Architectural Firms Picked as Finalists in Orange County Great Park Competition

A jury of leading architects, designers and academics selected seven of the world's top landscape architecture firms as finalists to compete for the job of master designer of the Orange County Great Park in Tustin.

The Great Park will be developed on the 7-sq.-mi. site of the decommissioned El Toro Marine Corps Air Station.

The seven firms selected as finalists are: Abalos & Herreros of Madrid; Miralles/Tagliabue of Barcelona; Richard Haag Associates, Landscape Architects, of Seattle; Hargreaves Associates of San Francisco; Olin Partnership of Philadelphia; Royston Hanamoto Alley & Abey of Mill Valley; Ken Smith, Landscape Architect, of New York, in partnership with Ten-Arquitectos of Mexico City, Mary Miss Studio of New York and Mia Lehrer and Associates of Los Angeles.

"We have moved one step closer to finding the Frederick Law Olmstead of the 21st century -- a master designer with the talent and vision to give Orange County a park that will serve the needs of our local residents and become a destination for travelers from around the globe," said Larry Agran, chair of the Orange County Great Park Corp.

Dr. Hamid Shirvani, FASLA, FRSA, FRGS, provost and professor of architecture at Orange-based Chapman University and a consultant who organized the design jury said, "Our candidates included 24 of the most highly respected design firms from throughout the world.

"The firms were evaluated on a number of criteria, including references, national and international awards and recognition, qualifications of principals who will work on the Great Park and the firm's design philosophy and portfolio.

"The jury did an excellent job in presenting the board of directors with a list of seven firms that are highly qualified and will present the people of Orange County a very wide range of design concepts."

Members of the jury design panel included Dr. Diane Ghirirado, professor of architecture at the University of Southern California; Dr. Mark Francis, FASLA, professor of landscape architecture at UC Davis; George Bissell, FAIA, president of Newport Beach-based Bissell Architects; Dan Heinfeld, FAIA, president of LPA Irvine; Michael Rotondi, FAIA, architect and founder of Santa Monica-based Morphosis; and Linda Pollak, ALA, ASLA, partner at New York-based Marpillero/Park Architects.

Irvine Architecture Firm Opens East Coast Office

Ware Malcomb, a national architecture, planning and interior design firm based in Irvine, has announced the opening of an office in Woodbridge, N.J.

In an effort to service our national clients more effectively, we made the decision to open an office in the New Jersey market," said Ware Malcomb CEO Larry Armstrong.

This new office is at 53 Main St., 2nd Floor, Suite 1.

Long Beach Firm Completes Wastewater Treatment Plant in Hungary

Long Beach-based Earth Tech Inc., a global provider of consulting, engineering and construction services, has completed work on a U.S. $45 million expansion and upgrade of the wastewater treatment facilities at Hungary's largest oil refinery.

Earth Tech served as the lead designer and constructor for the project at the Duna Refinery of MOL Hungarian Oil and Gas Co in Szazhalombatta, near Budapest. Earth Tech also modified the refinery's sewer system and upgraded the sludge and solid waste incinerator at the wastewater treatment facilities, which it will operate for 15 years.

As a result of the upgrades, the Duna Refinery has been brought into compliance with European Union and Hungarian environmental regulations. The new facilities will treat an average of 5.2 million gallons per day.

The project, one of the first privatization efforts in Hungary, was completed in two years and included the involvement of more than a dozen stakeholder organizations in order to ensure the protection of the Danube River.