I walked The High Line park and all my office got was this stupid blog post.

While walking The High Line in Manhattan, one of my strolling companions said she was shocked to discover the cost to construct the park. Most sources cite it at about $172 million dollars, with $130 million coming from the city of New York and another $20 million from federal sources. The non-profit Friends of the High Line organization raised an additional $44 million dollars and still encourages supporters of the park to become members or donate to fund its upkeep. The yearly maintenance of the park is estimated at $4.5 million, with $1 million of that coming from the city and the remainder to be contributed by the the Friends of the High Line. Indeed, we saw a swarm of employees or volunteers cleaning the walkway and tending to the plantings. Another in our group criticized the Chelsea neighborhood adjacent to The High Line as "bourge-tasia," only to later admit that, yes, he would love to have one of the stylish modern lofts hovering over the park. 

Say what you like about the cost to build and maintain the park, the gentrifying effect on the neighborhood, the tripping danger of the elegantly raised curbs in the walkway design, or perhaps even incoherence in the plan. So far the park has generated $2 billion in private investment, attracting major architectural talent like Jean Nouvel. An added 2.5 million square feet of condominiums, hotels and office buildings are in the planning stages and that investment number is expected to double. The park is also expected to bring in $900 million in tax revenues.

Good design really is good business. Or as we say at Venture Architecture, "Smart design. Successful venture." The High Line would not be so successful if there were not something uniquely compelling in the design created by Field Operations and Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Of the over 4 million visitors to the park, only 30% of them are tourists. Over 150 public events have taken place or are planned for 2011 and 14 works of art have been installed on the park. Ultimately, The High Line has encouraged visitors and neighbors of the park 

to interact with their             

environment in a new way     

...and isn't that worth something?

Sarah Size, Still Life With Landscape (Model for a Habitat)

The Best of Denver

Visiting Denver any time soon? Do you happen to be crazy about architecture? Well you are in luck, the Front Range (Denver/Boulder area) has a wide variety of houses, offices and museums of architectural interest. The link below will give you the names and locations of a dozen of these buildings.

http://www.archdaily.com/119839/architecture-city-guide-denver/



Notably absent from the list is I.M. Pei's NCAR facility in Boulder. This iconic building is visible almost anywhere within the city and the views from the top are fantastic. Follow Table Mesa west and after leaving the neighborhoods, NCAR will be visible to your left. The structure goes in and out of view as the road winds 1000+ feet up the mountainside. If you are up for a challenge, cycling up to NCAR provides and different way to experience the building and you will be treated to a very fun descent!

Charles Haertling was also left off ArchDaily's list. This prolific architect designed mostly in Boulder, but his buildings can be found hidden throughout the region. Maybe his most unique project, the "Mushroom House," can be found in North Boulder. This small house looks like a patch of mushrooms and would be suitable for any Smurf family.

Don't forget to wander the streets of Denver (our headquarters). There are hundreds, if not thousands, of old Victorian homes spread throughout the city. Capitol Hill is a great walking neighborhood where is seems every other building is on Denver's Historic Preservation List. Plus, the weather is usually fantastic!

Golden High School

Here is a nice project located in nearby Golden, CO. There aren't many high schools with better scenery!

 http://www.archdaily.com/157626/golden-high-school-nac-architecture/#more-157626

Good news for real estate in Denver

A recent report from Integrated Asset Services revealed that while the median single-family house price in the metro area around Denver declined compared to  the same period in 2010, "it was up 1.8 percent from the first quarter of this year." Within the city of Denver itself the report showed a spike in prices "both year over year and between quarters." This is especially remarkable in light of statistics from the Colorado Division of Housing showing that foreclosure filings in Colorado declined in the second quarter, dropping almost 30 percent from the same period in 2010. 

Ikea: the tower defense game

Ikea just arrived in Denver with much fanfare and singing of choirs. (Our Senior Project Manager actually knows of a woman who serenaded the grand opening with her Swedish choir.) In honor of this mixed blessing, here's a recent post from apartmenttherapy.com.

The Mental Break Between Architect and User

Explaining your architecture to anyone outside the bubble of architecture can be frustrating when you realize that others - including the users of the space - may not necessarily share an equivalent appreciation for or understanding of your space.  Metropolis Magazine conducted a post-occupancy study of Coop Himmelblau's Central Los Angeles High School No. 9 by distributing questionnaires to the students and teachers who use the space every day.  While some biting remarks of the high school students can be disregarded as typical adolescent behavior, some answers can certainly help architects understand how and why an everyday user may see their space in a positive or negative light.  

These types of performance studies are often overlooked and seldom conducted today. "Yet, as the profession drifts further and further away from economic sustainability (or relevance), they may be a key to finding the way back Toward a New Architecture".  Click here to read more on this article.

At Venture Architecture, we strive to eliminate this metal gap between architect and user.  Our mission is to create a space that is not only beautiful and enjoyable, but also functional and cost-effective for our valuable clients.