Author: Jessica Sheridan Assoc. AIA LEED AP

With a recent visit to Oberlin College, my alma mater, I met with Environmental Studies students to discuss their opinion about the future of sustainability. The hot topic was “food justice,” a new term to me, although not a new concept. I felt these discussions were particularly timely, as the AIANY Emerging New York Architects Committee (ENYA) just launched its biennial design ideas competition, “The Harlem Edge: Cultivating Connections,” calling for ideas for the decommissioned Department of Sanitation marine transfer station on 135th Street and the Hudson River. The committee collaborated with Nourishing NYC, a hunger advocacy organization, to develop the program.

Food justice, as it was described to me, empowers communities to grow, eat, and sell healthy food — “healthy” meaning locally grown, nutritious, and affordable. The movement aims to affect social change by advocating for new governmental policies that would create an environment where everyone would have access to food and no one would go hungry. Part of the movement involves redistributing food that is available globally to adequately feed those who suffer from malnutrition and starvation.

Nourishing NYC has three aspects to its mission of “achieving ‘nutrition for all’ in NYC”: offer nutritionally balanced meals for free; educate children ages 6-12; and provide hands-on nutritional workshops in the community. The organization recently unveiled a national program, Nourishing USA, expanding its umbrella to other cities in the U.S.

I think The Harlem Edge competition will bring to light how architects and designers can contribute to broad social causes such as food justice. The site of the marine transfer station is perfect for the program, as it is on the water (potential ferry access), near existing transportation infrastructure, close to a Fairway supermarket, and the demographics will quickly change over the next few years as Columbia expands into Manhattanville. With emerging professionals addressing issues of poverty, obesity, and “food insecurity” (another term I recently learned), they are re-establishing the profession as a source for innovative, practical ideas to help solve the world’s problems.

09.14.11: Although e-Oculus began in May of 2002, it was 9/11 that confirmed a need to bring timely news to AIANY Chapter members more frequently than the then monthly print edition of OCULUS. As a result, this e-zine has continued to deliver information about NYC-based events and projects to members on a bi-weekly basis. I am honored to be a part of it and hope it continues to be a valuable asset to the NY design community and beyond.

– Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP

Note: The digital edition of the summer issue of OCULUS magazine, “2011 AIANY Design Awards,” is online now! Click here to read.

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And check out the latest Podcasts produced by AIANY.

With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 now past, I keep returning to the question about whether or not it was too soon to develop Ground Zero. Ten years ago, I wanted the city to wait longer before a decision was made about what was best for the site. While I thought it was important to rebuild, I also thought that the city was jumping too fast into putting a Band-Aid over the hole in the ground. Now, after a decade of reflection, I am not so sure. With the opening of the 9/11 Memorial, I have a sense of relief that there is something tangible at the site that people can visit.

Year after year when I have found myself in Lower Manhattan I have strained to peek through the fences and mesh screens to watch the new World Trade Center emerge. I have followed friends on Facebook who have posted views of the site from their apartments, and I have taken advantage of any chance that came my way to visit surrounding buildings with a view, each time trying to render the pools and towers in my mind. At first, this was enough for me. Now, I am excited and anxious for more.

On each anniversary the Tribute in Light has illuminated the sky, temporarily re-unifying the city. While I hope that this was not the memorial’s last year (click here to contribute to the Municipal Art Society’s fundraiser), even if it is, I am looking forward to each subsequent anniversary, as the site will continue to open more and more to the public as construction continues, and the bandages are removed. I haven’t seen the pools in person yet (I have my appointment scheduled for 10.01.11. Click here to make yours ), but the fact that they are now open gives me a sense of optimism about the beginning of the end of an era, signaling a time to really look to the future, rather than dwelling on the past.

09.01.11: It’s been a couple of weeks-worth of natural events in our area that perhaps brought to light some of the serious issues the city faces if those events were to escalate and become more frequent. In this issue Lance Jay Brown, FAIA, and Illya Azaroff, AIA, discuss the new AIANY Design for Risk and Reconstruction Committee (“New Committee Promotes Design for Risk and Reconstruction“), which they co-chair, and Contributing Editor Murrye Bernard, LEED AP, gives us a round-up of upcoming events commemorating 9/11 (“NYC Commemorates 9/11 Attacks“).

– Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP

Note: The digital edition of the summer issue of OCULUS magazine, “2011 AIANY Design Awards,” is online now! Click here to read.

Be sure to follow Tweets from e-Oculus and the Center for Architecture.

And check out the latest Podcasts produced by AIANY.

There may have been a lot of pomp and circumstance from our local politicians as we began our weekends in anticipation of Hurricane Irene. Whether or not it was necessary for so many city dwellers to evacuate their homes and hospital beds, board up storefronts, and shut down mass transit, I think this past weekend proved to be a successful “dry run” of what might happen if there were to be a larger event in the city.

In general, people listened to the issued warnings. Most New Yorkers learned about the NYC Hurricane Evacuation Zone map. I’m sure downloads about Go Bags and advice about what to do in the event of a catastrophe increased exponentially (at least I did my part in helping the statistics). Although the city itself was left relatively unscathed, save for flooded basements and water and power outages in some areas, I think people became much more aware of the precarious nature of New York Harbor and low-lying areas in the five boroughs.

Last week I attended the inaugural AIANY Design for Risk and Reconstruction meeting at the Center for Architecture (See “New Committee Promotes Design for Risk and Reconstruction,” by Lance Jay Brown, FAIA, and Illya Azaroff, AIA in this issue). The discussion centered on how the design community can better serve as a vehicle for information- and knowledge-sharing to promote resilience in the face of natural and manmade disasters. This meeting couldn’t have come at a better time. Now that the earthquake has subsided and the tides have receded, and as these next couple of weeks bring focus on the anniversaries of Hurricane Katrina and 9/11, this committee is poised to help identify and clarify how design professionals can positively affect preparation, mitigation, response, and rebuilding.

08.17.11: Congratulations to AIANY Executive Director Rick Bell, FAIA, who was presented with the 2011 Component Leadership Award by the American Institute of Architects Council of Architectural Component Executives (CACE). See Around the AIA to read the award inscription.

– Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP

Note: The digital edition of the summer issue of OCULUS magazine, “2011 AIANY Design Awards,” is online now! Click here to read.

Be sure to follow Tweets from e-Oculus and the Center for Architecture.

And check out the latest Podcasts produced by AIANY.

Recently the Long Beach City Council agreed to partner with Miami-based Decobike to implement NY State’s first bike share program. While it is a shame that the roll-out is expected to happen this fall — rather than during the high season of the summer — I am looking forward to seeing how the program develops. In addition to providing 400 bicycles to be dispersed among 20-30 solar-powered kiosks throughout the city, including the Long Beach LIRR station, Long Beach will also be creating new bike lanes to help facilitate the launch. It is reported that Decobike will be putting $1 million into the project, as well as paying for the costs of installing the new bike lanes over the next year.

Of course, it will be interesting to observe how the gas-guzzling tendencies of the locals will be balanced by the new initiative. Will the initial push to get the program off the ground be enough to sustain it until next summer when we will really be able to judge its success? Will its success be dependent on city-dwelling beach-goers in town for the weekend, or will Long Beach’s residents truly adopt the program and begin to change their habits? Most importantly, will this initiative be a litmus test for how similar programs will work in other locations throughout the state, including NYC?

I patiently wait for the day that a bike share program is available in the city. Janette Sadik-Khan hinted that we are close in her recent article in Slate (“Bridge-and-Tunnel Vision,” 08.08.11). And if both initiatives prove to be worth the investment, I hope it signals a much needed new phase in urban planning statewide.

Editor’s Note: There are just a couple more days to submit your work to the “New York New Work 2011 Subway Exhibition.” The deadline has been extended to 08.12.11. Click here for more information.

– Jessica Sheridan, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP

OCULUS Correction: Please note that in the current issue of OCULUS (Summer 2011), the top left photo on p.23 of the interior of the C.V. Starr East Asian Library by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects should be credited to Michael Moran.

Be sure to follow Tweets from e-Oculus and the Center for Architecture.

And check out the latest Podcasts produced by AIANY.