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Keeping Retail Relevant
I spend a lot of time thinking about how to make the retail experience enjoyable, exciting, and relevant for shoppers in 2016. Doug Stephens, a retail consultant and futurist, recently asked in the Financial Post, “If a smartphone is now a store, what is the role of the store?” It raises a lot of questions, many of which can be…
We’ve Made the Top 10!
The Boston Business Journal named the Largest Architecture Firms in Massachusetts this week, and Arrowstreet landed at number 10 on their list. We’ve climbed 8 spots since last year’s list–the highest jump in the top 25 firms. Rankings were determined by 2015 billings for architectural projects located within the state of Massachusetts. The list also included total billings for 2015, total…
New England AIA COTE Leadership Summit
Many AIA chapters throughout the country have COTE (Committee on the Environment) groups. The New England AIA COTE committees get together yearly to discuss current topics in the industry. Sustainability leaders throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont, and New Hampshire are invited to participate in the day long series of workshops. I participated in the event on June 2nd,…
Arrowstreet Mini-Golf 2016
This week our friends and family joined us for Arrowstreet’s annual in-studio mini-golf tournament. Every year, our talented staff designs a nine-hole course using $15 worth of materials, plus whatever additional items they can find at home or in the office. The results are always creative, inventive, and more than a little humorous. The event is one of our favorites…
IBPSA Workshop
Arrowstreet participated in a workshop last week hosted by the International Building Performance Simulation Association (IBPSA) Boston chapter, which focused on early energy modeling. The workshop brought together architects and engineers to talk about ways that we can improve upon our processes to facilitate better design integration of energy modeling. We also discussed ways that we can use modeling to demonstrate…
What is the Future of Downtown?
One of the best things about great cities is that they adapt and change. Rail yards become new neighborhoods, and industrial districts become lofts, offices, and shopping centers. The ability of the urban fabric to evolve with the rapidly changing ways we live and work is part of the reason people and businesses are returning to the city core. It…
Daylight Hour 2016
For the third year in a row, Arrowstreet will be participating in Daylight Hour. This Friday, June 17, we’ll turn off the artificial lights and work with natural daylight. The global campaign is organized by Building Energy Exchange and encourages the public to be cognizant of energy use. An office will significantly increase its energy efficiency by utilizing sunlight, especially when…
#ArrowstreetTravels
Arrowstreet’s diverse staff come from across the country, and around the world. We all have different schedules, but stories, photos, and inspiration from our travels through New England, the USA, and across the globe are shared a little more frequently in the summer months. See where we go, what we see, and what inspires us by following us on Instagram, and by checking…
Designing Environmental Advocacy
As Advocacy Chair of the USGBC Massachusetts, it was a pleasure to host in partnership with AIA Massachusetts, a roundtable discussion with a dozen sustainable and environmental focused organizations from the Commonwealth. We had an exciting group of people who advocate for solutions to climate change, education, health, etc…The purpose of the roundtable was to discuss advocacy goals around the…
Economical Design and Boston’s Housing Gap
If you live in the greater Boston area, you’re aware of Boston’s current housing crunch and just how expensive it is to live here; according to a report from real estate data firm Reis, Inc., the average rent in Greater Boston topped $2,000 in 2015. Development and construction in desirable, urban areas is expensive, and as a result, it is often…