The latest edition of Trim Tab, a publication of the International Living Future Institute, features an article by Kenner Kingston. In the piece, Kenner details a defining moment he experienced at the 2017 ILFI unConference. “I realized I was witnessing something truly unique: the answer to what had moments before seemed to be an unsolvable problem. Within minutes, the question of how Arch Nexus could help formed in my mind.”

Enter, Nexus Builds. Joining forces with The Block Project, employees of all levels at Arch Nexus are volunteering, collaborating, designing and constructing a home. Every employee at Arch nexus will have LBC experience by the end of 2019 and Nexus will be the only organization in the world to have designed, owned, operated, and built an LBC project. What’s more, one more person currently experiencing homelessness will have a house by the end of the year.

Read the full Trim Tab article here.

SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah–The County Library announced the groundbreaking for its Daybreak branch, which will take place at 10 am on Earth Day—Monday, April 22—at 11358 Grandville Ave (approximately 5600 S) in South Jordan.

“As this part of the County continues to see rapid growth and development, the Daybreak branch is going to be in the center of everything,” Library Director Jim Cooper said. “It’s a great opportunity for people in Daybreak and the surrounding communities to experience a County Library branch a little closer to home.”

Because the role of the public library has evolved drastically over the past decade, Arch Nexus and the Salt Lake County Library system have worked with residents to fine tune what type of facility is needed in the community. The Daybreak branch will redefine the whole notion of library, acting as a as a de facto community center, a co-working space, a bridge for the digital divide and a nurturer of lifelong learning and literacy.

Construction will begin following the ceremony, with an approximate finishing date in summer of 2020. The new, zero-energy 26,000-square-foot branch will be open to everyone, and offers a unique rooftop experience designed to incorporate urban re-wilding and support an active community.

Construction has begun on the new Salt Lake County Kearns Library. The 35,000 square foot facility will be adjacent to the previous building. The new site allows for a relocation along 5400 South to increase visibility, access and usability. Arch Nexus has produced the new design to help regenerate the Kearns community, serving as a seed to create lasting change and to cultivate the people and place.

Community leaders gathered Monday for the groundbreaking ceremony. Salt Lake County Library Director, Jim Cooper spoke to the audience stating “I couldn’t be prouder to be associated with the Kearns community and the things you have done to bring the new library to Kearns. Finally, we are delivering on that promise!” Cooper also invited participants to try out the virtual reality tour provided by Arch Nexus, to experience what the future library will be like.

Arch nexus President, Kenner Kingston shared that it is an honor for Nexus to have been given the responsibility of creating the new design. Regarding the former site Kenner stated “It struck us that the level of passion and care for this community was not being reflected by the physical environment… our job is to reveal that.”

The new design brings people together in a comfortable fashion, welcomes cultural diversity, provides a sense of choice and opportunity, and mixes the kind of creative yet cozy ambiance that one thinks of when they imagine a library. Working with R & O Construction, the new library will be complete by summer of 2020.

The 10^th annual Intermountain Sustainability Summit will be held at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, March 21 – 22, 2019. Online registration will be available through Tuesday, March 19^th and walk up registration will be available onsite. The two day event will conclude with an afternoon workshop presented by Kenner Kingston in the Shepard Union Building room 404.

Intermountain Living Future Workshop:

What if every single act of design and construction made the world a better place?

Come to this half-day workshop, tailored to the unique nature of the Intermountain West, to learn about and discuss how you can help to “support the transformation toward communities that are socially just, culturally rich and ecologically restorative.” – ILFI Mission Statement

Who should attend: Building Owners and Operators, Architects, Construction Managers, Designers, Engineers, Realtors, Students, and those who want to go beyond LEED.

An audience member of the SXSW session presented by Arch Nexus’ Kenner Kingston and ILFI’s Amanda Sturgeon,  artistically summarized the presentation in this doodle. The session; Nature Tech: Rewilding Human Habitat, discusses restoring each place we encounter to a condition of wholeness. Seeing nature as (free) technology is a key step in restoring our buildings, neighborhoods, communities, and cities to their full potential.

Tour the only Living Certified building in California on Thursday, March 7, 2019. Doors will be open from 9:00 to 5:00, no apointment nessesary.

Discussions about the water-energy nexus have reignited conversations about energy impacts and consumption. Presenters will use real-world examples to show how unique building and space types have successfully implemented and documented their energy impacts and performance. During this session, we will delve into how LEED addresses energy today through LEED v4 and through pilot credits and also take a look towards how today’s trending topics, like the water-energy nexus impact LEED’s future goals.

A webinar course approved for 1 LEED specific GBCI CEU that will be hosted in the Architectural Nexus office in SLC. Lunch optional. Discussion and dialogue following the 60 minute course.

Thursday, March 7th, 11:30-1:15pm
Architectural Nexus SLC

RSVP for this event HERE

Please email lunch/diet restrictions/requests to cwoodruff@usgbc.org

It has been one year since the passing of Jon M. Huntsman Sr., the visionary philanthropist who started a movement that transformed the upper edge of the University of Utah into a state-of-the-art cancer campus.

In his memory, a pillar of light could be seen emanating from the west side of the original HCI research building last night. The feature was originally Huntsman’s idea. As construction of the building was near conclusion in 1999, Huntsman envisioned a light originating from the cancer center that would reflect HCI’s commitment to push forward cancer research and provide exceptional patient care. The light became known as the Beacon of Hope.

Due to limitations in technology available two decades ago, the feature was not continuously lit. Architectural Nexus designed a renovation for the beacon and construction began in January 2018. Over the past twelve months, further improvements were made to update the installation with energy-efficient lighting panels. The new Beacon of Hope has 61 individual lighting panels embedded with pixel LED lights, each with an operating life of 30 years.

Today, the Beacon of Hope serves as a reminder that his vision lives on and will not stop until cancer is eradicated.

South by Southwest, the annual conference and festival held in Austin, Texas, will host a session led by Arch Nexus President, Kenner Kingston and International Living Future Institute CEO, Amanda Sturgeon. The March 11^th event is titled Nature Tech: Rewilding Human Habitat.

Regenerative Design suggests that we must restore each place we encounter to a condition of wholeness. Seeing nature as free technology is a key step in restoring our buildings, neighborhoods and communities to their full potential.

To leverage this technology, a critical shift in philosophy is taking place. The built environment is no longer simply a “machine for living”. Instead, a new notion of shared and intensely local habitat for people is coming into focus; one that is informed by the simple truth that WE ARE NATURE.

For more information on this and other 2019 SXSW events, click here.