Issue CXXIII
Jul 25, 2008
Greetings !
In this issue, you'll read:
AIA NE Fall Conference Registration Open
Donate on-line to the AIA NE PAC
Cunningham Gold Medal Submissions Due
Be Part of the AIA NE Ad in the OWH Arch Supplement
Employment Opportunity
Central States Design Excellence Awards - Call for Entries
Business Magazine: Nebraska No. 4 in Quality of Life
AIA NE to Feature KidStructures - Sponsored by the Lauritzen Gardens Guild
Lincoln’s Carbon Footprint
Thanks to Olympics, Beijing gets its Eiffel Tower, of sorts
Calendar of Events - July 25
AIA NE Fall Conference Registration Open KEY PRESENTERS: With Senators' term limits in its second cycle since the Nebraska law passed; there are a total of 26 legislative races that will take place in 2008. Fifteen State Senators are term limited, ten are eligible to run for re-election and one Senator must run for the unexpired balance of his predecessor's term. To continue to effectively represent architecture in the State of Nebraska, we need to do a better job of influencing legislation and public decision making in Nebraska. Fortunately AIA Nebraska has formed a Political Action Committee (PAC) to help elect public officials in Nebraska who appreciate the value that we bring to our communities and State. The PAC has established a No one else is going to do this for us. The Gold Medal is the highest honor that AIA Nebraska can bestow and is awarded in recognition of the most distinguished achievement in architecture or service to the profession of architecture in the State of Nebraska. If you didn't sign up earlier this year and wish your firm to be listed in the advertisement please link to this Qualifications: Architects: Randy Brown Architects, Randy Brown, FAIA, LEED-AP, Andrea Kelly, AIA, Brian Kelly, AIA, Brandon Schumacher, LEED-AP, Neil Legband, Jonathan Kaufman, Jenni Shukert Structural Engineer: InfraStructure, LLC, Jeff Ehler, PE, SE Contractors: Arcosanti Homes, Inc., Scott Tafoya Donors: Boulevard Gardens, Builder's Supply Co., Hydrologic Inc., Nebraska Welding Ltd., Nuts and Bolts Inc., Quantum Quality Real Estate, Ready Mixed Building Materials Architects: nocturnal: design Lab, LLP Contractors: Ronco Construction Company Supplier: The Home Depot Imagine the forest transformed into a dream world of inspired technology, unique architecture and vast opportunities to play and reflect. Bicycles turn on lights. Shelters pop up from plastic bottles. Roofs grow with life. Explore seven structures along Riverview Boardwalk at the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. The EcoHuts were designed and constructed by local architects and builders for this exclusive Fontenelle Nature Association exhibit. KEVA Planks are back on exhibit at the Straw-bale Design and Construction Workshop, Saturday, July 26, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm., Turbine Flats Project, 2124 Y Street, northwest corner of 22nd & Y Streets, Lincoln. A sign will be posted along the curb and on the entry door to the building. Parking: On the street. Registration/Payment: $40 per person - You may pay at the workshop - Please arrive between 8:15 and 8:45 am to complete your registration/payment. There will be many books available for your to browse through before, during and after the workshop (not for loan or sale), along with handouts for you to take with you. Copies of The Last Straw and the CD of issues 1-40 (1993-2003) will be for sale, and you can subscribe to the journal if you want. Breaks and lunch can be taken at any time during the presentation. Restrooms and kitchen space are close to the meeting room in which the workshop will be held. Dress casually and comfortably. Bring your own snacks, lunch and beverage. There's a small kitchen refrigerator in the building. For more information - please call Joyce Coppinger, Lincoln Green Building Group/LGBG, 402.483.5135. Emergency Phone: If you need to get in touch with Joyce Coppinger the day of the workshop 402.440.1678. AIA Omaha Chapter Membership Meeting #3 - Aug 13, 11:45 am - 1:00 pm, TBD, This free Lunch & Learn will be sponsored by Azek Building Products. The United States Air Force Environmental Symposium, August 14, 8 am - noon - The Air Force Goes Clean and Green, please join Air Force senior environmental leaders, members of the US Green Building Council, area architects, business leaders and academic professionals for an