The 2010 Northfield Area Home Remodeling Tour is on Facebook! Check it out!
This is a great way to get ideas, see beautiful spaces, and learn who can help improve your home locally!
Owatonna has a great architectural treasure. On a recent visit I stopped here, at the old National Farmer’s Bank Building. Designed in 1908, by Chicago architect Louis Sullivan, this bank has been called the most beautiful bank in the world.
It is a carefully proportioned building, whose apparent design simplicity is enhanced by terra cotta tiles inside and out. It is a pleasure to view and visit, awash with natural light inside and richly embellished in every detail.
Tours are available regularly, or you can just drop in during banking hours. Here is a PDF with more details.
Celebrate American architecture with a visit to Owatonna!
This week, I’ve taken the Metro Express bus to Minneapolis then home again.
The occasion is the 75th annual Convention of the Minnesota American Institute of Architects, favored by architects near and far for quality opportunities to learn about current practices, philosophy and materials in the industry.
Metro Express appealed to me as a supporter of sustainablility and as a guy who would prefer to avoid driving in rush hour traffic.
It has been a pleasant experience. The driver is polite and conversational, the ride is smooth and continuous, taking just less than an hour to downtown Minneapolis. The walk to the convention center gives me a chance to stroll Nicollet Mall and take in the local architectural vistas.
At $10 to ride (each way), the cost is very competitive with driving myself ($10 parking per day plus about $11 in gas). After a long day of seminars, it has been very nice to have travel time to process information and unwind instead of pumping the clutch through stop-and-go traffic.
The departure times work well for all-day events downtown.
I recommend you give it a try when you get a chance.
Thank you to the Northfield Transit Initiative for your work in making this bus route an option!
Check out the latest at www.northfieldcohousing.org!
Last weekend, we visited two cohousing developments in Madison, Wisconsin. This photo shows Arboretum Cohousing, a newish community who hosted the Northfield Cohousing Community‘s contingent of visitors. (Thank you, Arbco!)
I stayed is a guest suite at Arbco. It is part of the “common house”, of which members own an undivided share. The rooms were spacious and clean, and easily accessible to the common house. Gail and Dan gave us a wonderful tour of the facilities and grounds, followed by an informational conversation about startup challenges and a wonderful potluck lunch. I was impressed by their gracious hospitality and relaxed manner, which permeated the place.
Arbco consists of 40 living units, including six single family homes. Structured parking is provided below the living spaces, which was a nice amenity required by the tight urban site. This combination allows the development to nestle into its neighborhood context nicely.
We also visited the Village Cohousing Community, just five blocks away from Arbco.
The village is a bit smaller, with 18 living units, including both existing homes and new townhomes. It was built in the early 1990′s, so Village has had time for landscaping to mature and it, too, blends nicely into the neighborhood. Karen took us through the buildings and shared ideas about how the community handles shared tasks and the like. (Thank you, Karen!)
The trip to Madison was part of the Northfield Cohousing Community’s effort to research cohousing and to prepare for our development in Northfield. These shared efforts help build relationships and understanding among the members as we prepare to design and build a neighborhood for ourselves.
Cohousing offers opportunties for a more sustainable lifestyle and a stronger connection to neighbors.
For more about cohousing, please attend my presentation at Just Food Coop next month:
5 November 2009: “Cohousing Design”
Just Food Coop meeting room, 7:00pm to 8:30pm
You’ll have a chance to meet others interested in cohousing!
The plants are in place on our first residential green roof!
Now in their first season, the seedums are taking root and getting established. A soaker hose is being used to water for now As they fill out, the erosion control mat will become less visible, and the roof will retain more rainwater than it currently does. We estimate that the roof should reduce runoff by 50% a that point; however, other portions of the roof drain onto this roof through downspouts, so we are asking a lot of these plantings!
The homeowners installed the multi-layered system and planted on top of the rubber membrane provided by the contractor. They blogged about it in two parts: Part One and Part Two. Take a look, they’ve done well in explaining the process.
We have been learning a new software system lately at VIVUS Architecture + Design.
One of our primary goals is to provide our clients with creative, responsive design solutions. At the same time, we pledge to do our best to manage each project well. Like much in architecture, an inherent contradiction lies here: managers and artists often wear different hats.
To allow us to focus more on creative design, we have decided to upgrade our in-house management tools. Recently, we installed a new server and an extensive management application that will help us deliver your projects more efficiently and effectively. Already the benefits of software enhancements are evident: reduced time preparing and managing time, documents, communication and contacts. This will allow more time to be spent on the creative side of our work and helping us deliver our primary goal.
Sincere thanks to the City of Northfield, the Economic Development Authority, and the Northfield Enterprise Center for the funding received through the Clemens-Shearer Microgrant, without which this upgrade would have had to wait an indeterminate amount of time. The microgrant program supports emerging businesses in Northfield, Minnesota.