toys, books, dolls for all ages
Sports equipment: bats, balls, etc.

Furniture: Beds – cribs, single, trundle, full and king
Dining tables, Sofas, futons & chairs, End tables and small tables, Lamps, Bookcases & small desks

Drop off smaller items & donations on the 15th. Furniture will be picked up by appointment.

For more information: contact Krishen Laetsch, Senior Field Representative, Office of Assemblywoman Wilma Chan at 510-286-1670, krishen.laetsch@asm.ca.gov or Linda Kiehle, President, Kiwanis of Grand Lake, Oakland at 510-760-4817 or lkiehle@aol.com

Job Fairs and Such

Forward announcements of East Bay job fairs to info@aiaeb.org. For example, WareMalcomb will be holding a job fair this coming Saturday from 9-1 in San Ramon.

For more information: Beth Bakulich p. 949.660.9128 bbakulich@waremalcomb.com

Also, send us your resumes via info@aiaeb.org. We have lots of firms who look at resumes daily. And, don't forget the AIA East Bay Job Board!

For more information: www.aiaeb.org/job.htm

131 feet of Swiss Alps + 5 weeks of Swiss architects at the CCA

In celebration of Switzerland’s rich architectural heritage and the unveiling of the new de Young Museum by Swiss architectural firm Studio Basel of Herzog & de Meuron, the four Swiss schools of architecture will present a lecture series on their architectural teachings and an interactive architecture exhibit housed in a 131-foot replica of the Swiss Alps. The exhibit will run through Oct. 27 –with the final lecture on October 31-- at the California College of the Arts (CCA), 1111 Eighth St., San Francisco (www.cca.edu).

“Inventioneering Architecture” will showcase the various Swiss schools’ approaches to teaching architecture. After San Francisco, the exhibit goes to Boston, Houston (in association with Rice University) and other cities in China, the United Arab Emirates and Buenos Aires.

The event will also feature a 131-foot-long cross-section of the Swiss Alps, designed to allow visitors to stroll the platform while viewing Swiss architectural content on overhead screens, display panels and miniature models.

The exhibition will remain open through October 27. Lectures and exhibition entry are free and open to the public. Exhibition hours are Monday through Sunday, 8 am – 8 pm.

For more information: www.swissnex.org or call swissnex at 415-912-5901

The Saga of the Bay Bridge

From Steve Winkel, FAIA:

SEPT 16
112 Wurster Hall, UC Berkeley Campus
1 to 4 pm
BAY AREA ICONS
Troubled Bridge Over Water: The Saga of the Bay Bridge from the people who know - What can we learn from this experience about how to design and build iconic public projects in the future?

Panelists:
- Ephraim Hirsch, Structural Engineer; Panelist, MTC Engineering and Design
Advisory Panel
- John King, Urban Design Writer; San Francisco Chronicle
- Donald MacDonald, Architect; Bay Bridge Self-Anchored Suspension Span
- Randy Rentschler, MTC; Director of Legislation and Public Affairs
- Steve Schnaidt; Staff Director, California State Senate Transportation
Committee

BAY AREA ICONS is a series of Friday afternoon workshops on how the Bay Area gets built. The workshops are free and open to the public, with preferential seating for CED students, faculty, and alumni. Hosted by the CEDAA and the CED Architecture Department.

For more information: lawler@berkeley.edu

Rebuilding the Gulf Coast

The following are recent articles about rebuilding New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. What are your thoughts? How should the AIA get involved in the planning and rebuilding process? And should architects advocate for a different way of life? Comment below through the comments button.

Plans afoot to rebuild New Orleans: They say New Orleans will never be same again. And they mean it, too...Now property developers, urban conservationists and city planners are expecting schemes that once competed for funding to find a new lease of life.- BBC (UK)

Reviving a City: The Design Perspective: Architects and planners worry that developers might try to recreate some fairy-tale version of the city,,,urged a rethinking of New Orleans's sprawl, arguing that the city should be consolidated.- New York Times

Why New Orleans must be rebuilt: Cities are collective works of art, and this is one of America's masterpieces. How it should rise from the floodwaters is a tougher decision. By Blair Kamin- Chicago Tribune

Should we even rebuild New Orleans? For a long time, New Orleans has been fighting a war with nature, and it finally lost. Why fight that war again?- Chicago Tribune

A Rush to Set Up U.S. Housing for Storm Survivors: The government is beginning what urban planners are calling one of the biggest bursts of federal housing development in United States history.- New York Times

For Architects, No Blueprints for Recovery: Many New Orleans firms that will help rebuild their city set up in Baton Rouge, where they struggle to salvage their practices and plot uncertain futures. By Christopher Hawthorne- Los Angeles Times

Among the ruins, something to build on: ...if the decade's other giant rebuilding effort — the bungled plan for ground zero in New York...is any guide, we should probably move directly into cynical mode... By Christopher Hawthorne- Los Angeles Times

9/11: Will The Lessons Learned Help New Orleans? By Tom Angotti- Gotham Gazette

Tears for New Orleans: Memories of One City, and Concerns for Others. By Sam Hall Kaplan- LA Downtown News

Buried Treasures: Storm's Toll On Culture: "It's not just the architecture, it's the culture, the music, the food. You can't have any of it without the architecture." By Linda Hales- Washington Post

2005 Greenbuild Conference

It's not too late to register to attend Greenbuild.

