The University of Toronto is looking for a Director, Real Estate to manage their tri-campus portfolio of income producing real estate, as well as the development opportunities that they have on and adjacent to their three campuses. The downtown campus alone is over 120 buildings across 130 acres.
A good friend of mine is helping with this search; I went to the University of Toronto (twice); and I believe that institutions, such as U of T, play an important city building function. So I’m sharing this opportunity with all of you today. For more on the University’s development strategy, click here.
They are looking for someone with 10+ years of experience. The salary will be competitive and commensurate with this level of experience. And you would be reporting directly to the Chief of University Planning, Design & Construction.
If you’re interested, you can apply here. You have until January 25, 2019 to do that. I hope the position gets filled with a star. Also, sorry if this post isn’t relevant to you. Regularly scheduled programming will resume tomorrow.
Last summer, Zach Mortice published this article in Metropolis talking about two new buildings in Chicago. Here is his architectural description of the first:
Ross Barney’s design is unabashedly cosmopolitan, yet welcoming. Conceived as a series of interlocking Miesian pavilions, it comprises a glass cube containing the dining room and a smaller opaque volume, which holds the kitchen. The glass envelope shows off the restaurant’s burly cross-laminated timber beams, the first time this ultra-strong, low-carbon structural system has been used in Chicago. The exterior pergola is clad with solar panels and provides shade across an entire city block while also generating most of the restaurant’s energy. With a landscaped plaza and outdoor seating, there’s a strong focus on attracting pedestrians to this green-starved section of the city, with a landscaped plaza and outdoor seating.
Zach is describing the then new flagship McDonald’s in the River North area of Chicago. That’s maybe not what you were thinking as you were reading the description, but it is, of course, part of a broader transformation for the brand:
“We don’t need to be loud anymore,” says David Vilkama, McDonald’s global creative director. “We’re trying to move away from the old, cheap, plasticky, in-your-face fast food culture.”
It is a clear example of the value of good design and also how it has seemingly become table stakes for many firms and industries.
But as Zach points out in this article, is this also evidence that brands need to, not only invest in good design, but also move upmarket in order to maintain growth?
In other words: Does good design inevitably equal more expensive?
Welcome to 2019.
I am currently in transit and catching up on some internet reading and email on my way back to Toronto.
At this time of year it is, of course, common to reminisce (or lament) about what happened over the last year, as well prognosticate what may come.
Over the last few years, I have done a bit of that on the blog. But I clearly didn’t do that this year while in Brazil (and away from any semblance of a workspace).
So here’s what others have been writing and thinking about over the holidays:
- 2018’s tech trends and tribulations in 14 charts. Recode. Link
- 2018 was the year of the YIMBY. CityLab. Link
- A cool girl’s guide to Toronto. Vogue. Link
- Amazon’s annual Christmas press release. Link
- Best travel posts of 2018. Design Milk. Link
- Here’s (Almost) Everything Wall Street Expects in 2019. Bloomberg. Link
- Here’s what to expect in cybersecurity in 2019. TechCrunch. Link
- Naive to hope Toronto can change in 2019? That means we have work to do. Shawn Micallef. Link
- The 10 largest US venture rounds of 2019. TechCrunch. Link
- What is going to happen in 2019. Fred Wilson. Link
- Will a recession hit in 2019? Alan Murray. Link
- Year in search 2018. Google. Link