5 must reads for the AEC industry today: May 28, 2020

1. 512 West 22nd Street: Biophilic design on the High Line (BD+C)
"Located on the High Line at a spot known as the Chelsea Thicket, 512 West 22nd Street is a new office building inspired by its proximity to the park’s public space and its location with connection to and views of the Hudson River."

2. Clean is the new Green as U.S. hospitality sector inches closer to reopening (BD+C)
"Tens of thousands of restaurants and hotel rooms in the U.S. have been vacant as a result of the novel coronavirus. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the leisure and hospitality sector lost 7.7 million jobs in April alone, with restaurants taking most of that hit, and the sector’s unemployment rate soared to 39%."

3. Office market could be COVID-19 casualty (BD+C)
"As companies get used to work at home, post-pandemic office market could collapse."

4. Multifamily developers report mounting delays in permitting and starts due to coronavirus pandemic (NMHC)
"The good news is that labor availability is on the rise, possibly due to better benefits and incentives."

5. Boeing and Airbus Study How Coronavirus Behaves During Air Travel (WSJ)
"Industry is working to curb pandemic risks that have brought air traffic to a near standstill."

One of the hardest decisions multifamily developers and their design teams have to make is what mix of amenities they’re going to put into each project. A lot of squiggly factors go into that decision: the type of community, the geographic market, local recreation preferences, climate/weather conditions, physical parameters, and of course the budget. The permutations are mind-boggling.