Mississippi Wal-Marts may apply 'new urbanism' in rebuilding: Urban planners invited...to bring fresh rebuilding ideas to 11 hurricane-damaged communities have devised concepts that would turn Wal-Mart's big-box stores into corner stores. -- Ben Pentreath/Prince of Wales Foundation for the Built Environment; Fisher & Hall Urban Design- USA Today

New Orleans Rebuilding Leadership Beginning to Take Shape -- Wallace, Roberts & Todd; Reed Kroloff, dean at Tulane University’s School of Architecture; Ray Manning, AIA; Peter Trapolin, AIA- Architectural Record

Study: Sprawl costs billions: The markets facing the highest costs are Los Angeles, Washington/Baltimore and the San Francisco Bay area...- Sacramento Business Journal

Fast Cities: They're 15 up-and-coming hubs for creative workers -- places that draw people who are talented, tech savvy, and tolerant.- Fast Company

The value of green: Las Vegas is quickly ramping up to become a leader in green building... By Lance Kirk/Lucchesi Galati Architects -- JMA Architecture Studios; Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects- Las Vegas Business Press

It Happened Here First: Before sustainability became the buzzword du jour, there was Sim Van der Ryn, now 70, the intrepid pioneer of the eco-frontier.- New York Times

Right of Reply: Cork in midst of one of the most exciting phases of its history: A city constrained by a Frank McDonald credo would be 'dismal and prissy' says property developer Owen O'Callaghan, responding to..."Little to show for year as European Capital of Culture" feature last week- Irish Times

The National Conference Centre hasn't docked yet . . . many obstacles ahead for €400m plan -- Kevin Roche- Unison (Ireland)

National library finally looks set to go ahead: Castle of Light should spectacularly live up to its name, like a white mountain radiating light from across the Duaugava River [Riga, Latvia]. -- Gunnar Birkerts- The Baltic Times

On Criticism: critics...describe how their varied concerns — technological, political, ecological, cultural — have shaped their approach to a field they helped create...responsible criticism benefits not just the profession but society at large. -- Ada Louise Huxtable; Allan Temko; Paul Goldberger; Michael Sorkin; Robert Campbell; Deyan Sudjic- The Architect's Newspaper (NYC)

2006 Burnham Prize Competition: Learning from North Lawndale: Defining the Urban Neighborhood in the 21st Century; registration deadline: January 20, 2006- Chicago Architectural Club

Innovation Needn't Take a Back Seat: "Designing the Taxi" presents evidence that annoying little aspects of taxi travel...need not be tolerated. By Linda Hales -- Design Trust for Public Space; Parsons; Antenna Design; CityStreets; Birsel + Seck; FXFOWLE Architects (Fox & Fowle); Weisz + Yoes- Washington Post

High Tech High - Los Angeles: A new charter school is an incubator for new ideas and new approaches to learning - and teaching - technology. -- Berliner and Associates, Architecture [images]- ArchNewsNow