Kelo video

This video visits Suzette Kelo 10 years after the original court case. It is interesting to hear her say that she has not returned to the Fort Trumbull neighborhood since she (and her house) left. That is remarkable considering how small New London is. Clearly the emotions are still strong. Note: the video is an advocacy video, so filter accordingly.



Duke's Law School presents a more explanatory video. It still interviews some key players. It also has a more academic discussion. The video incorporates some graphics I could not get for class.

Seeing Signs

Martha Schwartz

In last night's Cekada Memorial Lecture, Martha Schwartz mentioned some notable projects worth looking at more if you don't know them yet.

The 1994 Village of Yorkville Park

The 




Manchester Exchange




Grand Canal Square in Dublin

Musical weekend on Campus

This weekend the LTC is performing Oklahoma! at the Livingston Campus Center. Definitely worth some time for a classic American musical.

More about Curitiba

Jaime Lerner was the architect and mayor who oversaw the rapid transformation of Curitiba. After he had returned to private practice, he sat down for an interview with the American Society of Landscape Architects.

More importantly (since our DVD had a bad sector) You can see more about the BRT (Bus rapid Transit) system in his Ted Talk video. You can also see a recent update on this innovative system from The Guardian.

Spatial learning

Our Geohealth Workshops are reaching more people than I had imagined, when we first started. A recent morning with some high school students in Elizabeth, NJ gave me a chance to share more about geohealth while we talked about the challenges of spatial learning.

One of the tools we used to spark a discussion about spatial cognition, was a seemingly simple 21 piece wood puzzle. How hard is 21 pieces? Plus, we made it based on a county map of New Jersey. We've all seen the counties of New Jersey, right? How hard could it be? Pretty hard it turns out.

Wanna' try? Come to the CRSSA Open House on April 29th at part of Rutgers Day. We'll have several of the puzzles for you to try out and test your skills. Plus, you can learn more about Geohealth

Still a state university?

If schools like New Mexico State University and the University of New Mexico don't get any state funding, are they still state universities? Should NMSU go ahead and drop the S and sell its naming rights? Since Governor Martinez is not an obscure figure (she is chair of the Republican Governors Association), it is worth asking whether any other states might follow suit and abruptly end all state funding for state schools.

Guest Lecture

CHRIS LAGUARDIA

LaGuardia Design Group

“Landscape Architecture in the Hamptons: the work and processes of The LaGuardia Design Group”

Christopher LaGuardia FASLA founded the LaGuardia Design Group in 1993 and has received numerous awards and accolades including the ASLA Award of Excellence in Residential Design, The ASLA Honor Award, and Several NYASLA Merit Awards.

The LaGuardia Design group works at designing Landscapes that are sustainable and sensitive to the highly varied natural and manmade landscapes that constitute the Hamptons resort community.

Additionally, LaGuardia has lectured on his work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the ASLA National Conference, The New York Center for Architecture and the Parish Art Museum.

Please see our schedule for other lectures.

Newsweek interview with Martha Schwartz

Martha Schwartz is coming to town this month. Start preparing by reading her interview in Newsweek. Although it is relatively short, she squeezes in quite a bit:

"We  design places where people can interact and connect with each other. We plan so that people can live in a healthy, walkable environment and enjoy public spaces. We work in an integrative, collaborative and fluid process in order to design unique places that create memory, identity, and move the spirit."

 

Tent City

A few years ago we had a common lecture on the informal housing of tent cities. At the time we were told that Lakewood was trying to get rid of theirs. It sounds like it is still there, but the Star-Ledger went down and visited one or two in Howell. This is not just a few dozen people, but a substantial informal community that planners and designers should be aware of.

Nearby lecture

Recent Work: Diller Scofidio + Renfro

A lecture from Elizabeth Diller (Founding Partner, Diller Scofidio + Renfro; Professor of Architecture, Princeton University School of Architecture)

Monday, April 10th, 6:00pm
Betts Auditorium, School of Architecture

 

Some past projects in our region include:

• Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, MA (2006)
• Lincoln Center Public Spaces, New York, NY (2010)
• High Line, New York, NY, Phases 1, 2, 3 (2009, 2011, 2014)