Ellerbe Becket has revealed its design for University Hospital, planned for Dubai Healthcare City in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Image: Ellerbe Becket Extra Large Image

Houston · 2008.0708
Christof Spieler, P.E., has joined the Houston, Texas, office of Morris Architects in the newly created position of director of technology and innovation. Christof's experience includes management of projects with construction costs of up to $140 million, and work on sustainable buildings and implementing building information modeling (BIM).

He teaches at the Rice University School of Architecture and advises student design-build studios at Rice and the University of Houston, a position he will continue to hold concurrently with his work at Morris Architects.

Washington, D.C. · 2008.0707
Lida Dersookian, IIDA, has joined the Washington, D.C., office of KlingStubbins as principal and director of interiors. Dersookian has over 25 years of experience in the design field, working on corporate, healthcare, and hospitality projects for private and federal clients. Her portfolio includes many headquarters, including for the Institute for Genomic Research in Bethesda, Maryland; the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, D.C.; and CAJA Madrid Bank in Madrid, Spain.

San Diego · 2008.0705
Architectural Concepts, Inc. of San Diego, California, has completed design work for The Purring Parrot, a retail cat and bird "resort" to be located in the Point Loma neighborhood of San Diego. The new facility will include retail sales areas, 21 cat rooms, two cage and aviary rooms, and support facilities, with energy-efficient lighting and SolatubeŽ daylighting systems. Opening is expected in August 2008.

Construction also began recently on another of the firm's projects: a tenant improvement project for Sharp Business Systems in Santee, California.

Wallerfield · 2008.0701
Construction is underway on the new main campus for the University of Trinidad and Tobago in Trinidad. Architecture and urban planning firm acla:works, based in Port of Spain, Trinidad, designed the campus, which is being built on a 150-acre (61-hectare) greenfield site in the Wallerfield area, a former U.S. military base. A large open-air landscaped plaza marks the center of campus, bounded on three sides by buildings housing a library, 400-seat auditorium, classrooms, lecture halls, labs, cafeterias, and administrative offices.

New York · 2008.0701
Pasquale A. "Pat" Fusco, AIA, and Timothy Eckersley, RA, AIA, have joined New York City architecture firm Gertler & Wente Architects as senior associates.

Santiago · 2008.0630
The New York City office of Handel Architects has revealed its preliminary design for El Bosque, a 21-story tower in Santiago, Chile. The 32,000-square-meter (344,000-square-foot) tower will include 1,000 square meters (10,800 square feet) of retail space on the ground level, with 17,000 square meters (183,000 square feet) of Class A office space above, and below-ground parking.

The exterior of the building will be a glass curtainwall with integrated vegetation. The project will also feature a green roof, sun-control screens, and low-E glass. Founding principal Gary Handel, AIA, and associate Diego Barberena are leading the design. The developer is Territoria.

New York · 2008.0627
Brian H. Mende has joined Partner Engineering and Science, Inc. as a principal in charge of the firm's newly opened New York City office. A Certified Professional Geologist, Mende has 26 years of experience in designing and managing environmental assessment and remedial action plans. He joins Partner from Citibank, where he served as senior environmental risk manager, working on brownfield redevelopment projects, commercial and multifamily real estate, and other projects. Partner is a national engineering, environmental, and LEED consulting firm based in El Segundo, California.

Poway · 2008.0626
The Jean McLaughlin Women's Center for Health and Healing has been completed in Poway, California. The San Francisco office of Anshen + Allen designed the 22,000-square-foot (2,000-square-meter) facility, which opened earlier this year on the first floor of the existing Pomerado Outpatient Pavilion. Interior finishes include terrazzo flooring, curved glass separation walls, and fabric acoustical panels. The San Diego office of Rudolph and Sletten, Inc. served as construction manager for the $10.5 million project.

Incheon · 2008.0625
Ground has been broken for 151 Incheon Tower, a 151-story mixed-use development in Incheon, South Korea. John Portman & Associates of Atlanta, Georgia, designed the project, which is being developed by Portman Holdings in partnership with Samsung C&T Corporation, Hyundai E&C, and SYM-Associates.

With a planned height of 587 meters (1,926 feet), the tower is on target to become the second-tallest skyscraper in the world, after the Burj Dubai in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Expected to be completed by 2014, the 151 Incheon Tower will house offices, hotel, retail, and residential components as part of the Songdo Landmark City project, a mixed-use development on land reclaimed from the Yellow Sea adjacent to Incheon.

Dubai · 2008.0620
The Minneapolis, Minnesota, office of Ellerbe Becket has revealed its design for University Hospital, the main tertiary care facility planned for the Dubai Healthcare City development in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Developed by Tatweer, a subsidiary of Dubai Holding, in collaboration with Harvard Medical International, University Hospital will be physically connected and academically affiliated with Harvard Medical School Dubai Center.

The 1.4 million-square-foot (130,000-square-meter) hospital will accommodate 400 beds and provide a mix of inpatient and outpatient services. The bed tower will feature flexible floor plates and universal rooms. An exterior skin composed of two layers of glass will transmit daylight while limiting solar gain. The four-story diagnostic and treatment base will have a glass-and-stone curtain wall. The hospital will share gardens with the adjacent Harvard Center. Completion is expected in 2011.

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