Blog / News

Over the last few weeks PLA has had the fantastic opportunity to get involved with Nitsch Engineering and the City of Boston to visualize exciting changes coming to the streetscape of Dorchester. Newly-elected Mayor Marty Walsh had the first groundbreaking of his term today, flanked by PLA renderings depicting the design for a new street improvement project at Upham’s Corner. Located in Dorchester, Upham’s Corner is the site of several historic landmarks, including the Strand Theater, Masonic Hall, Pilgrim Congregational Church, and many gorgeous, historic brick storefronts. Despite the many architectural treasures here, the streetscape at Upham’s Corner has slowly … Continued

Bibliophiles and library-lovers may enjoy CNN’s online feature, “Your favorite libraries,” posted in honor of National Library Week (April 13-19) to invite readers to submit stories and pictures of their favorite libraries from around the world: ireport.cnn.com/topics To this feature we contributed a narrative/photographic description of one of our favorite libraries, the Openbare Biblioteek Amsterdam (OBA) in the Netherlands, which I had the opportunity to visit last summer. Designed by Jo Coenen, this innovative institution is much more than a repository of books, records and art. It houses a multitude of community programs, including live performances, lectures and radio stations, … Continued

Loeb Fellows Forum – Resilience by design: can design make a difference? Helen Lochhead Thursday, April 17th at 6:30pm BSA Space 290 Congress Street, Boston – In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, with more frequent extreme weather events and rising sea level in progress, the vulnerability of coastal cities and towns has become a matter of urgency. But out of disasters can come opportunities for innovation. Post-Sandy, a range of new initiatives, tools, policies, governance frameworks and incentives are being tested, including competitions like Rebuild by Design. Design is seen as a key tool for dealing with complex problems by … Continued

We are proud to announce that PLA is working with Somerville Brewing Company, the makers of Slumbrew beers, to design their new brewery and taproom in the Boynton Yards area of Somerville. The new location at 15 Ward Street will serve as an additional 2,500 barrel production facility as well as a destination-tap room to enjoy all of Slumbrew’s finest offerings. Somerville Brewing Company, Inc. was started in Somerville, Massachusetts by Jeff Leiter and Caitlin Jewell in 2011. To date, all of the brewery’s Slumbrew craft beer recipes have been invented and tested in Somerville and developed for commercial production … Continued

We’re proud to announce that our project, Shaoxing Paojiang Two Lakes Area Master Plan, in collaboration with CRJA-IBI Group and Green Design Union has been awarded the 2014 Big Urban Future Project Award by the MIPIM Architectural Review Future Projects awards competition. The MIPIM Architectural Review Future Projects Awards are the only awards exclusively for future projects. They celebrate excellence in unbuilt or incomplete projects spanning across twelve categories. With a strong focus on creativity, these awards are a chance to showcase projects that are examples of fine design, but have also responded to the client’s development brief, and considered … Continued