environemntal symposium at the Air Force's latest "Green Facility. Please RSVP by July 21 - 2008 Green Home Tour- September 6, 1:00 – 5:00 PM, Starts: 1412 North 35th St. Presented by: Green Omaha Coalition's Green Neighborhood Council - An opportunity for metro area residents to learn how to green their living environment, whether they own or rent. For more information about this event, contact: Camellia Watkins, Sierra Club Omaha Office, 5170 Leavenworth, Omaha, NE 68106, (402)551-9480 camellia.watkins@sierraclub.org - $5.00/person - 12 years old and under free. Purchase your tickets at any of the tour-homes on the day of the event - FOOD HOME - 1412 North 35th St., Edible garden tour ENERGY HOME - 350 North 36th Ave., Examples of energy-saving practices that will work in your home or apartment WATER HOME - 5073 Jackson St., Indoor and outdoor examples of water conservation MATERIALS/RESOURCES HOME - 1018 South 36th St., »Constructed of repurposed materials and designed with energy savings in mind TRANSPORTATION - A walking tour of one of Omaha's sustainable neighborhoods - Gifford Park. This guided tour will include stops at the Gifford Park Community Garden
This year's AIA Nebraska Fall Conference, Designing Economics, will be held September 11-12 at the Qwest Center in Omaha. Download this year's conference brochure and register on-line. Early registration is through August 29. AIA Nebraska has planned two days filled with tours of recently renovated buildings and projects under construction, opportunities for learning units presented by award winning architects, networking opportunities, and the latest products and services offered. Scholarship opportunities for AIAS + Associate members is available; download application via word doc/pdf or the AIA Nebraska website. 
Kermit Baker, Chief Economist, American Institute of Architects - Design and Construction Overview for 2009 and their Implications for Architecture Firms
Jury Chair, Todd DeGarmo, FAIA, CEO,
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Donate on-line to the AIA NE PAC 
Dear AIA Nebraska Member - AIA is ready to make its voice heard and we need your help. Attempts are continuously being made to marginalize our profession by nibbling away at the edges of what we do. Accounting firms want to program; attorneys and contractors want to define delivery systems, and how they are used. Everyone thinks they can design, and should be allowed to do so. The challenges to architecture in the State of Nebraska are significant and growing.
Thank you for your generosity, and please contact one of us if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Greg Smith, Chair Lowell Berg, Vice Chair
greg.smith@davisdesign.com lberg@clarkenersen.com
402.476.9700 402.477.9291
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Cunningham Gold Medal Submissions Due
The Harry F. Cunningham Gold Medal for Architectural Excellence in the State of Nebraska commemorates the achievements of Harry Francis Cunningham who came to Nebraska as lead architect for Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue's office during completion of the tower phase of construction for the State Capitol following Goodhue's death in 1924. It was Goodhue's revolutionary building design which won the nationwide competition in 1920 for the creation of the state house in Lincoln. Cunningham subsequently established the first school of architecture at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
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Be Part of the AIA NE Ad in the OWH Arch Supplement
AIA Nebraska will be supporting the Omaha World-Herald's Architecture Supplement by committing to a full page advertisement highlighting the advantages of hiring an AIA architect. Highlighting this year's design program, the supplement will be published following our fall conference, "Designing Economics" on Sunday, September 14, 2008. Circulation for Architecture is 300,000 households in Nebraska and Southwest Iowa.
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Employment Opportunity
AIA Award winning architectural firm is looking for architectural interns and Project Architects. The Architectural Offices seeks to grow its design studio. They are seeking Project Architects with experience in Commercial, Retail and Recreational Facilities. Competitive Salary and Benefits will be based on experience.
