CGA and its partner REthink Development recently received approvals from Culver City to create its new Southern California headquarters in the architecturally advanced Hayden Tract district. CGA will occupy about 10,000 square feet of the 63,000-square-foot structure, selling remaining space to other firms as office condominiums. The building, named The Plant, will offer four stories of commercial office space and two levels of underground parking. Designed as a model for reducing energy use and enhancing the urban environment, The Plant is projected to break ground in 2011 and open in late 2012. It is intended to become the first very high-performance office condominium for creative businesses in one of this section of Los Angeles.

“The principals of the firm are investing their own money significantly in this project,” says CGA Principal Jonathan V. Watts, AIA, LEED® A.P. “It’s a sign that design industry leaders can commit to high-performance design not only as a design or moral exercise, but also as an investment strategy.”

There are previous examples of the architect-as-developer in other cities: In San Diego, Jonathan Segal has demonstrated the process for other architects. But in Los Angeles it remains unusual for an architecture firm to tackle property acquisition, approvals, financing, liability protection and other development issues. REthink Development, like CGA, has a strong track record in green design and sustainable development. And the team’s timing may be right for the eventual commercial real estate rebound.

Today, Dutch hostel chain Stayokay will officially open a brand new hostel in part of the famous Cube Houses complex in Rotterdam. The houses were designed by the Dutch architect Piet Blom and were built between 1982 and 1984.

The unique architecture has been an attraction for tourists from the Netherlands and abroad for 25 years now. In December 2009, the Cube Houses became the most modern of Rotterdam’s listed buildings.

Festive Opening
Stayokay is eighty years old and will be celebrating its anniversary on Wednesday, 24 March 2010 with the official opening of Stayokay Rotterdam. Rotterdam’s mayor, Ahmed Aboutaleb, will be unveiling a Cube House named after him in festive spirit. A special two-person room with private entrance has been built in this separate house on stilts.

The Eboli pouffe is one of Capdell sent us this morning a photograph of their new  Eboli pouffe.

The original Eboli pouffe has been main pieces in its lineup for this season. Vicente Soto has designed and created  this new version.

Soto has chosen to use the same materials he had previously used for the chair version to create this pouffe.

Pouffe meets chair? intriguing, but why not.

Measurements: 46 cm width x 70 cm height x 49 cm depth.

In collaboration with Italian architect Barbara Berni, this mixed-use residential project was conceived as a large-scale, green building development on nearly 12 acres in the province of Caserta in southern Italy. The design and site plan, reflecting a direct response to the needs of this tightly knit community in which environmental regulations are becoming increasingly strict, is intended to be sustainable and improve its inhabitants’ comfort and standard of living.

Thirteen buildings are planned to be constructed on the site, while preserving existing public amenities and green areas. Commercial and retail spaces on the ground floors of each building would enhance the social life of the residents, creating opportunities for interaction based on shopping and business. This project is also intended to show how developers with private patronage can: a) commission buildings of high quality and adopt innovative technologies and design guidelines; and b) demonstrate the way they are becoming conscious of how inhabitants of new buildings are more educated and sensitive to sustainable architecture benefits and issues.