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Editor’s note: You may read the news digest below or listen to it, plus other news headlines from ArchRecord.com, as a podcast below: Click the play button to begin | Click here to download Herzon & de Meuron were tapped to design a new football stadium for the coastal city of Portsmouth, England—that’s British football, by the way, known only in the U.S. as soccer. “We’ve taken the ingredients of the city and mixed them up—the docks, the sea, the transport, a city oriented to labor—and we’ve brought football into that,” Jacques Herzog told the U.K.’s Financial Times on April

  Photo: Courtesy Chris Schultz, AIA The 2007 National Convention and Design Exposition of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) opens next week in San Antonio. In this six-minute podcast, AIA San Antonio chapter president Chris Schultz, AIA, chats with McGraw-Hill Construction’s news director, Heather Hatfield, about how his organization is gearing up for the event. Local AIA chapters are responsible for organizing galas as well as tours of their cities. In this case, AIA San Antonio is offering more than 100 tours that highlight everything from the Alamo and other historic Spanish missions, to the dance halls of Texas.

Architectural illustrator David Macaulay and Richard H. Driehaus, the philanthropist and preservationist, were feted last night with Soane Foundation Honors. These awards recognize individuals who carry on the legacy of Sir John Soane, a visionary British architect who practiced in the late 1700s and early 1800s. Macaulay, who was awarded a MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant in 2006, is best known for his children’s books including Cathedral, Building Big, and The Way Things Work. He has also hosted PBS television series based these books. Macaulay teaches illustration at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he received his degree in 1969.

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has joined a coalition of more than 60 business groups attempting to repeal a little-known but far-reaching tax law called Section 511. Passed last year, the provision requires federal, state, and some local governments to withhold 3 percent from virtually all government contracts to help cover the contractors’ federal taxes. Included in the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005, which aimed to cut taxes and boost federal revenue, Section 511 applies to contract payments beginning in 2011. Proponents say it will help the Internal Revenue Service collect taxes and help to recoup

It is difficult to differentiate one of Laurie Baker’s designs from vernacular construction in India, where the British-born architect spent most of his life. Even so, many contemporary practitioners owe him a debt as the creator of a regionally sensitive, socially responsible architecture whose principles are now in vogue. Baker died earlier this month at his house in Thiruvananthapuram, in the Indian state of Kerala. He was 90 years old. Baker’s house, known as the Hamlet, reflects his approach to architecture. Built into a steep hillside, the brick-and-salvaged-timber dwelling integrates the natural landscape with manmade forms. It is also one

Nearly 6,000 planning practitioners and scholars converged in Philadelphia last week for the 99th annual national conference of the American Planning Association (APA). A theme evident in many of the 300 seminars was how U.S. cities are grappling with what one presenter termed the “post-Federal” era: the current climate in which municipalities can no longer rely on federal monies but must instead secure philanthropic and corporate support to help resolve social and infrastructure problems. Green space, many speakers agreed, is a critical asset that cities may use to their benefit. Environmental lawyer Robert Kennedy gave the conference’s keynote. He contended

Paris is one of the world’s cultural capitals, but a key offering is missing from its menu: a state-of-the-art symphony hall. That’s about to change. Earlier this month Jean Nouvel was selected as the winner of an international competition to design the Philharmonie de Paris, a music complex that will be the future home of the Orchestre de Paris. Images courtesy: Ateliers Jean Nouvel Slated to open in 2012, the new complex will be located in the Parc de la Villette. In addition to providing a contemporary performance space, the Philharmonie de Paris will be the city’s first full-fledged professional