Page 7 - ArchDC_Spring 2020

HOME AND HAPPINESS CONTRIBUTORS

Bradley W. Johnson Over these cold winter days—it’s 27 degrees outside as I write Steven K. Dickens, AIA, LEED AP
this—I’ve been reading The Year of Living Danishly, by Helen
(“Building Connections”), is senior
Russell. The author spent a year in a small town in Denmark
associate with Eric Colbert
while her husband took a job with Lego, which is headquartered
& Associates.
there. She describes many differences between people in the
UK, where she’s from, and those in Denmark, including the fact Louis Duva (“Big Little Living”) serves
that Danes appreciate good design because they get early and as the communications coordinator
sustained exposure to it in school. This made me at once proud— at AIA|DC.
have you been to one of Washington’s beautifully designed new
schools lately?—and sad that we still consider design to be an Denise Liebowitz (“Parallel Lines”
optional add-on topic at school instead of an essential one. and “Craftsman Retooled”), formerly
Russell tries to answer the question of why Danes are so happy—they are
the happiest people in the world, according to two recent studies—when many with the National Capital Planning
circumstances of their lives wouldn’t seem to support that. Among other things, Commission, is a frequent contributor
Denmark is bitterly cold and dark in the winter, and they have one of the world’s to ARCHITECTUREDC.
WELCOME G. Martin Moeller, Jr., Assoc. AIA (“A
highest rates of taxation.
Light Touch” and “Stacked in Favor”),
is an independent curator and writer.
He is the editor of ARCHITECTUREDC.

It’s not a spoiler to tell you that the underlying reason Russell finds for the Danes’ Ronald O’Rourke (“Diamond in the
happiness is that they feel taken care of. While taxes there are high, they pay for a Rough” and “A Fine Pair”) is a regular
range of services—from healthcare to job retraining to housing—that many Americans contributor to ARCHITECTUREDC.
worry about endlessly. The struggles typical of those at the bottom of the economic His father, Jack O’Rourke, was an
ladder, she writes, are much less of a concern in Denmark than they are in countries architect in San Francisco for more
such as the United States because of those services. than four decades.
Of course, whether the Danish approach to taxation and services would work—or
even be possible—in the United States is a matter of fundamental debate, and one
might admire what the Danes have accomplished while concluding that their approach
wouldn’t work here. But setting that question aside, I found Russell’s mention of
housing timely, because it focused my thoughts on Washington’s own new program
for affordable housing.
The District should get points as a city for thinking big—just look at its new
libraries and schools (many of which have been covered in these pages), as well as
its ambitious environmental and energy goals. Add to that the city’s new affordable
housing program, which calls for using various tools, including market incentives and
public-private partnerships, to create 12,000 new affordable units by 2025. The ultimate
goal is for 15% percent of the housing in each ward to be affordable.
The program is ambitious to say the least. Some of AIA|DC’s members have told
me that achieving the program’s goals might simply be impossible. Time will tell. But
in the meantime, the adoption of those goals is evidence that city leaders are focusing
significant attention and resources on the issue.
ARCHITECTUREDC is similarly shining more of a light on the topic. In past years,
our annual residential issue has been filled largely with single-family houses. This
year’s residential issue, which you currently have in your hands, includes some
projects of that kind. But it also includes more coverage of multifamily buildings,
including two with affordable housing components, as well as a renovation of a very
modestly sized apartment near the Southwest Waterfront.
Home means different things to different people, but it’s a constant that if you
have one, you’re probably happier than if you don’t. Architects are embracing diverse
meanings of the concept of home by designing beautiful, functional, and sustainable
residences of various types, as you will see in this issue. We hope you enjoy reading
about them all, in the comfort of your own home.
As always, we love hearing from you, so please feel free to drop us a line.
Mary Fitch, AICP, Hon. AIA
Publisher
mfitch@aiadc.com
@marycfitch
WELCOME 5