NAHB

Santa Ana, CA - Nationally recognized Santa Ana based firm, William Hezmalhalch Architects, Inc (WHA) is excited to announce their recent accomplishments at The Nationals Sales and Marketing Awards Ceremony at the NAHB's International Builders' Showcase (IBS). The Nationals Awards ceremony was held on Tuesday, January 10th in Orlando.

Before a glittering crowd of more than 800, WHA's Placewright Design branding studio received two Gold Awards: Best Logo Design was presented to The Abigail for Bridge Housing, and Best Microsite/Website for an Associate or Supplier was presented to Thompson Building Materials.  WHA also picked up a Silver Award for Pardee Homes' Parkview in San Diego's Ocean View Hills at Dennery Ranch, for the Best Architectural Design Detached under 2,000 sf.

Gold Award

Best Logo
The Abigail, Portland Oregon
Bridge Housing

As a leader in the affordable housing industry, this builder’s new community is a notable milestone for the Pacific Northwest. Located in the north end of Portland’s famous Pearl District, these apartment homes were named after the equal rights pioneer Abigail Scott Duniway. This idea of equality was a key foundational element that was highlighted in the brand narrative, and is visually conveyed in the logo mark and the signage concepts.

The emphasis of the two red lines in the “A” are a literal icon of equality, equal housing, and fair opportunities. By encompassing it in a circular element and distinguishing it by color, the circle conveyed how significant and central this value of equality was to the builder and to the community. The color palette was carefully curated to pair with the interiors and exteriors of the building, as well as the modern and simplistic feel of the Pearl District’s local ambiance.

Gold Award

Best Website for an Associate and Supplier
Thompson Building Materials, Orange CA

Charles Eames once said, “The details are not the details. They make the design.” We couldn’t agree more. It was an honor to be asked to create a new design for Thompson Building Materials. The Eames mantra was embraced, investing our creative energies in a fresh design that would not only celebrate the Thompson brand, but also emphasize the craft, beauty, quality, strength and diversity of their materials.

Atop the home page, these messages are articulated through evocative images, tailored messages and subtle movement. The clean layout with intuitive and visual navigation is an artful display, creating a pleasant and seamless experience at every click / touch. Our aim was to engage the professional and the homeowner, enabling them to connect with the materials, emotions and possibilities, prior to stepping foot into a showroom.

Silver Award

Best Architectural Design of a Single Family Detached Home under 2,000 sf.

Parkview at Dennery Ranch - Plan 1

Pardee Homes

Geared towards first-time and multi-generational buyers, this perfectly scaled, polished architecture features sculptural elements that strengthen arrival identity and minimize garage-forward footprints. Grid planning optimizes views of an upcoming 9-acre park and short streets soften the overall density. Variable widths for 64-foot lot depths optimize streetscape and yards while articulated entries open to great room layouts that visually expand all plans and connect to private yards.

Model homes integrate theme elements with the universals of excellent design: attention to scale, furnishing spaces, light, color, texture and memory points. Standards and upgrades throughout reinforce upscale design. The builder's comprehensive green program provides high performance features that boost energy efficiency and water savings, improve indoor air quality and conserve natural resources. Recent additions include LED lighting and keyless entries.

Freeway proximity allows employment, shopping, entertainment and recreation within easy drives. Established, walkable master-planned community completes this excellent ownership opportunity.

ORLANDO, FLA (BIASC) January 12, 2017—Members of the Building Industry of Southern California, Inc. (BIASC) took home awards across the spectrum of categories at the 2017 National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders’ Show (IBS) in Orlando, Florida. The awards, presented by NAHB, were announced at the ceremony held on January 10, 2017 and January 11, 2017. 

Best of 55+ Housing Awards

KTGY Architecture + Planning received top honors at the 2017 Best of 55+ Housing Awards held at the 2017 NAHB IBS. The awards, presented by NAHB’s 55+ Housing Industry Council, were announced at the event’s 25th Anniversary Awards ceremony held on January 10, 2017. Michael Medick, a registered architect and urban planner with KTGY Architecture + Planning, also spoke at the event with John Danielian, Managing Principal of Danielian Associates and Cassie Cherry, Director of Marketing for Danielian Associate on Tuesday, January 10 at the 2017. Read more about KTGY Architecture + Planning's wins at the 2017 NIAHB IBS  here.

