(Content submitted by the Design in the Hills Committee)
The AIA South Dakota annual event, Design in the Hills is right around the corner! This year’s event is themed ‘Innovation RC’ will focus on innovative projects and activities in Rapid City, SD.
Thursday, July 18, 2019
Thursday morning will be spent touring new projects around Rapid City. The first tour will be of the Black Hills Energy Headquarters followed by a tour of the Regional Health Advanced Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Hospital. The final tour will be of the green roof at the Rapid City Regional Airport. A lunch & learn will be presented by Sky Factory focusing on The Restorative Impact of Perceived Space.
Thursday afternoon has two presentations by Drew Martin, AIA, NCARB & Peter Tan, AIA, LEED AP of Strang-Inc. The first presentation is Virtual Reality as a Design Tool: Bridging Abstraction – Leveraging Virtual Reality to Shape Reality. This presentation will illustrate how virtual reality can empower architects and owners, and improve the design process, through case studies including two ongoing projects in the developing Innovation District of Rapid City.
The second presentation focuses on Creating Spaces for Innovation: Innovation that Inspires – Inspiration that Innovates. The presentation will cover specific examples of innovation and includes the developing Rapid City Innovation district.
A mixer will be held at the new Zymurcracy Beer Company to close Thursday’s activities. We hope to have a Virtual Reality technology demonstration during the mixer.
Friday, July 19 2019
Friday will begin with a presentation by Leacey Brown, M.S. at the University Center. Her presentation focuses on her research: Dakotas Aging in Place Study – Consumer knowledge and preferences for aging in place. Her presentation will focus on methods for aging in place, common to much of the population in the Black Hills as residents often seek this area as a location to retire. The presentation will focus on research performed by South Dakota State University Extension of exploring gaps in consumer knowledge, motivation and barriers to the implementation of accessible and universal design housing options.
Following Leacey’s presentation will be an expo hosted by the event sponsors. The sponsors of this year’s event are Bridger Steel, Gage Brothers, Hebron Brick, Journey Group, Syverson Tile & Stone, & West Plains Engineering.
A design charette will wrap up the event focusing on Aging in Place Design Innovations. Participants will investigate design solutions for accessible design features, working with existing Rapid City house plans to brainstorm modification options that maximize accessibility. Participants will work in groups to define barriers and identify renovations that can facilitate access and aging in place, as well as helping establish universal housing design for builders and residential planners.
We hope you can join us in the exciting line-up of tours, speakers and activities for 2019 Innovation RC! Click the link below to download the full brochure for this event.
AIA South Dakota is the professional non-profit membership association of architects, future architects, and partners in the building and design industries, and the state chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) AIA South Dakota advances the mission that design matters in every South Dakota community.
The Dakotas Aging in Place Study sounds particularly interesting and of the utmost importance as enabling independence as long as possible increases life enjoyment and joy.