Miscellaneous

Gerald Hines Donates $7 Million to UH College of Architecture

Gerald Hines and family announced a $7 million contribution to the University of Houston's College of Architecture. In honor of the donation, the college will be named the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture.

Jeff Hines, president of Hines, remarked, "The renaming of the College of Architecture is a tremendous tribute to my father and a lasting legacy to his many contributions to the community and the practice of architecture." Eduarado Aguirre, chairman of the Board of Regents of the UH System added, "Gerald Hines' name is one that has come to be associated - not only in Houston, but across the nation and the world - with real estate development projects that embody his personal brand of quality, innovation and vision."

The donation will provide a permanent endowment for the College of Architecture, fund programs which enhance study opportunities - including initiatives to attract internationally-recognized visiting faculty in architecture and urban design increase resources for scholarly research and design exploration, and establish graduate student fellowships. It will also fund interdisciplinary urban design studios to explore innovative solutions to city building problems such as social space, urban housing and community development.

The Michael G. Meyers High School Design Competition award ceremony was held on Tuesday, April 1, with a reception at the AIA office for students, teachers and parents. This year's problem was to design a "Community Roots" Garden, and the client expected the project to encourage use by people of all ages, to be a visible, landmark in the neighborhood, and to provide a creative, fun and exciting environment. The site was a fictitious 200' square piece of land on Main Street bordered by the bayou. The winning presentations were displayed at the AIA gala.

First place was awarded to Mehwash Abbas of Stratford High School. She received the $500 Meyers Scholarship (to the university of her choice) and a scholarship to attend the University of Houston, College of Architecture Summer Discovery Program. Metwash has been accepted into the architecture program at the University of Southern California.

The first place group award was presented to Michael Furst of The High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and Julia Zweig of Westbury High School. They received gifts certificates from Texas Art Supply and scholarships to the UH Summer Discovery Program.

Texas Art Supply gift certificates were awarded to other winners: second place, Carlos Epitallo, Jr., of Reagan High School and third place, Jaaron Wood of Stratford High School. Students from McArthur High School and Stratford High School received second and third place group awards, respectively.

The Houston Architecture Foundation, Texas Art Supply, and the University of Houston College of Architecture were underwriters of the competition. Jurors were David Morrelo, ASLA, and Juan Rodriguez and Mark Mostaert with EDI Architecture, Houston. A team of seven architect volunteers developed the program, presented the workshop, and visited the schools to critique projects. Julia Nolte, AIA, is chair of the Architecture for Kids committee, sponsor of the competition.

One of the goals of the Board is to have members receive their annual Directories early in the year. There are complications with that because of the timing of dues payments, but, nevertheless, the first quarter is better than the last-even with the inevitable inaccuracies about membership. The Directory is published at no cost to the Chapter. The Publisher produces the book for the revenues generated by ad sales. This year's book looks so much better than previous years that ad sales for 1998 should improve. If they do, the Chapter will receive a royalty from the publisher to offset the need for increases in dues. That's a benefit to members, but advertisers need to know that their ads count for something.

Please take time to mention to advertisers that you appreciate their support of the Directory.

We apologize for the errors in the Directory. Some are inevitable-changes that occur after transmission of the data to the publisher can't be included. Others are not inevitable and some of those are inexplicable. Apparently we had a peculiar computer failure that eliminated records in (as far as we can tell) somewhat random fashion. There was a coding error that blocked some addresses outside of Houston.

Photographs were a problem. Since we had a new publisher this year, who did not own the negatives of the last directory, we had to choose between scanning an inferior photograph or leaving it out. The publisher elected to leave out photographs that were muddy and not clear. If you sent us a new photograph for this directory and it was not there, we apologize-we can't excuse the omission but we do regret it. Please send us a new picture and we will be sure that the publisher gets it for 1998.

In this Perspective are corrections of individual records that have been called in to us. If there is something wrong with your entry, please call us, so that we can correct our data base.

