Tuesday, September 21, 2010

September AIA-SWO Chapter Meeting Recap

Some of the many AIA-SWO members and guests who attended the September meeting (my photo)

If you weren’t at last Wednesday’s September AIA-SWO chapter meeting, you missed a fantastic event. Over 80 members and guests were on hand at OPUS VII in downtown Eugene to celebrate the value of design in our community and honor the recipients of the 2010 People’s Choice Awards.

The People’s Choice Awards program is a public outreach effort conducted jointly by AIA-Southwestern Oregon and ASLA Oregon-Willamette Valley Section as part of the annual Eugene Celebration (which took place this past August 27-29). The purpose is to present the recent work of architects and landscape architects, and to encourage the public to critically engage the built environment. The emphasis is not on winning but on sharing and honoring all the work undertaken to make buildings and landscapes important and meaningful in our daily lives.

The “Colleague’s Choice” vote is an ancillary program to the People’s Choice Awards and meant to be a fun way for our AIA-SWO and ASLA members to weigh in on the question of which of their peers’ projects are most worthy of recognition.

New this year is the “Mayor’s Choice” awards. Eugeneans are fortunate to have Kitty Piercy as mayor. She is an enthusiastically public advocate for design excellence, sustainability, and smart growth. Unable to attend the meeting in person, Mayor Piercy did the next best thing: she announced her selection of favorite projects on YouTube. Click the following link to see her video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n-sdvZuioQ

Michael Fifield, AIA and Paul Dustrud, AIA get the show rolling (my photo)

Here is the list all of the award recipients. Look for them to also be featured in the Friday, October 15, 2010 edition of the Eugene Register-Guard. Congratulations to all of the 2010 People’s Choice, Colleague’s Choice, and Mayor’s Choice winners!

INTERIORS
Arbor South Architecture
Osterio Sfizio – Winner: People’s Choice & Colleague’s Choice

Osteria Sfizio (Arbor South Architecture)

PUBLIC
PIVOT Architecture
Roseburg Public Safety Center – Winner: People’s Choice & Colleague’s Choice

Roseburg Public Safety Center (PIVOT Architecture)

INSTITUTIONAL
ZGF
John Jaqua Academic Center for Student Athletes – Winner: People’s Choice & Mayor’s Choice honorable mention

John Jaqua Academic Center for Student Athletes (ZGF Architecture)

INSTITUTIONAL
Broadleaf Architecture
Bezeall Forest Education Center – Winner: Colleague’s Choice & Mayor’s Choice honorable mention

Bezeall Forest Education Center (Broadleaf Architecture) 

MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING
Dustrud Architecture
Sonja Apartments – Winner: People’s Choice

Sonja Apartments (Dustrud Architecture)

MULTI-FAMILY HOIUSING
Dustrud Architecture
Kokanee Place – Winner: Colleague’s Choice (tie)

Kokanee Place (Dustrud Architecture)

MULTIFAMILY HOUSING
Bergsund Delaney Architecture & Planning PC
Roosevelt Crossing – Winner: Colleague’s Choice (tie) & Mayor’s Choice Best-of-Show

Roosevelt Crossing (Bergsund Delaney Architecture & Planning)

RESIDENTIAL
2fORM Architecture
Eagle Rock Retreat – Winner: People’s Choice & Colleague’s Choice

Eagle Rock Retreat (2fORM Architecture)

RESIDENTIAL LANDSCAPE
Landcurrent with Morrow & Sons
Garden House – Winner: People’s Choice & Colleague’s Choice

Garden House (Landcurrent with Morrow & Sons)

PUBLIC/INSTITUTIONAL LANDSCAPE
Cameron McCarthy
North Bend Boardwalk – Winner: People’s Choice (tie) & Colleague’s Choice

North Bend Boardwalk (Cameron McCarthy)

PUBLIC/INSTITUTIONAL LANDSCAPE
Willamalane Park & Recreation District
John B. Lively Memorial Park – Winner: People’s Choice (tie)

John B. Lively Memorial Park (Willamalane Park & Recreation District)

COMMERCIAL
Nikasi Brewing Company – Winner: People’s Choice, Colleague’s Choice, and Mayor’s Choice honorable mention

Ninkasi Brewing Company (Chuck Bailey Architect, AIA)

UNBUILT
Lucia Sustainable Mixed-Use Development – Winner: People’s Choice, Colleague’s Choice, and Mayor’s Choice honorable mention

Lucia Sustainable Mixed-Use Development (rendering by Hopper Design)

People’s Choice Exhibit Schedule
The boards for all of the 2010 entries will remain on display at OPUS VII between now and the opening night reception for the Northwest & Pacific Region Conference. If you haven’t already seen the display, be sure stop by OPUS VII sometime before then. Better yet, make sure to sign up for the Conference, attend the reception, and brag to others from throughout the Northwest & Pacific Region about the high quality of work produced here in our chapter area!

Chapter Meeting Sponsors:
We had two generous sponsors for the September chapter meeting:

OPUS VII
The proprietor of our venue for the evening, Kaz Oveissi, was also one of our program sponsors. In addition to operating Oveissi & Co. (each year the site of the People’s Choice exhibit during the Eugene Celebration) and Perugino (a coffee shop nonpareil), Kaz operates OPUS VII as a space built to introduce the community to the creative world. He envisions OPUS VII as a social and artistic platform whose purpose is to recognize, reward, and showcase mastery in art, architecture, and design. In this regard, Kaz sees the People’s Choice display as a perfect fit for OPUS VII.

Heartwood Carving Studios
Our second sponsor was Heartwood Carving Studios. Based in Eugene, the company designs and creates quality ornamental carvings and architectural details for clients. Heartwood Carving products are manufactured in Eugene, Oregon, using advanced automated carving methods and the highest grade hardwoods. The company was represented at our meeting by its founder, Joe Valasek, a lifelong classical artist and sculptor whose preferred material has always been wood.(1)

Thanks to both Kaz and Joe for their sponsorship of the September AIA-SWO chapter meeting!


(1) I actually first came to know Joe in another context, that being our mutual involvement with the Whilamut Passage design charrette associated with the new I-5 Willamette River bridge project.

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