The National Mall is a story of America. It is a locus of memory and meaning that celebrates the spectrum of success, sacrifice, aspiration and values of the American people. Beyond reflecting our legacy, the National Mall also must speak to our future. As the National Mall addresses challenges unforeseen when the L’Enfant and McMillan Plans were developed, the Mall itself must adapt and change, and we must put the role of great design front and center. We, the AIA, is advocating for design excellence. The AIA Forum for the National Mall is a think tank for creative innovation to address climate change, security, expansion, preservation, spatial allocation, interpretation, transportation, tourism, and utilization to design an even greater treasure for future generations.
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) invited National Mall stakeholders and local university deans of architecture over the past two years to initiate a conversation about the National Mall. The resulting AIA Forum for the National Mall outlined how the skills of the architectural community can support the National Mall.
Challenges facing the Mall today stem from many new and largely unanticipated needs, such as massive upturns in popular tourism, unprecedented demands for commemorative spaces, and increasing stress on basic infrastructure from recreational use, large demonstrations and public events.
The AIA has had a longstanding relationship with the National Mall, starting with the 1900 AIA National Convention in Washington DC that led to the formation of the Senate Park Commission and the development of the McMillan Plan.
The AIA Forum for the National Mall is a counselor, advocate, and “think-tank” to support planning and design on the National Mall. It is very clear that the AIA can—and must—express positions on these matters, bringing its influence to bear on key issues and convening others with like interests. Such efforts must occur in concert with National Mall stakeholders and with other professional design disciplines, such as landscape architecture.
The VOICE of the architectural community should be unified. The AIA can provide that voice as a resource on specific issues and to support visionary planning based on core philosophical principles about the Mall. This voice can provide testimony on design and planning, support the identity of the National Mall, and provide a position on the realms of pageant and protest. Through the Forum, the AIA can also cultivate champions in Congress urging actions and appropriations, and advocate for solutions to the modern challenges that face the Mall.
Learning Objectives: After attending this presentation, participants will be able to: Understand the history of the National Mall including its architecture, cultural landscape evolution, and planning efforts from Pre-Revolutionary times to the present; Understand the impetus behind the recent founding of the AIA Forum for the National Mall, what organizations and stakeholders are participating with the Forum, why the Forum is currently needed, and how to get involved moving forward; Identify the specific issues, challenges, threats and opportunities currently facing design on the National Mall; and Understand how the diverse skills of the architectural community can support and advocate for better design in and around the National Mall, including current efforts being undertaken by the AIA Forum for the National Mall such as white papers, regulatory testimony, and design competitions.
Speakers:
Jill Cavanaugh, AIA, AICP - Partner, BEYER BLINDER BELLE
James P. Clark, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C - Principal, MTFA Architecture
Barton Ross, AIA, AICP, LEED AP BD+C - President, Barton Ross & Partners, LLC
Credits: 1.5 LUs