Boulder — long a destination for rock climbers and mountaineers — was host to another form of vertical ascent this weekend: tree climbing. I visited City Park on Friday to see some of the preliminary events of the ISA (The International Society of Arboriculture) Tree Climbing Championship, and as someone who has never witnessed [...]
Archive for September, 2007
Taking Care of the Trees
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Outdoor Space, Public Space, Trade Issues, tagged arborist, Boulder, international society of arboriculture, ISA, tree climbing, tree climbing competiton on September 29, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
New York’s PIE
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Development, Public Space on September 28, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Before exhibiting my blatant excitement about this iniative as a conceptual resource for all cities, including of course, ahem, Boulder, let’s start by looking at what PIE is. In their own words,
PIE is an initiative of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and is designed to create an archive of NYC [...]
Solar Homes Tour
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Building Materials, Green Issues on September 27, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
The 12th annual Tour of Solar and Green Built Homes takes place this weekend as part of the nonprofit Center for ReSource Conservation’s Solar Week. The tour features 13 Boulder County homes and will showcase a variety of resource conservation technologies. The tour begins at 9am on Sunday, September 30th. Homes will be open from [...]
Community Dinner #1
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Community Think, Design, Development on September 26, 2007 | 1 Comment »
We’re excited to announce a series of informal dinners to discuss design and development in Boulder. We’ll be hosting the first dinner at The Kitchen on Friday, September 28th at 5:30 pm.
There are a limited number of seats available, so if you’re interested in joining us for an evening of intriguing discussion and great [...]
From Laundry to Lofts : 1641 4th Street
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Building Materials, Development on September 26, 2007 | 1 Comment »
The old 4th Street laundry mat was a true west end landmark. For those of us who used it in it’s heyday, it’s memory serves as a reminder for just how long we’ve been here. I can remember regularly squeezing in loads there, probably 8 or so years ago now, when Boulder’s other laundry [...]
Bike Rack Design Competition
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Commercial Space, Culture, Graphic Design, Public Space on September 25, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
After a recent post on Boulderspace regarding this idea, I began speaking with various City of Boulder staff members about the possibility of sponsoring a bike rack design competition. Pending City of Boulder approval, Boulderspace is excited to announce a citywide competition to design a unique bicycle rack for installation atop the recently-beheaded parking meter [...]
Parking Credit Cards?
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Development, Public Space on September 24, 2007 | 3 Comments »
New parking kiosks have made their way onto the streets of Boulder, which got me thinking about alternatives for people in Boulder to pay for parking, rather than carrying a pocketful of change or charging their parking toll to their credit card. I personally enjoyed the old prepaid meter keys, which offered motorists a quick [...]
What do you want to see?
Posted in Building Materials, Commercial Space, Culture, Healthy Living, Public Space on September 24, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
This quote, by Howard Brandston, an architectural lighting consultant, is intuitive and straightforward. Yet it’s also provocative in its simplicity, when applied to Brandston’s field of lighting. By posing this simple question, Brandston suggests that lighting should be intentional, well-thought out, and composed within an architectural space, whether interior or exterior. Since 1966, his firm [...]
Rooftop ROI
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Building 101, Building Materials, Green Issues, Healthy Living, Public Space on September 23, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
As our conversation about development and its impact on the surrounding environment continues, it is becoming more and more apparent that it makes sense to incorporate green roofs into new and existing structures. A properly built and well maintained green roof can support urban food production, help improve air quality and reduce CO2 emmissions, [...]
1212 Pearl Street
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Boulder Business, Commercial Space on September 19, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
A couple months back the space at 1212 Pearl Street was historically renovated. It looks great—even empty—with plenty of period detail. The Daily Camera posted an article today that Patagonia, a well known outdoor clothing and gear company just signed a 10-year lease on the space.
While it’s tough to see such a choice [...]
Headless Meter Pole Idea
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Graphic Design on September 18, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
There’s a sight in town that many residents may view with a certain degree of pleasure, the newly-headless parking meter poles. The City of Boulder recently installed new, solar-powered “Pay & Display Stations” around the downtown and University Hill areas, relieving the necessity for one meter per parking space. The University of Colorado is in [...]
