The Chicago Chapter of the American Institute of Architects recently honored 46 projects from a field of 272 entries submitted to its Design Excellence Awards.

In all, 31 Chicago-based architecture firms were recognized in categories that included distinguished building, interior architecture, sustainable design and architectural detail. Projects cited for excellent included offices, residential and other.

In addition to the 31 winners from Chicago and Springfield, Ill., eight are in other states, six are in Europe and one is in Asia.

Thirteen Honor awards, the program’s highest distinction, were presented. Also, 26 Citation of Merit awards and seven Special Recognition awards were given.

Three Chicago firms John Ronan Architect, Murphy/Jahn and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP were honored with four awards each.

Underscoring the growing importance of architecture’s impact on the environment, three projects featuring green roofs are being recognized.

Seven Indiana Projects Get Design Awards

The Indiana Chapter of the American Institute of Architects presented seven design awards at its recent Annual Convention held in Columbus, Ind.

Seven projects were honored:

• Outstanding Indiana Architecture Award: Luminous Bodies Residence, Evansville, Ind.; Architect: ASTIGMATIC Studio, San Francisco; Owners: Nannette and Jerry Stump.
• Honor Award: High Acres Indiana House, Columbus; Architect: RATIO Architects, Indianapolis; Owner: Roger Nichter.
• Honor Award: Shelbyville Firestation No. 1 and Headquarters, Shelbyville; Architect: AXIS Architecture + Interiors, Indianapolis; Owner: City of Shelbyville
• Merit Award: Monopoly House, Indianapolis; Architect: Demerly Architects, Indianapolis; Owner: Jeff Myers.
• Merit Award: Butler University Health & Recreation Complex and Student Housing Village, Indianapolis; Architect: RATIO Architects, Indianapolis.
• Citation Award: Manchester College Science Center, North Manchester, Ind.; Architect: InterDesign, Indianapolis.
• Citation Award: Frankey’s, Indianapolis; Architect: AXIS Architecture + Interiors, Indianapolis; Owner: Frankey’s, Indianapolis.

The project descriptions and jury comments can be seen online at www.aiaindiana.org.

Wisconsin Students Clean Up In Precast Design Competition

Four of five awards went to student teams from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee as part of the 2007 Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Architectural Student Design Competition.

A team from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale also was recognized.

In all, 34 entries were submitted in the 2007 competition, which asked students to design a new PCI headquarters. In addition to designing a total precast concrete structure, this year’s competition also considered sustainable building practices.

The 2007 winning entry impressed judges by creatively integrating the gathering of rain water into oversized gutter elements, which then reclaimed the rain water for future use. It was comprised of students David Vanden Avond, Justin Wagner and Matt Martin with the title of “Insinuating: A Coalescence of Structure & Volumes.”

Second placed went to UWM students Bryan Finnegan for “Serene Separation,” third place went to Jasenko Badic for “Integration: An Amalgamation of Environments” and an honorable mention went to Adam Flickinger for “Concrete Attenuation: A PCI Headquarters for a More Sustainable Future.”

Architecture Index Drops Amid Ongoing Fears in Credit Market

Following a six-point decline in August, the Architecture Billings Index in September dropped to its lowest level since June 2006, according to the American Institute of Architects.

The AIA reported the September ABI rating was 51.1, down from the previous mark of 53.9 (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings), and inquiries for new projects was 61.4.

“While there is plenty of nonresidential construction activity in the pipeline over the coming months, the demand for new projects is tapering off a bit.” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. “The fallout from the subprime mortgage meltdown in the residential market has seeped into the nonresidential sector causing project delays and a tightening market for financing. There is also emerging concern in the industry that this situation will extend into 2008.”

The news in the Midwest is worst, because the ABI average was 49.5 below the threshold for increasing billings. All the other regions still saw increases: South (53.0), Northeast (52.0) and West (52.0).

Sector breakdown was mixed practice (55.0), commercial/industrial (54.9), institutional (49.0) and multi-family residential (44.3).

Master Plan for Illinois Capitol

A master plan for the Illinois Capitol complex in Springfield is under way, and the scope will involve a 50-year plan to anticipate future space needs for the legislative, executive and Secretary of State offices.

The project’s development will be completed in six phases. Initial programming will concentrate on analyzing existing facilities to assess architectural space, infrastructure quality and environmental efficiency.

Selected for the project were a team that included Chicago-based DeStefano + Partners, Philadelphia-based Wallace Roberts & Todd and Columbia, S.C.-based Carter Goble Lee Cos.

Wisconsin Architect Connolly Elected to National AIA Board

Kevin Connolly, president of the Milwaukee design firm bearing his name, has been elected to the national Board of Directors of The American Institute of Architects and will represent more than 3,700 AIA member-architects in Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota. His three-year term began in December.

He served as president of AIA Wisconsin in 1995 and as president of the AIA Southeast Wisconsin chapter in 1990. For many years, he coordinated the popular “Lego Fun & Draw” area at Summerfest. He recently coordinated a statewide conference on “integrated project delivery” and “building information modeling.”

200 Recommendations Provided For Sustainable Landscapes

A recently report released features more than 200 recommendations for designing and building sustainable landscapes.

The report, which is part of the Sustainable Sites Initiative, a partnership between the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas at Austin and the United States Botanic Garden, has voluntary guidelines and a rating system for sustainable landscape design.

The report is available on the Internet at www.sustainablesites.org.

The Preliminary Report on Standards and Guidelines represents thousands of hours of work in the past year by 32 experts in fields ranging from design and construction to soils, hydrology and public health. The findings examine the positive environmental impact sustainable landscapes offer.

For example, appropriate vegetation can help control erosion, filter out pollutants, provide habitat for wildlife and pollinators and supply oxygen for the air we breathe. The preliminary report also details practices that degrade landscapes and should be avoided, as well as techniques for designing landscapes that benefit the environment.

The preliminary report is the first of three for the Sustainable Sites Initiative. A primary purpose of releasing this preliminary work is to solicit feedback, comments and additional information from professionals and other stakeholders who can contribute to knowledge about ways to achieve sustainable landscapes.

Eventually, Sustainable Sites will create a rating system that will apply to large and small sites, and can be used independently or incorporated into other green rating systems. The U.S. Green Building Council is lending its support to this project and plans to adopt the Sustainable Sites metrics into future versions of LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental design) Green Building Rating System.