The omissions in Firm Profiles will be corrected with an insert in the June Perspective. It will be formatted like the Profile section of the Directory and will be easy to pull out of Perspective and insert in your copy of the Directory. It will be sent to everyone that received the original Directory and inserted in those we distribute from the office. If there is a mistake in your entry-or worse, if your entry is missing-please let us know before May 10.

Keeping up with you folks is hard-like stacking marbles-but that doesn't excuse our clerical mistakes. We are sorry for those. Help us out on the other information; let us know immediately when you move to a new firm or make some other changes in your professional life. Since most of our mailed communication is sent under bulk rate (to save your money), we don't get returns on undelivered mail. You need to call us if your address changes.

We appreciate your help and want to deliver a 1998 Directory that no one can find inadequate.

CSI, CDT, CCCA, CCPR, CCS. What in the heck do these initials mean anyhow? You've seen them on business cards and wondered. Maybe you even know what a couple of them mean. CSI (the Construction Specifications Institute) is fairly well known in the design and construction community as about the only organization that lists individuals from all areas of the business including architects, engineers, specifiers, product representatives, contractors, sub-contractors, facilities managers, building owners, attorneys, and more among its members. But what about those other initials? Well, since you asked: all the others are certifications achieved by successful completion of a pretty intense examination (test or tests).

Certification as a CDT, Construction Documents Technologist, demonstrates a thorough knowledge of the fundamentals of construction documents as well as an understanding of the contents and requirements of general conditions (AIA Doc. A201) and the various types of construction contracts, formats, relationships with other documents, and the entire construction process.

Certification as a CCCA, Certified Construction Contract Administrator, in addition to the requirements of CDT, demonstrates a knowledge of all phases of administration of the Construction Contract including project delivery systems, submittals, modification procedures, quality assurance, and project closeout requirements.

Certification as a CCPR, Certified construction Product Representative, in addition to the requirements of CDT, demonstrates at least five years experience in representing construction products and thorough familiarity with all aspects of specification techniques, preparation of technical specifications, and typical Division One requirements, especially substitution procedures and warranties and guarantees.

Certification as a CCS, Certified Construction Specifier, in addition to the requirements of CDT, demonstrates at least five years experience in the design/construction industry with a substantial portion of that time actually spent preparing construction specifications. In addition, a CCS has exhibited a high level of understanding of the construction process, project delivery methods, contractual agreements, bidding requirements, and all other aspects of design and construction.

All of these certification have been organized, and the examinations administered, by CSI. Most local CSI chapters offer study programs to assist candidates in preparation for the exams. In Houston, contact John Ziebell CSI, CDT at 281/583-7291 for more information.

Ask General Contractors for their opinions on Senate Bill 1, and you may hear different points of view. Senate Bill 1, which allows school districts to choose from a variety of project delivery options, has its share of detractors. Unfortunately, these nay sayers represent the old school approach of "design, bid and build."

Members of Associated General Contractors, however, support the legislation because it gives school districts the ability to choose the best delivery system for their project. With experience in Construction-Manager-at-Risk or negotiated contracts, these contractors understand how conceptual estimating skills and the ability and desire to work on project teams create a win-win environment.

Senate Bill 1 not only opens the door to opportunities for architects and contractors alike, it also marks a watershed in the relationship between public institutions and the marketplace In the future, the public and private sectors will be forced to compete for capital and provide the highest-caliber services for their clients in the most cost-effective manner.

General contractors who recognize this shift and alter the ways they conduct business will be the ones who thrive in this new business climate. Those who refuse to adapt likely will be the ones who thrive in this new business climate. Those who refuse to adapt likely will be left behind.

Senate Bill 1 is another example of how our industry continues to change at an exponential rate. Whether they provide design or construction management services, contractors and architects must rapidly adapt to the ever-changing market in order to continue providing quality services to their clients.

Those who remain stuck in the old school of "design, bid and build" will find their services will have less market value. Consequently, their clients will choose another provider of design or construction services.