The NAHB/Builders Mutual Safe Awards for Excellence (SAFE) 2017

Shea Homes (Greater than 500 homes built per year) won the 2017 NAHB/Builders Mutual Safe Award for Excellence (SAFE) for Single-Family Builders Safety Program of the Year. NAHB named 14 winners of the 11th annual SAFE for their commitment to strong safety programs. The winners were recognized earlier this week at the awards reception held during the show.

Best of IBS Awards 2017

The 2017 Best of IBS Awards were announced at the event on Thursday, January 12 at 3:00 PM at the IBS Live! booth (S218). Over 400 entries in nine categories were received in the 2017 Best of IBS Awards and were judged by a 28 industry and media judges.

Intelli-Balance 100 by Panasonic Eco Solutions North America (W3016) was nominated for Best Energy Efficient Product; Studio Collection doors by JELD-WEN (W2571) was nominated for Best Window & Door Product; and DuPont Tyvek Protec roofing underlayment by DuPont () was nominated for Most Innovative Building Product.

The Nationals 2017

A list of all BIASC members who were recognized for winning an award at the 2017 NAHB The Nationals have been included here.

***

About the Building Industry Association of Southern California, Inc.:

BIASC is a cohesive nonprofit trade association organized into chapters and councils that represents the building industry throughout the counties of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino.  Members of BIASC are active in all aspects of the building, including land development; homebuilding, multi-family and commercial development as well as infrastructure; our membership includes architects, engineers, planners, contractors, suppliers, property owners, subcontractors and associated professionals throughout Southern California.

BIASC is a full service organization providing legislative advocacy, educational programming, labor relations, networking and community relations. The association objective is to promote a positive business environment for the building industry. http://www.biasc.org/

John Danielian, Managing Principal of Danielian Associates; Cassie Cherry, Director of Marketing for Danielian Associates; and Michael Medick, a registered architect and urban planner with KTGY Architecture + Planning, will be speaking Tuesday, January 10 at the 2017 National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders’ Show (IBS) in Orlando, Florida.

The BIA of Southern California (BIASC) members will be discussing affordable housing options for millennial buyers, inter-generational households, and move-down buyers across the country.

The advanced session, titled “Attaining Affordable Housing with Unique Density Solutions” will offer “’beyond the box’ design and density solutions that make housing affordable and prove that amazing designs don't always need to come with a steep price tag.

This session will also focus on the ‘missing middle’ types of housing, including varying densities, compatible forms, blended neighborhoods and integration of shared community spaces—all of which are used to create vibrant neighborhoods that are sought after by all generations.”

The 2017 NAHB International Builders' Show (IBS) will take place January 10 through 12 displaying 565,000 net square feet of exhibits and more than 1,400 manufacturers and suppliers of the latest and most in-demand products and services. NAHB IBS is the largest annual light construction show in the world, every year attracting more than 60,000 visitors from 100 countries.

Participants for the “Attaining Affordable Housing with Unique Density Solutions” session must be registered for a full registration package or a 1-day education with expo pass package valid for the day of the session they wish to attend.

NAHB is also offering 1.00 CE hour(s) of continuing educational credit, NKBA is offering 0.1 CEU(s), and AIA – 1.0 LU Hour(s) to session attendees. Seating for Building Knowledge sessions will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

The session, on Tuesday, January 10, will take place in room W311C from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Learn more about and register for the session here.

For the past twenty years a small gray songbird has greatly affected the development and the conservation of the coastal real estate in California. A federal decision made recently to leave the coastal California gnatcatcher on the endangered species list has left Southern California developers stuck.

The gnatcatcher has been a cornerstone to conservation planning in San Diego, Riverside and Orange counties since it was listed as a threatened species in 1993. In 2014, the Pacific Legal Foundation petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to delist the bird, arguing that recent science casts doubt on its threatened status. The service rejected that petition last week, but debate over the gnatcatcher isn’t over. Building groups say they may sue over the decision, while conservation groups worry the bird remains at risk from wildfires, climate change and development pressure.

“We’re still in the process of analyzing the service’s decision,” said Robert Thornton, an attorney who represented the Building Industry Assn. of Southern California on the petition. “The next step is possibly a lawsuit. The issue here is, did the service comply with the Endangered Species Act, which requires it to use the best science available.”

