NEW YORK, NY - On Thursday, October 6, 2005, the AIA New York Chapter and the Center for Architecture Foundation will honor leading New Yorkers at the annual Heritage Ball. The sold-out benefit gala, to be held at Chelsea Piers' Pier 60, recognizes the contributions of outstanding individuals and organizations to the physical, cultural and civic environment of New York. Nearly 1,300 leaders from the architecture, design, construction and real estate community will attend.

The Heritage Ball helps kick off Architecture Week 2005, a six-day, city-wide festival of events and special programs on architecture and design, designed to appeal to New Yorkers of every age and walk of life. Home base for Architecture Week is the Center for Architecture, the public gallery of the AIA New York Chapter.

This year's honorees, all of whom will be in attendance at the Heritage Ball, explicitly reflect the Center for Architecture's multi-faceted mission and diverse audiences:

• Max Bond, a distinguished architect and teacher;
• Amanda Burden, a visionary planner from the public sector;
• The New York Restoration Project and Bette Midler, a non-profit group working to enhance the city's parks and landscapes; and
• Frank Sciame, an enlightened builder and real estate developer.

Together with Dinner Chair Richard Tomasetti, P.E., Hon. AIA, Co-Chairman of the Thornton-Tomasetti Group, who represents the Center's enthusiastic cadre of engineers, the Heritage Ball honorees demonstrate the breadth and depth of the Center for Architecture's growing importance to New York's design community.

2005 Heritage Ball Honorees:

• J. Max Bond, Jr., FAIA, partner at Davis Brody Bond, will receive the 2005 Presidents Award. He is recognized internationally for his work as an architect and educator. In addition to his ongoing involvement in the redevelopment of Harlem, his projects include the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum; the Bolgatanga Library in Ghana; the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (Atlanta, GA); the World Trade Center Memorial Museum (as design architect); the World Trade Center Memorial (as associate architect); and expansion of the Harvard Club of New York.
  
  
• Amanda M. Burden, Hon. AIA NY, Chair of the New York City Planning Commission and Director of the Department of City Planning, is being awarded the Center for Architecture Award. She is an urban planner and civic activist whose support of the city's cultural community and various civic groups has led to her involvement in sponsoring rezoning to protect numerous low-density neighborhoods while promoting significant new housing opportunities vital to our public domain; championing the preservation of the High Line; overseeing the transformation of the Fresh Kills landfill into a new park; and supervising the design and planning of Battery City Park from 1983 to 1990.
  
  
• Frank J. Sciame, Hon. AIA NY, CEO of F.J. Sciame Construction Company, will be honored with the AIA New York Chapter Award. A builder and developer involved in cultural, commercial, educational and restoration projects throughout the tri-state area, his projects have included the restoration of Central Synagogue; New York Public Library's South Court; the Museum of Arts & Design's new home at Two Columbus Circle; a new academic building for Cooper Union; revitalization of Historic Front Street; and proposed development of 80 South Street as a mixed-use residential tower designed by Santiago Calatrava, FAIA.
  
  
• New York Restoration Project with Founder Bette Midler, and Benjamin F. Needell Esq., Chairman; Julia Erickson, Executive Director; and Amy Gavaris, Executive Vice President; will receive the 2005 Foundation Award This non-profit organization's belief that every community in New York deserves an oasis of natural beauty has resulted in free recreational and environmental education programs for at-risk youngsters; and active partnerships with individuals, community-based groups and public agencies to reclaim, restore and develop under-resourced parks, community gardens, and open space in New York City, primarily in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

About the Center for Architecture
The Center for Architecture is New York City's premier public space for exhibitions, discussion and professional exchange on architecture and design. With a storefront resource center, multiple galleries, a lecture hall, library and conference rooms, the Center serves as the place where the public and design professionals meet. Established in October 2003 by the American Institute of Architects New York Chapter and its charitable affiliate, the Center for Architecture Foundation, the Center is also home to the New York Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), the Illuminating Engineering Society New York Section (IES/NY), and the Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY).. The Center for Architecture (www.aiany.org ) is located at 536 LaGuardia Place and is open 9 am to 8 pm, Monday - Friday, and 11 am to 5 pm, Saturdays. Admission is free. For information, contact the AIA New York Chapter at 212-683-0023.

For further information, contact:

Christina Mathews
Pamela Puchalski
The Kreisberg Group
Center for Architecture
212.799.5515
212.358.6116

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