Fivecat Studio: A Radio Interview on WVOX 1460AM

Last week, Marsha Gordon, President and CEO of the Business Council of Westchester, invited me to join her at WVOX 1460AM in New Rochelle, NY. I enjoyed speaking with her about Fivecat Studio, the business of architecture and our annual campaign to support local animal shelters, Pillows of Puppies.

Westchester Home Magazine’s Great Kitchens Contest

A few months back, Westchester Magazine editor Nancy Claus invited me to be a panelist for their Great Kitchen Contest. All the finalists are published in the current issue of Westchester Home Magazine and can be found online here. Enjoy…

Amanda’s Law

From NYS Division of Code Enforcement:

New carbon monoxide alarm requirements to go into effect February 22, 2010.

As the result of legislation, Amanda’s Law will go into effect on February 22, 2010.  It requires essentially all residences, both new and existing, to have carbon monoxide alarms installed.  The specific requirements differ for new and existing residences and also on when the buildings were built and subcategories of occupancy groups.

Probably the most asked question will be the requirement for existing one and two family residences.  They will be required to have one carbon monoxide alarm installed on the lowest story having a sleeping area.

The proposal to modify the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code, in order to comply with Amanda’s Law, is in the process of being adopted as an emergency rule.  The following link provides the proposed code text and legislation, Amanda’s Law.

http://www.dos.state.ny.us/code/COAlarm.htm

Merry Christmas

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” (Luke 2:10)

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Blizzard of ‘09 Hits The Montauk House

John’s brother, Charles, sent us a few images of the Blizzard of ‘09 from Montauk. The snow was officially 26.3″ deep.

The Blizzard of '09 Hits the Montauk House

50 MPH Gusts Created Some Major Drifts

2+ Feet of Snow Against the French Doors

The Montauk House Without the Snow

Here in Chappaqua, we had only 6″. Did the Blizzard of ‘09 hit your neck of the woods? Tell us about it…

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Frank Gehry: The Houses

He has created art museums that have put little known cities on the cultural map and penned designs for quarter-billion dollar concert halls. Most famous for his metallic paneled sculptures of flamboyant architecture, Frank Gehry has also designed his fair share of houses. In fact, his own home in Santa Monica, CA is the project that brought him into the now blinding “starchitect” spotlight.

In October, architecture and design publishing house, Rizzoli released a new monograph dedicated to the simpler residential side of the world famous architect. It’s on my wish list.

Living Well Link of the Week: Frank Gehry: The Houses

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New EPA Lead-Safe Rules

Another federal regulation that will require you to have a bigger budget…

The Rule: As of April 22, 2010, renovations conducted by professionals in pre-1978 housing must be performed by Certified Firms using Certified Renovators, trained in “lead-safe” work practices.

Who needs to be “certified”? Any contractor must comply who does renovation, repair or painting for compensation in pre-1978 housing…if the work will disturb 6 sq. ft. of painted surface in any room or 20 sq.ft. of exterior paint, or does any window replacement or any demolition.  This includes the following trades: general contractors, alteration, remodeling and renovation companies, painters, flooring contractors, restoration contractors (mold remediation, fire & water damage restoration), weatherization companies, demolition companies, maintenance companies, landlords or their employees, property managers, etc.

For more information, visit EPA Lead, Renovation, Repair and Painting or check out this article from Fine Homebuilding magazine.

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Thanks to Michael Murphy, Murphy Brothers Contracting, for the heads up.

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AIAWMH Design Awards… With Pictures!

A few weeks back my team and I attended the AIA Westchester / Mid-Hudson annual design awards, A Celebration of Architecture. It was held at ArtsWestchester (formerly Westchester Arts Council) in the heart of downtown White Plains. Attendance was excellent. The enthusiasm and “celebration” of our profession was inspiring.

This year, in addition to the awards ceremony and usual cocktail “gala” which follows, the chapter (specifically Ira Grandberg and his team) organized an exhibition of Westchester Mid-Hudson architects’ work. Dozens of firms participated and it was very interesting to see the diverse and varied architecture created by our local talent. The Celebration of Architects exhibition was a great success, but I think the week’s end three day duration was WAY too short for it to have any significant effect on the general public (just my 2 cents).

Unfortunately, the design awards ceremony was less than inspiring. A last minute malfunction of the video projector left an audience of 250+ without a visual presentation to accompany barely audible project descriptions and sometimes lengthy acceptance speeches. What is a design awards presentation without visuals? Although I feel the overall event was a success, the missing presentation was beyond disappointing for the attendees and probably even more so for the honored firms. (As a former chapter Director, I sympathize with the members responsible for the glitch. I appreciate the effort required to stage such an event and the disappointment they must have felt as well.)

Today, the chapter released an online slide show presentation of the honored projects. I send out a much deserved congratulations to the firms that received awards. The architecture and design presented is as inspiring as the enthusiasm felt throughout that ballroom a few weeks back.

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Above Photo:

Headquarters for Mackenzie Keck Construction, Inc., Rockaway, NJ
Category: Commercial
Architect: de la Garza Architecture LLC
Photographer: Deck Higgins Photography / Randhir Singh

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Fivecat Projects Under Construction 120209

I spent today touring several of our projects currently under construction.

The project at Lake Katonah is just about finished and looks amazing (in my humble opinion). A few final touches and the “long and winding road” of construction will soon be a distant memory.

A smaller project is rising in Rye; a small music room addition, new stone patio, a full window replacement and miscellaneous renovations, inside and out, are all looking good. Framing is complete, the patio foundation is laid and most of the windows are installed.

A much larger whole-house renovation is well on its way in Scarsdale. With large windows and strategically placed skylights, this brick Federal Style home will be filled with natural light.

Check out progress images of all these projects at Fivecat’s Facebook. Leave some comments and let me know what you think.

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Now That’s a Motorcycle

I don’t ride, but I love motorcycle design. FastCompany.com has a great article about a U.K. design firm that has developed a series of bikes that will, for sure, influence motorcycle design for many years to come.

Living Well Link of the Week: Now That’s a Motorcycle | Design & Innovation

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