The gnatcatcher is a blue-gray songbird that lives in coastal sage scrub from Santa Barbara to the Baja peninsula. Researchers say that urban sprawl has whittled away 90% of its habitat in California. By the 1990s, the birds were feeling the pinch. At that time, a 20-year-old environmentalist named David Hogan with the Center for Biological Diversity filed a petition to list the gnatcatcher under the Endangered Species Act.

“Back then, there were virtually zero measures in place anywhere in Southern California to protect the gnatcatcher or its critically endangered habitat,” Hogan said.

The listing ushered in complex systems for protecting ecosystems, known as habitat conservation plans or natural community conservation plans. The plans aimed to streamline environmental permitting, while preserving habitat for multiple species. And the gnatcatcher was at the center of it. By protecting the gnatcatcher, regulators also safeguarded animals such as the coastal whiptail lizard, coastal horned lizard and coastal cactus wren, said Ileene Anderson, a senior scientist for the Center for Biological Diversity. Developers, however, saw the bird, and its ensuing regulations, as a roadblock to the region’s construction boom.

“In general, species listing and the critical habitat designation that goes along with that listing takes areas out of consideration for building and development,” said Shanda Beltran, BILD general counsel for the Building Industry Assn. of Southern California. “That obviously would be a concern to the industry when developable area is reduced.”

The Pacific Legal Foundation said in a news release that the gnatcatcher listing took hundreds of thousands of acres in Southern California off the table for construction.

“In total, approximately 197,303 acres in San Diego, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles and Ventura counties have been designated as critical habitat for the coastal California gnatcatcher,” the foundation, a Sacramento watchdog agency for property rights and limited government, stated. “Federal officials estimate that the economic impact of these restrictions will total more $900 million by year 2025.”

In 2014 the foundation petitioned to remove the gnatcatcher from the list, on behalf of the Property Owners Assn. of Riverside County; the Center for Environmental Science, Accuracy & Reliability; and the Coalition of Labor, Agriculture and Business, along with the California Building Industry Assn. and the National Assn. of Home Builders.

They argued that new research showed that the Southern California gnatcatcher is genetically indistinguishable from its Mexican counterparts, and shouldn’t be protected as a separate species. The service, however, convened a panel of geneticists, ornithologists and statisticians, and determined that the original listing is still valid.

The Pacific Legal Foundation and its partners say they’re contemplating a lawsuit to challenge that decision. They hope to change the way the service reviews data and perhaps reset the bar for future endangered species listings.

Read the full story here from the LA Times.

Irvine, CA (July 18, 2016) – The 55+ Housing Council of the Building Industry Association of Southern California announces its 22^nd Anniversary of the SAGE Awards and the open Call for Entries due August 29, 2016. Celebrating more than two decades of Shaping Advancements in Generational Environments (SAGE), this year’s unprecedented Call for Entries now feature a streamlined entry process, advanced categories and updated entry requirements.

The annual SAGE awards will again honor the innovative professionals, projects and programs that have contributed to the enhancement of life for California residents age 55+. Tickets are now available at 55SoCal.com.

Gina Nixon, president of the 55+ Housing Council explains, “As the lifestyle needs and desires of the 55+ public continue to evolve, we as an industry must progress, as well. This generation of experienced homeowners will continue to demand innovative and relevant living designs from our industry’s best and brightest. It’s, therefore, a privilege to present the most current representations of such advancements in this exciting and ever-changing field.”

This year’s highly anticipated awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, October 20, 2016, at Turnip Rose Promenade and Gardens in Costa Mesa. An hors d’oeuvre and cocktail reception will begin at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and an entertaining program at 7 p.m. Early sponsors include Highridge Costa Companies and Rancho Mission Viejo. Underwriting opportunities remain available until October 14, and range from $100 to $3,500. Single tickets and reserved tables of 8 or 10 remain available. Pricing for members is $150 and non-members are $175. Reserved tables are also available. Visit 55SoCal.com for details and to register.

About the 55+ Housing Council

Formed in 1990 as a special interest council of the Building Industry Association of Southern California [BIASC], 55+ Housing Council was the first local chapter of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/50+ Housing Council (then known as the Seniors Housing Council). 55+ Housing Council provides networking, education and partnering prospects for Southern California professionals involved in every aspect of building housing specifically for 55+ markets including active adult, age-targeted, senior condominium, 55+ apartments, Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs), Assisted Living, Alzheimer’s care and more. To join the 55+ Housing Council of Southern California or to become a sponsor, visit http://www.55SoCal.com.

Read the full press release by clicking here.