Senate Bill 1 represents change-but it's the kind of positive change our industry needs.

Patrons
A&E Products
Ambrose and McEnany
Associated General Contractors of America, Houston Chapter
W. S. Bellows Construction Corp.
Brochstein's Inc./Architectural Woodwork Corp.
CHP & Associates
Douglas Gallagher
FKP Architects, Inc.
Gensler
D. E. Harvey Builders
Haynes Whaley Associates, Inc.
Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum, Inc.
L. C. Construction, Inc.
The Marek Family of Companies
Miner Dederick Companies, Inc.
Walter P. Moore and Associates, Inc.
Perry Homes
Pierce Goodwin Alexander & Linville
Jack M. Rains, JD
Ridgway's
John Poretto, University of Texas-Houston
Satterfield & Pontikes Construction, Inc.
Shell Oil Company
Smith Seckman Reid, Inc.
3D/International
Watkins Carter Hamilton Architects, Inc.
Ziegler Cooper Architects

Monticello Tickets
Bank One, Robert W. Phillips
Burns Delatte & McCoy, Inc.
Linbeck Construction Corporation
Porter & Hedges, LLP
David G. Puckett, AIA

Shadwell Tickets
Commercial Insurance Concepts
I. A. Naman + Associates, Inc.

Woodlawn Tickets:
AES Houston
Burr Engineers, Inc.
C. C. Lee, AIA
Houston Stafford Electric, Inc.
Frank Kelly, FAIA
Liddell, Sapp, Zivley, Hill & LaBoon, LLP
Manhattan Construction Company
Robert McClain
McCord Development
M/MA Partners, Inc.
W. O. Neuhaus and Associates
O'Donnell/Snider Construction, Inc.
SJKB, Inc.
Turner Construction of Texas
Wilsonart International
WSBC Civil Engineers, Inc.

Friends:
Madeleine and Michael Appel
Carter & Burgess
Ed Kagi
Louis Skidmore, Jr., AIA

Turner Collie & Braden Inc. is a finalist in the American Consulting Engineers Council's 31st annual Engineering Excellence Awards competition for development of a new methodology for assessing the cumulative environmental impact on natural habitats of multiple past, current and future projects. This new methodology is a major tool that can be used to better assess decisions when natural resources are potentially affected. The winners will be announced at the ACEC's annual convention in May.

The MacDowell Colony, located in Petersborough, NH, is the oldest multi-disciplinary artist colony in America. The Colony welcomes individuals or collaborators working in architecture and the related arts including landscape architecture, environmental design, architectural photography, and structural engineering. MacDowell provides fellowships of up to eight weeks for intensive work. For more information, an application, and sample work requirements, contact the MacDowell Colony at 603/924-3886.

Tellepsen has begun an interior build out construction contract for Coastal Banc which includes approximately 115,00 sf of office space renovations. Completion is scheduled for July 1997.

World-renowned developer Bill Rouse will give the keynote address at Construction Technology 97, June 16 - 19 in Philadelphia. The conference is held concurrent with A/E/C Systems '97, the world's largest computer show for the design and construction industry. Deadline for free registration is May 30. To register or for more information, contact Construction Technology 97 at 1-800-451-1196.

Technimar Industries, Inc. and Stonite of Houston will be exhibiting their new agglomerate stone materials materials at the AIA EXPO in New Orleans.

The Society of Design Administration's (SDA) May 16th meeting is changed because of a conflict with the AIA National Convention in New Orleans. Check with Robin Bollman, Kirksey & Partners, at 713/850-9600 for up-dated information.

CSI Houston has moved the H.E.S.S. Building, 5430 Westheimer.

Architectural Dialogue, London, announces 1997 schedule of regular and special architectural tours. A brochure describing the half and full-day tours is available in the chapter office.

The Architect's Handbook of Professional Practice helps you handle registrations and terminations with professionalism. Call the Chapter office, 622-2081, for details.