Boulderspace

Before exhibiting my blatant excitement about this iniative as a conceptual resource for all cities, including of course, ahem, Boulder, let’s start by looking at what PIE is. In their own words,

PIE is an initiative of the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, and is designed to create an archive of NYC projects, proposals, programs and exhibitions presented or discussed at the Center for Architecture. It will stimulate and record feedback for architects, planners, public officials, and the general public on projects with city-wide impact.

Not too different than the goals of the very blog you’re reading I suppose, but with the support of the AIA, this is truly putting New York’s development where it should be - under a big spotlight. Architects, Planners, Builders, and Developers can promote their projects at any point in their lifecycle ( including even, the preliminary napkin sketch phase ). Community residents and enthusiasts can provide feedback that is either general or professional, allowing the “I just don’t like this” comments to coexist with full structural critiques. This crucial dialogue can be continuous even beyond a project’s completion, which is important, as we all know how many developments don’t end up looking as good or performing quite as well as their puff pieces would have had us believe. This is a forum everyone is invited to use, and that is how community retains its integrity. I applaud it, and see no reason why here in Boulder, this site and other local iniatives like it can’t exist in a similar fashion. Maybe Boulder could launch its own branch of the Public Information Exchange. Either way, let’s not forget that the general public is always the biggest user of development.