AFFORDABLE HOUSING | A cyclic conversation without resolution  

  With rapid population growth developers, designers, contractors, and finance are at work to provide adequate housing supply. Housing is required to facilitate the recruitment and retention of the influx of the workforce. Yes, housing is in high demand. Yes, we need to accommodate the influx. But – are we planning for the long-term impact …

Design in the Hills: Friday Presentation and Charette Recap

By Bobbie Koch (Sicangu Lakota) Associate AIA & AICAE, and Valeriah Big Eagle (Ihanktonwan) Ed.D., M.S.Ed. Since the 1940s, our Lakota Uncis – our grandmothers – advocated to bring a Native American Community Center to Mniluzahan Otunwahe (Rapid City). For the past few years, He Sapa Otipi – Community Center for the People of the …

Design in the Hills: Thursday Morning Recap, Part II

By Tanya Olson, ASLA, SD Section Chair, Nebraska/Dakotas Chapter ASLA Our second stop on “tour day” for Design in the Hills 2022 was the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology campus where we toured a new construction project and a building renovation project. South Dakota Mines Pearson Alumni and Conference Center Jenn Johnson, AIA …

A Debt to LEGO

When CNN (or any other mainstream news agency) shares something about architecture, I’m always interested. This was an nice “fluffy” find this weekend: https://www.cnn.com/style/article/lego-architecture-design/index.html I’m one of those architects who owe a debt to LEGO for sparking and fostering a curiosity about the built environment from an early age. This sentiment is fairly pervasive in …

Scale

Eirik Heikes, PLA / President of TerraSite Design I visited the Nelson Adkins Museum of Art in Kansas City this spring.  A most impressive collection populated the facility, and the architecture was well executed.  Light permeated the structure in areas where it should and it allowed for movement of masses of visitors in comfortable proximity …

“Village on the River” now “Village for Vehicles”

Architectural tragedy has struck downtown Sioux Falls. What started out with high hopes and ideals to be a vibrant new hi-rise(ish) development downtown has had a major hiccup… well, honestly… more like an amputation. The Village on the River project, which was a partnership between the City of Sioux Falls and developer Village River Group …

National Architecture Week – Civic Engagement

Thursday of National Architecture Week focuses on the importance of Civic Engagement. The following AIA articles highlight the power that architects and design professionals can have when combining forces with civic leaders and invested community members. The first article explains how working design sessions helped three communities who were rebounding from natural disasters or economic …