"Mod Box" Offers a Sleek Solution to Prefab Design

The v100 Mod Box is a modern, high-end, prefabricated live and work space. It can easily be adapted for many different uses, with its 10’ X 10’ X 10’ highly efficient, zero maintenance design gives a deceptively spacious feel. The appliances and fixtures are state of the art, and chosen for their quality, comfort, and low energy consumption. All construction materials are recycled or recyclable and contain no VOCs, earning a Platinum Leeds Certification. Its minimilist aesthetic cuts a sleek outline and is low-maintenance. Three Mod Boxes will be installed on a Phoenix infill lot by the end of September and rent for about $1,000 a month.The standard model includes two boxes separated by a breezeway. One side includes a kitchen and living space and the other side has a bathroom and bedroom.

Architecture for Humanity Releases Plan for Sustainable Reconstruction in Pakistan

Architecture for Humanity Housing Prototype for Karachi Relief TrustArchitecture for Humanity recently released a plan for rebuilding of villages destroyed by the floods in Pakistan. The mission statement of the plan aims to rebuild in a sustainable manner-both environmentally and economically. Their three part plan includes supporting and empowering rebuilding efforts, supporting historic preservation, and updating and distributing their disaster resistant housing manual. For Architecture for Humanity's complete three part plan, click here. 

Thom Filicia Discusses Design Sustainability

In his Big Think interview, Designer Thom Filica discusses his design aesthetic and the fact that he views his clients' interiors as narratives that should tell a story about the clients themselves. "It's a direct extension of their life, their lifestyle," he says. Filicia has really embraced the trend towards sustainability, which is just as robust in the field interior design as in architecture. And just because an interior is eco-friendly, it doesn't have to look sparse and sterile. Filicia shows an interior that looks inviting and comfortable but was designed using sustainable materials and furniture.

[via Big Think]

St. Jerome Parish Hall Achieves LEED Silver Certification

International design firm Cuningham Group Architecture, P.A. (Cuningham Group) announces that the St. Jerome Parish Hall remodeling project has achieved LEED® Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The St. Jerome Parish Hall project is the first project with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to become LEED® certified. It was certified Silver per the USBGC “New Construction and Major Renovation” Category, Version 2.2.

Following the Church’s teachings that the environment is God’s gift to everyone, the Parish made a commitment to create a “green” hall within the remodeling project. Sustainable goals were in place from the outset as Cuningham Group, Stonemark Construction Management and the client collaborated on making sustainability a visible priority in the design. Features include innovative mechanical system controls; new skylights to boost and equalize ambient lighting in the gym; water-conserving restroom fixtures; new glazing; new lighting and lighting control systems; reused or selected materials with significant recycledcontent; and better metering of electrical power.

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40th Annual Los Angeles Architectural Awards Announced

*Click on project links to see image galleries.

Grand Prize sponsored by MACERICH
LAPD Police Administration Building
Architect: AECOM in a joint venture with Roth Sheppard Associates
Contractor: Tutor-Saliba Corporation
Building Owner/Developer: City of Los Angeles, Department of Public Works, Bureau of Engineering

Civic Awards sponsored by DIFFENBAUGH
Civic - #1
California Science Center - Phase II - Ecosystems
Architect: EHDD/ZGF A Joint Venture
Contractor: Morley Builders
Building Owner/Developer: California Science Center Education Award sponsored by AECOM

Civic - #2
The Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach
Architect: Frederick Fisher and Partners Architects
Contractor: Charles Pankow Builders, Ltd.
Building Owner/Developer: City of Santa Monica, Community & Cultural Services

Education Awards sponsored by AECOM
Education - Public
South Campus Project, Los Angeles Trade Technical College
Architect: MDA Johnson Favaro / Gruen Associates
Contractor: Taisei Corporation
Building Owner/Developer: Los Angeles Community College District

Education - Private
Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics at Caltech
Architect: Morphosis Architects
Contractor: Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Company
Building Owner/Developer: California Institute of Technology

Green Building - Awarded to City of LA Police Stations - sponsored by Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP
Hollenbeck Area Community Police Station
Architect: AC Martin Partners
Contractor: FTR International
Building Owner/Developer: City of Los Angeles

L.A.P.D. Harbor Replacement Station and Jail
Architect: Perkins + Will
Contractor: Pinner Construction Co., Inc.
Building Owner/Developer: City of Los Angeles, Bureau of Engineering Prop Q Program

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