In discussing our changing downtown conversations, as we often do, always lead to the hotels and whether or not development is pushing locals out. Is there a way to accommodate both tourists and locals and is our current development doing that? While that is a challenging question, here are some interesting articles from hoteliers looking at that issue.

Go here for Metropolis Magazine. Here. Also, here and here. Note that most of these articles are from the Hotels perspective creating and adding experiences to bring locals and doesn't necessarily address the bigger urban planning aspect of what residents need downtown for living and working.

Great Architecture Can Heal | Pour yourself some coffee and enjoy this 16 minute Ted Talk with Architect Michael Murphy on how both architecture and the building process can be transformative. My favorite line is, "Architecture should invest in the dignity of the places it serves." Enjoy the talk here and have a sweet Sunday. Cheers!

We would love to see some of this thought brought to life in our downtown buildings and elsewhere as part of the beautiful natural environment in which we live. I had always imagined the BB&T building simply being re-skinned and areas recessed to incorporate plants reflecting a greener and more thoughtful future for our downtown.

Either way, please enjoy this article from our daily dezeen feed and have a fun holiday weekend. Cheers!

A Regionally Inspired Parking Garage

As always, we believe we could be far more innovative in designing and constructing a living and sustainable downtown. I came across this little story on NPR and just wanted to share it as inspiration from the Northwest.

Here is a snippet:

"Employing a unique engineered wood product only recently produced by Oregon mills, a UO student team has won an Honorable Mention in a competition hosted by the American Institute of Architects Northwest and Pacific Region.The students in Professors Judith Sheine and Mark Donofrio’s spring studio designed a parking structure using Oregon’s newest structural wood product—cross-laminated timber, or CLT—an exceptional accomplishment in architectural education and design practice."

Go here for the rest. Wouldn't it be great to see some of our own designers be able to participate, use regional inspiration and resources, in the design and construction of our downtown buildings and community. Cheers!

Asheville has been represented in DWELL a few times of late. Today, in this look at design across the states, Akira's hand-crafted bowls were featured.

But don't just stop there — take the full tour as a good overview and reminder of what good design brings to our lives.

Cheers!