Sam Dillon eulogizes architect Pedro Ramirez Vazquez, who helped transition Mexico "from a mostly peasant society into a modern industrial state," as much with his political skills as his technical skills.
"Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, the architect who led many of Mexico’s landmark Modernist construction projects of the mid-20th century, including museums, the country’s largest sports stadium and the shrine that attracts its most important religious pilgrimage, died on Tuesday, his 94th birthday, in Mexico City."
"Over six decades in which much of Mexico evolved from a mostly peasant society into a modern industrial state, Mr. Ramírez and his collaborators built a series of monuments to Mexican culture, including the National Museum of Anthropology, the Azteca soccer stadium, the Legislative Palace and the Basilica of Guadalupe, all in Mexico City," notes Dillon. "Millions of Mexican Roman Catholic pilgrims converge on the basilica each spring."
“'To think of him as somebody who designed buildings is not to take account of all the roles he played,' said [Luis M. Castañeda, a professor of art history at Syracuse University], who interviewed Mr. Ramírez and has studied his archives. 'He wasn’t the one constructing the models or sketching the drawings; he was the one securing the commission from the president.'”
FULL STORY: Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Architect, Is Dead at 94

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Half of Post-Fire Altadena Home Sales Were to Corporations
Large investors are quietly buying up dozens of properties in Altadena, California, where a devastating wildfire destroyed more than 6,000 homes in January.

Opinion: What San Francisco’s Proposed ‘Family Zoning’ Could Really Mean
Mayor Lurie is using ‘family zoning’ to encourage denser development and upzoning — but could the concept actually foster community and more human-scale public spaces?

Jacksonville Launches First Autonomous Transit Shuttle in US
A fleet of 14 fully autonomous vehicles will serve a 3.5-mile downtown Jacksonville route with 12 stops.
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