Great Spaces, Great Places
The 2013 theme was Design in the “Explorations” and we adventured into the vibrant public art scene of Downtown Rapid City. Originally, we had tours of Ellsworth AFB scheduled, but Federal furloughs forced last-minute changes. Fortunately, there is an abundance of creative built environment to discover in Rapid City.
2012 was the year to study “Transformations” in Rapid City. 2011 saw the beginnings of Main Street Square under construction. In 2012 we did a follow-up tour of the completed plaza and the adjacent building renovations into The Shops at Main Street Square. The former parking lot and empty buildings were now transformed into a energetic beating heart of the community.
Design in the Hills 2011 was our first year, featuring tours and presentations of local Built Environment design projects. Rapid City was undergoing a revitalization of the downtown area, and we toured the construction site of the new Main Street Square, which would become the heart of Downtown.
With COVID-19 pushing back our in-person Design in the Hills events to 2021, the American Institute of Architects South Dakota (AIA SD) is partnering with the Black Hills & Badlands Tourism Association to open this year’s virtual event to the public through the Design in the Hills 2020 Photo Contest. One final $150 prize to a local Black Hills business provided by AIA South Dakota will be awarded to the top photo.
Civilizations have used Census to count population dating back to the Roman Empire. The Christmas Nativity story would be much different without the Census. Accurate data collected from the Census is used by designers, developers, and planners to determine where the best places to locate projects. GIS data like the tapestry map and other demographic information is helpful when evaluating whether or not a location is ideal. Census information can even be used when applying for funding.
U.S. Census Bureau defines rural as any population, housing, or territory NOT in an urban area. So by its definition, rural is not a self-defined condition, but it is the absence of the urban. Then it goes forward to define urbanized areas as having a population of 50,000 or more. The green area on the map above (US Census) represents all the area in the US that falls under the classification of rural based on this definition.
Liz Almlie, South Dakota Historic Preservation Office A number of National Register of Historic Places nominations from South Dakota were recently approved by the National Park Service and represent a wide variety of architectural and building traditions. The following information is taken from their National Register nominations. The two more formal buildings were the First …