The Architecture of the City

“Every day, 77,000 carbon-emitting vehicles fly past the Congress Parkway interchange, polluting the air. This project creates a gateway over the corridor that filters air and fuels a new breed of car for its residents.”

Aimed to increase public awareness and improve public health, the CO2ngress Gateway Towers absorb the CO2 emissions from passing cars, which is fed to algae grown in the building. The algae then helps with the processing of biofuels which supply the building residents’ eco-friendly cars.

The two towers split and converge at the top to create an iconic gateway to the city. A bridge joins the two towers and contains a public restaurant with views of neighboring buildings. Pedestrian connections are landscaped at the base, giving a human scale to a car-centric urban identity.

Additionally, the double-skin facade helps reduce traffic noise and offers enclosed balconies. Natural cross-ventilation of the units is enabled through the building’s atrium. The terraces are enclosed by bio-reactor tubes which grow the algae responsible for biofuel processing...

Via Lauren Moss

Chicago revising cultural and economic development strategy.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has long been a vocal supporter of the arts. Now City Hall is coordinating an extensive outreach effort to check Chicago’s creative pulse, seeking comment on the city’s first new cultural plan in more than 25 years.

After his election in February 2011, Emanuel directed the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) to revamp the Chicago Cultural Plan, which was created in 1986 under Mayor Harold Washington. DCASE launched a website in January to coordinate its efforts. They are expected to produce a draft plan by early summer.

 

Via Lauren Moss, Territori