American Institute of Architects (AIA) have selected the 2009 recipients of the AIA Institute Honor Awards, the profession’s highest recognition of works that exemplify excellence in architecture, interior architecture and urban design. Selected from over 700 total submissions, 25 recipients located throughout the world will be honored in April at the AIA 2009 National Convention and Design Exposition in San Francisco.

2009 Institute Honor Awards for Architecture:

The 2009 Institute Honor Awards for Architecture recognize nine unique projects. The types of projects range from cathedrals to trend-setting residential projects. These projects have a tremendous impact on the social and physical fabric of the communities they serve. Many were designed with budget constraints and a number of projects were a reuse of existing buildings or an integration of old with new. Jury members include: Jury Chair David Lake, FAIA, Lake | Flato Architects; Carlton Brown, Full Spectrum of New York; Michael B. Lehrer, FAIA, Lehrer Architects; James J. Malanaphy, III, AIA, The 160 Group, Ltd; Paul Mankins, FAIA, Substance Architecture Interiors Design; Anna McCorvey, AIAS Director, Northeast Quad; Anne Schopf, FAIA, Mahlum Architects; Suman Sorg, FAIA, Sorg and Associates, P.C.; and Denise Thompson, Assoc. AIA, Francis Cauffman.

Basilica of the Assumption, Baltimore

John G. Waite Associates, Architects PLLC

Restoration of the Basilica of the Assumption (also known as the Baltimore Cathedral), a major architectural landmark and masterpiece of the Federal style, removes a century and a half of obscuring alterations to bring back Benjamin Henry Latrobe’s concept of luminosity and spatial configuration. The now fully functioning cathedral again serves the people of Baltimore while reclaiming one of America’s most brilliant architectural designs, by its first professional architect; one that greatly influenced the development of the country’s architecture.

Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland, California

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

The Cathedral of Christ the Light resonates as a place of worship and conveys an inclusive statement of welcome and openness as the community’s symbolic soul. The glass, wood, and concrete structure ennobles and inspires through the use of light, material, and form.

The Gary Comer Youth Center, Chicago

John Ronan Architects

This 74,000-square-foot youth center, located in one of Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods, demonstrates a commitment to social progress in providing a constructive environment for area youths to spend their after-school hours. The center provides support for the programs of a 300-member drill team/performance group for children of ages 8 to 18 and provides space for various youth educational and recreational programs for disadvantaged children to better their chances of success in life.

The New York Times Building, New York City

Renzo Piano Building Workshop and FXFowle Architects

The New York Times Building incorporates many transcendental themes in good architecture—volume, views, light, respect for context, relationship to the street—with a design that is open and inviting, providing its occupants with a sense of the city around them.

Plaza Apartments, San Francisco

Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects

Located on a prominent corner in an improving San Francisco redevelopment area, this new, mixed-use project provides permanent housing for the chronically homeless as a pilot project of Mayor Gavin Newsom and the Dept. of Public Health’s “Housing First” program, which is a cornerstone of the city’s 10-year plan to end homelessness. The sustainably designed 9-story building provides 106 highly efficient studio apartments with on-site mental and physical health services for the residents.

2009 Institute Honor Awards for Interior Architecture

The 2009 Institute Honor Awards for Interior Architecture recognize 10 projects. The jury was drawn to projects that skillfully used natural light and provided unique architectural approaches to common design problems. Jury members include: Jury Chair Mark P. Sexton, FAIA, Krueck & Sexton Architects; Joan Blumenfeld, FAIA, Perkins + Will; Elisabeth Knibbe, AIA, Quinn Evans Architects; Arvind Manocha, Los Angeles Philharmonic Association; and Kevin Sneed, AIA, OTJ Architects,

Barclays Global Investors Headquarters, San Francisco

STUDIOS Architecture

Barclays Global Investors’ new headquarters office embraces innovation within a professional environment through thoughtful, sophisticated design and provides the infrastructure necessary to meet the firm’s significant technological demands. The design encourages collaboration and interaction, interspersing break areas within work areas, and offers a variety of meeting spaces.

Chronicle Books , San Francisco

Mark Cavagnero Associates

Chronicle Books, a popular San Francisco-based publishing company, needed a new home. Chronicle Books’ new home now reflects their strong communal values, fosters innovation, and responds to their unique relationship to books. In support of the office’s workflow, new circulation between floors provides intuitive access and visual connections. The varied spaces create an open, charged social atmosphere while preserving personal space for quiet and concentration.

Tishman Speyer Corporate Headquarters, New York City

Lehman Smith McLeish

The Corporate Headquarters for Tishman Speyer Properties is located in the historic Rockefeller Center. The project relocated Tishman’s corporate office and consolidated business units in this flagship space, which is one of the firm’s signature properties. Modifications to the 1931 building created dramatic spaces that highlight the firm’s forward-thinking mission, mirrored most prominently by their Modern art collection.

2009 Institute Honor Award for Regional and Urban Design

Six projects were selected to receive the 2009 Institute Honor Award for Regional and Urban Design. The projects range from singular buildings with an impact on the urban context, to zoning codes and master plan projects, to designs for entirely new cities. The 2009 Institute Honor Awards for Regional and Urban Design Jury included: Jury Chair Jonathan J. Marvel, AIA, Rogers Marvel Architects PLLC; Samuel Assefa, Assoc. AIA, City of Chicago, Department of Planning and Development; Tim Love, AIA, Utile Inc. / Architecture + Planning; Ivenue Love-Stanley, FAIA, Stanley Love-Stanley PC; and Stephanie Reich, AIA, City of Glendale, Planning Division.

Foshan Donghuali Master Plan, Guangdong, China

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP

With unremitting high-rise development threatening Foshan’s Old Town, city officials sought ways to conserve the ancient area while simultaneously creating a sustainable, modern central district able to meet the inevitable need for growth of a burgeoning city of 3.5 million. The plan is built at a density able to support a new, transit-oriented, mixed-use downtown while at the same time defraying the costs of preserving and restoring the vibrancy of the city’s historic Old Town and Temple. The Foshan Plan aims at providing a new model for historic conservation and revitalization that can apply throughout China.

Orange County Great Park, Irvine, California

TEN Arquitectos

Orange County California's Great Park will bring over 1,400 acres of urban parkland to the city of Irvine and the surrounding region. Planned on the former site of El Toro Air Force base, this large tract of undeveloped land will include a man-made canyon that runs through the park and will support a diverse range of active and passive programs. A great lawn, sports park, botanical gardens, and several arts and cultural facilities, including a large outdoor amphitheater will be programmed into the park.