-Professional Degree required, 1-7 years of experience
Professional Registration ,LEED Accreditation a plus
- Proficient in Auto Cad, SketchUp, Form Z
-The desire to work with a project from start to finish.
Please contact Joe Saniuk, AIA, at 402-551-3400 or jsaniuk@thearchitecturaloffices.com
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Central States Design Excellence Awards - Call for Entries 
Celebrating excellence in design, AIA Kansas City calls for entries for the 2008 Central States Design Excellence Awards. Winning submittals and the efforts of all award entries, award recipients will be announced during the Award Celebration on October 24, 2008. Jurors will be present to provide commentary on the award-winning projects. Entry Forms and Fees due: No later than 5:00 p.m., August 18, 2008. Click here for more information or for the entry form.
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Business Magazine: Nebraska No. 4 in Quality of Life
Nebraska has the fourth best quality of life according to the 2008 Business Facilities Rankings Report. From a year ago, Nebraska’s ranking improved from 9th to 4th place. Business Facilities Magazine bills itself as “the leading source of intelligence on corporate expansion and relocation since 1968.” The publication's annual look at the top-ranked localities reflected “the fierce competition driving economic development across all regions,” according to the magazine’s editors. To measure the quality of life, Business Facilities’ staff looked at 20 key factors. Key factors were quality of public schools; crime rates; material well-being (including average income levels, tax rates, and personal bankruptcy rates); job security; arts and recreation; pollution; commute length; health care premiums; occupational accident rates; climate; and the cost of living. Quality of life is a key component of the publication's overall Business Climate ranking, according to Business Facilities’ Web site, since "employers and employees who are happy outside of work will contribute to a better bottom line through increased motivation, morale, productivity and retention."
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AIA NE to Feature KidStructures - Sponsored by the Lauritzen Gardens Guild 
Circle of Light - Similar to an oversized wind chime and representative of a sundial, this structure creates a space that connects the visitor to the sun through touch, sound, view and reading. Lines on the ground plane identify the summer solstice and a storyboard explains the origins of North, South, East and West.
Four x 4 - re·connecting with nature - Conceived as a suburban tree house, Four x 4 is an abstraction of nature. A vertical core allows kids to climb up through the structure, like climbing to the top of a tree to experience an unparalleled panoramic view of the surrounding landscape and gardens.
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Lincoln’s Carbon Footprint
A recent study completed by the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department shows that Lincoln is below the U.S. average for CO2 emissions (approximately 20 tons per person per year). However, from 1990 to 2005 the city’s amount of emissions grew from 3.1 million tons to almost 4.6 million tons, an increase of 46%.
The largest increase in greenhouse emissions during this time period was due to transportation. The city of Lincoln has grown over this 15 year time frame which in turns puts more drivers on the roads. To read the full story. Source: Lincoln Journal Star
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Thanks to Olympics, Beijing gets its Eiffel Tower, of sorts 
By Tim Johnson, McClatchy Newspapers, July 20, 2008 BEIJING — London has Big Ben, Paris has the Eiffel Tower , San Francisco has the Golden Gate Bridge and now Beijing has an iconic structure that's likely to identify the city forever. For the entire article It's an audacious monolith that looks like two drunken high-rise towers leaning over and holding each other up at the shoulders. The eye-catching building, which is nearly finished, will be the headquarters of China Central Television, the staid propaganda arm of China's ruling Communist Party , and it's perhaps the boldest and most daring of several new buildings that have given Beijing a stunning new appearance for the upcoming Summer Olympic Games.
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Calendar of Events - July 25 
Calendar of Events 
Open Now Thru November 3 - Fontenelle Forest Nature Center (Projects to be featured in AIA NE Update) Sponsored by Sarpy County Visitors Committee/Regular Admission Applies to Non-Members
and Community Bicycle Shop Omaha. Tour begins at the ENERGY home.
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