To be held November 9–11, 2005, in Atlanta, Georgia, Greenbuild will offer a variety of conference sessions and exhibits to help you learn everything you want to learn about green building under one roof. You'll find more than 100 educational sessions designed to put you "in the know," more than 550 exhibits of new products and services you need to know about, LEED workshops to help you earn your professional accreditation, and project workshop tours that bring you face to face with real green building solutions and project teams that built them.

Register by Thursday, September 15, and save up to $200.

For more information: http://www.greenbuildexpo.org/

Build It Green Home Tour

September 25, 2005, 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Cost: $10/person

Seventeen homeowners from Mill Valley to Santa Rosa will open their doors and introduce attendees to techniques and products used to build their green homes. This innovative tour will showcase diverse homes that were built or remodeled utilizing sustainable, durable products and practices that deliver high quality, healthy, and comfortable homes. Participating in the tour will give you an inside view of some of the Bay Area's greenest homes.

For more information: http://www.builditgreen.org/tours/

Justice and the City

November 2-5, 2005
San Diego, California
Presented by The American Institute of Architects Academy of Architecture for Justice

Register Today -- Early bird registration discount ends this Friday, September 16 -- Save $50.

This conference will focus on the role of criminal justice facilities in urban environments and how courthouses and jails have evolved in the context of the city and suburbs. It will also tackle such issues as providing efficient criminal justice services in an urban setting, integrating the design of criminal justice facilities with urban planning principles, and designing facilities that are both open to the public and resistant to attacks.

Conference Highlights include:
Keynote Speaker: Bernardo Fort-Bresica, FAIA, founding principal of Arquitectonica, will present "Miami—The Courthouse As an Urban Catalyst."
2nd Annual AIA AAJ Justice Facility Review Banquet
Optional Tours of East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility and Chula Vista Police Department
Vendor exhibits
Earn AIA/CES LU's, including HSW.

For more information: www.aia.org/justiceandthecity

Oak-to-Ninth

From Colland Jang, AIA:

"For those interested, the DEIR for Signature Properties' Oak-to-Ninth Project has been released with a Public Hearing scheduled before the full [Oakland] Planning Commission on September 28. "

For more information: 510.238.3911

Also: The upcoming Oakland Planning Commission agenda is here.

NCARB Will Assist Record Holders, ARE Candidates in Areas Affected by Hurricane Katrina

From NCARB:

"NCARB will assist all record holders in their needs for replacement of lost documentation, work with ouraffected member boards on credential transmittals for reciprocity, and attempt to mitigate effects on other submissions.

Working with our partners at Thomson Prometric we will assist all affected ARE candidates to return to a normal testing environment at the earliest possible time. In order to most effectively assist our record holders and member boards the Council is putting the following guidelines into effect as of 1 September 2005, until further notice.

1. For a period of six (6) months, forgive Transmittal fees for those architect certificate holders who resided in the affected areas and who are seeking registration in other jurisdictions.

2. For a period of three (3) months, forgive fees for missed divisions and/or reschedule fees for candidates, in affectedareas, in the ARE process unable to test due to closing of test centers in affected locations.

3. For a period of six (6) months, forgive fees due at the completion of IDP, for those in the process in the affectedareas, prior to the free transmittal of the council record to a jurisdiction for ARE eligibility.

Our deepest sympathy is extended to all who have suffered losses due to Hurricane Katrina."

For more information: www.ncarb.org

Health By Design Conference

This just in from AIA Central Valley:

Architects, planners, builders, public health officers, health-care representatives and government officials will come together in a unique one-day symposium, Health By Design, to explore how our health is being compromised as we struggle to keep up with population growth and the need for additional housing, schools and job centers.

The symposium is Thursday, October 20, 2005 and is sponsored by AIA Central Valley and UC Davis. All AIA East Bay members should receive a registration brochure by mail.

For more information: http://www.healthbydesignconference.org

Rebates for Design Teams

Forwarded from David Arkin, AIA:

"Here is some additional information about PG&E's Commercial New Construction Program known as http://www.pge.com/biz/rebates/new_construction/index.html you'll find a Letter of Interest you should complete and submit for all new commercial projects. Please feel free to share this with your colleagues.

To begin the process, a Participation Letter is all that is initially required. The information doesn't need to be complete - just complete as much as you know now. Once the Participation Letter is received, PG&E will assign a Project Engineer to work with your Design Team for the plans and drawings when you are ready.

The letter should be copied on customer letterhead and sent to:

Shirley Fudge-Mueller, PG&E
3480 Buskirk Avenue, Suite 150
Pleasant Hill, CA 94523"

For more information: Shirley Fudge-Mueller, SFF1@pge.com Account Services