Creating Habitat at the Last Four Miles
July 18, 2011
BauerLatoza Studio Senior Landscape Architect, Michael Elsen, RLA, ASLA, LEED AP, and Erma Tranter, President of Friends of the Parks, presented at the Coastal Zone 2011 National Conference. The presentation discussed one of the major goals of the Last Four Miles plan, which is to create and establish wildlife and aquatic habitat along the engineered Lake Michigan Chicago shoreline. The addition of these new terrestrial and aquatic wildlife habitats will contribute to the restoration of the health and biological diversity of the ecosystem of Lake Michigan, and thus the Great Lakes.
March 30, 2011
BauerLatoza Studio Project Architect and Urban Designer, Drew Deering, presented “Green Communities” to the “Preservation Practicum: Green” class, which is part of the Masters of Historic Preservation program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Drew’s presentation discussed why our communities should be sustainable, what elements they consist of, and current case studies.
The Boathouse: Then and Now
September 29, 2010
From August 11 to October 29, 2010, the Chicago Park District and Parkways Foundation presented a series of events celebrating the life and work of Jens Jensen. Edward Torrez, AIA, LEED AP, Principal at Bauer Latoza Studio, presented “The Boathouse: Then and Now.” The lecture discussed the restoration of the Humboldt Park Boathouse, a project that earned BauerLatoza Studio the Preservation Project of the Year Award from the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation – Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois.
Creative Living in the City Lecture Series
September 9, 2010
Joanne Bauer, RA, NCARB, LEED AP, President of BauerLatoza Studio, and Steve Buchtel of Active Transportation Alliance, presented plans to complete Chicago’s south lakefront park and trail system from 79th to 95th streets and the growing connections to our regional trail system beyond Chicago.
Early Industrial Planned Communities: Marktown and Pullman
May 22, 2010
BauerLatoza Studio Principal, Edward Torrez, RA, AIA, LEED AP, led a tour of two early industrial planned communities: Historic Pullman, on Chicago’s South Side, and the lesser-known Marktown, in East Chicago, Indiana. In 1880, George Pullman hired architect Solon Beman to design the first model industrial town for his Palace Car Company. Twelve miles away and nearly thirty years later, Chicago industrialist Clayton Mark acquired the services of Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw to design a model worker village for his newly built steel mill. This tour considered the history of the two towns with an emphasis on their architecture and the preservation issues facing both communities today.
Chicago’s Sustainable Branch Libraries
May 19, 2010
As part of the Chicago Architecture Foundation lunchtime lecture series, Senior Landscape Architect Michael Elsen, RLA, ASLA, LEED AP of BauerLatoza Studio, discussed the building, site, and landscape design for two new prototype libraries for the Chicago Public Library and the Public Building Commission of Chicago. The presentation showed how the design standards developed for the prototypes have produced sustainable design examples that can be emulated throughout the Chicago region.
Benefits of the Last Four Miles: A Plan to Complete Chicago’s Lakefront Parks
April 20, 2010
In 2009, Friends of the Parks, working with a team of architects and visionary ideas from citizens, published a plan to complete Chicago’s public lakefront parks. Although Chicago enjoys 26 miles of “open, free, and clear” public lakefront parks, four miles – two on the south and two on the north lakefront – are not yet part of this uninterrupted chain of shoreline parks. Joanne Bauer, RA, NCARB, LEED AP, President of BauerLatoza Studio, presented the ecological, economic, and cultural benefits of the Last Four Miles Plan. DePaul University’s Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development and Friends of the Parks jointly sponsored this presentation.
American Planning Association, Chicago, “The Last Four Miles” Plan
September 25, 2009
The 1909 Burnham and Bennett Plan of Chicago sought to establish a continuous series of lakefront parks from Evanston on the north to Indiana on the south. But a century after Burnham’s plan, four miles of lakefront remain excluded from public use. The Last Four Miles project seeks to eliminate these gaps and provide 30 miles of continuous lakefront parks. Joanne Bauer, NCARB, LEED AP, President of BauerLatoza Studio, presented the Last Four Miles project and process including community based planning, planning principles and guidelines, and design and engineering concepts.
American Planning Association, Chicago, Early 20th Century Industrial Housing as a 21st Century Resource: Marktown, East Chicago, Indiana
September 24, 2009
Edward Torrez, AIA, LEED AP, Principal at BauerLatoza Studio, led a bus tour that examined the history and significance of Howard Van Doren Shaw’s 1917 Garden City development, Marktown. The tour highlighted planning issues involving the revitalization plan that included preservation initiatives, assessment of residential and commercial opportunities, and input from city and community stakeholders.
AIA Chicago, Marktown: Early 20th Century Industrial Housing as a 21st Century Resource
July 8, 2009
Edward Torrez, AIA, LEED AP, Principal at BauerLatoza Studio, presented the revitalization plan and the recommendations for the preservation and development of Marktown, Howard Van Doren Shaw’s 1917 Garden City development located in northwest Indiana. Discussed were urban design and planning issues involving the assessment of residential and commercial opportunities. Highlights included the history of Marktown and analysis of other early planned communities, community input of Marktown residents, presentation of the concept plan scenarios, and strategy for implementation focusing on preservation initiatives.