15th Street Developments
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Development on September 13, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Another in the series of new developments in Boulder County is the recently-begun redevelopment of the corner at 15th and Arapahoe in downtown Boulder. We’ve heard whispers of the future plans for this block over the past year, and admittedly felt nervous as it meant the removal of a great local sandwich joint, the Boulder [...]
Greywater: No Longer a Grey Area
Posted in Building Materials, Green Issues on September 10, 2007 | 3 Comments »
The City of Boulder recently announced that it will allow grey water recycling under a new set of guidelines. Considering that the average household uses 300-400 gallons of purified water per day, and that 45% of the water used is consumed by showers and sinks, the installation of a simple grey water recycling system could go a long way to aid [...]
From Kentucky to Boulder, Rich Wood with a Rich History
Posted in Building Materials on September 10, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Occasionally we like to highlight companies, individuals, and groups that are taking innovative approaches to re-use and recycling as it relates to design and development. One such company, Antique Arbor, is reclaiming timber from Kentucky tobacco barns, many of which are nearing the end of their useful lives and are poised for reincarnation. Based [...]
art + science
Posted in Community Think, Culture, Design on September 10, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Last week I attended a lecture at BMoCA hosted by 4 prominent characters in the upcoming ECO Arts festival (aka: “Weather Report: Art and Climate Change” on the streets). Thanks to a grant from the Andy Warhol foundation, and the curatorial skill of internationally renowned art critic, historian, and writer Lucy R. Lippard, this is [...]
EFAA 9th and Arapahoe
Posted in Boulder Business, Development, Office Space on September 9, 2007 | 1 Comment »
The church building that houses the EFAA at 9th and Arapahoe has been on the market for a while now. Recent indications are that it has been sold to a group of attorneys to be redeveloped into office space. Other properties for sale in the neighborhood make this slice of town between the university and [...]
Pavers & Precast Metal Railings
Posted in Building Materials, Design on September 8, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
For those of you looking for an alternative to wood decking or pavestone patio pavers for above-grade terraces or patios, check out Step Stone.
They offer precast stair treads and deck tiles that can be applied to concrete or wood framing. They perform very well in our climate and are worth considering given that the requirement [...]
Formaldehyde’s Hidden Costs
Posted in Building Materials, Healthy Living, Inhabitants on September 6, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Chances are, we don’t realize how many everyday materials that we come in contact with contain formaldehyde. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission posted an extensive report on formaldehyde and it’s related health risks.
From the perspective of a builder, there are many products coming on the market that are presenting themselves as formaldehyde free. Finding [...]
The Colorado Building
Posted in Boulder & Environs, Boulder Business on September 6, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
This month’s Boulder Magazine offers an interesting look at downtown Boulder’s tallest building. Often the butt-end of architectural jokes, the structure is actually a well-preserved example of the International Style of architecture, according to local design firm CommArts, who was approached several years ago about renovating the facade, but turned down the job due to [...]
Hotels Bring Design Home…
Posted in Culture, Design on September 4, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Have you been to the hotels in your neighborhood lately? Many hotels are tempting you to purchase the items in their hotel rooms, i.e. beds, artwork, showers. Westin and W Hotels, The St. Julien in Boulder, and Little Nell Aspen are a few examples of lodging providers ever-so-gingerly encouraging patrons to take home a piece [...]
Dwell on Design-San Francisco
Posted in Building Materials, Culture, Design on September 4, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
For those of you interested in making a trip to California in a couple of weeks, consider the Dwell on Design conference. Here’s a blurb from their website: “The Dwell on Design Conference + Exhibition is an idea-driven, multi-day experience designed to ignite a creative spark within anyone who is passionate about modern design, sustainability [...]
Katy Clark Metal Worker on Display / What’s Going on in Providence…
Posted in Culture, Inhabitants on September 4, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Katy Clark will be displaying her metal artwork this month at the St. John’s Episcopal Church Art Gallery in Boulder. This is a great opportunity to see the work of a local artist and support a program that creatively uses space in an historical building.
A similar program, Art Exchange, is a group in Providence RI that is using [...]
