President's message: New leadership for AIANY

Tomas Rossant, AIA With the start of a new year comes new leadership for AIANY. Our 2014 president Lance Jay Brown, FAIA, boldly served our organization and its members for the past year. As a strong advocate for social reform and equity, he welcomed the opportunity to meet our city's new leaders and address the challenges they face. The chapter's efforts elevated public awareness to the critical role of architecture in confronting the city's pressing issues, most notably in preparing our city for climate change and fostering vibrant public spaces. Building on what we accomplished last year, I plan to continue to support the mayor's administration and increase outreach to the architectural community, the building industry, and the city at large. In 2015, AIANY will bring together interdisciplinary experts to deliberate on the city's urban design and policy questions. We will curate a series of monthly dinners and corresponding public lectures on topics that relate to the de Blasio administration's priorities as well as advances in the practice of architecture. The small, focused conversations among industry professionals and government officials will serve as a platform for public discourse. I look forward to strengthening the Center for Architecture's role as a conduit for conversation and a resource to the city. January's topic, inspired by a December 2014 meeting with Alicia Glen, New York City deputy mayor for housing and economic development, will be on the merits of high-rise modular construction and its viability as an option for efficiently meeting the mayor's affordable housing goals. Authorities across disciplines will discuss the various economic, structural, and political factors at play, advising the administration on all angles of this emerging approach to housing construction. This city's civil society depends on ensuring that a diverse citizenship are all treated with humanity and dignity—affordable housing is essential to our city's future. Following an end-of-the year meeting with Nilda Mesa, director of the new mayor's office of sustainability, AIANY is committed to embracing the administration's goals. By working with the other AIA chapters and fellow partner organizations, AIANY will partake in a sustained push for systems that reduce carbon emissions in the built environment. The February dinner theme will focus on the new version of PlaNYC, expected later this year, and the 80x50 plan. These necessary changes will provide economic and creative opportunities for architects. Over the next year, AIANY will deepen our outreach with the city council, our partnerships with peer organizations, and our communication with the public. We will actively respond to the city's evolving proposals and provide worthwhile input while sharing our work at the center and throughout New York City. Tomas Rossant, AIA, is the president of AIA New York and a founding partner and design principal at Ennead Architects LLP, New York, N.Y.