2008 International

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12:00 - 5:00 PRE-CONFERENCE TOURS (R) (+)

         12:00 - 5:00 Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater  

Located 50 miles southwest of Pittsburgh, Fallingwater is recognized as one of Frank Lloyd Wright's most acclaimed works. In a 1991 poll of members of the American Institute of Architects, it was voted "the best all-time work of American architecture." It is a supreme example of Frank Lloyd Wright's concept of organic architecture, which promotes harmony between man and nature through design so well integrated with its site that buildings, furnishings, and surroundings become part of a unified, interrelated composition.

 

A box lunch will be provided.

 

 

In 1895, in the aftermath of violent labor conflicts in the iron and steel industry, Apollo Iron and Steel hired the nation's preeminent landscape architectural firm, Olmsted, Olmsted and Eliot, to design the a new model industrial town: Vandergrift. Historian Ida Tarbell called Vandergrift America's "most important industrial town."

 

Chatham Village is a 76-year old planned community which opened in 1932 and is now a National Historic Landmark. The Village is a prototype of the British Garden City movement, an industrial-age aesthetic that tried to create a country haven within a noisy, polluted city. It was Pittsburgh's first all-gas community, and its utilities are buried. Chatham Village was built on a for-profit basis and became a model for city planners, architects and pioneers of subsidized housing policy. Its early residents were working-class renters.

 

A box lunch will be provided.

 

1:00 - 3:00 Kayak on the River 

Pittsburgh is defined by its rivers and this guided Kayak eco-tour is a great way to experience and learn about it.  The tour will start with paddling and safety instruction and a little bit of practice.  Sitting in the stable, beginner friendly boats and dazzled by the gorgeous Pittsburgh skyline, you won’t even realize that you are suddenly paddling like a pro.  This leisurely paddle will tour up the Allegheny River to historic Washington’s Landing and back.  Along the way expect beautiful views and lively conversation about the river’s history and ecology. 

 

The group will walk to the launch site, approximately 10 minutes from the Hilton hotel. Dress appropriately for the activity and the day’s weather. The cost includes boat rental, safety gear, guide, water and a snack.

 

 

Pittsburgh is one of the top five cities in the United States for the number of LEED ® certified and registered green buildings. Join the Green Building Alliance on a tour that will provide a firsthand view of some of the city's best examples of green buildings. You will see these exciting structures and learn how green buildings differ from conventionally constructed buildings.

 

 

Presented at Frick Park by NAOP and the Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation (NPS), this hands-on training session, led by staff from the Olmsted Center, will focus on how to preserve the character of the landscape when restoration projects are undertaken. The workshop is designed to build preservation skills of field staff who work in historic parks. Led by Charlie Pepper, Deputy Director of the NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation in Boston and others.

 

The walking tour will feature a visit to Mellon Square and the Alcoa Building. Mellon Square is the oldest surviving built above a parking garage. The walking tour will feature a visit to Mellon Square and the Alcoa Building. Mellon Square is the oldest surviving built above a parking garage. While much of Mellon Square itself was one of the cornerstone projects of Pittsburgh’s post World War II Renaissance effort.  The Alcoa Building is a thirty-story skyscraper that was designed as a showpiece of the use of aluminum in building construction. Aluminum was used wherever possible, from the skin of the building to its utilities. It was designed by Harrison and Abramovitz, one of the most famous architecture firms in the U.S. at mid-century. The tour will also include visits to Henry Hobson Richardson’s Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail. Richardson is considered by many to be the leading architect of the 19th century. The Frick Building (1901-02) was the first of industrialist Henry Clay Frick's architectural ventures on Grant Street, Downtown. In 1903, Leslie's Weekly judged it "the finest office building in the world." The Union Trust Building is a Flemish gothic fantasy by Pittsburgh architect Frederick J. Osterling. It is Henry Clay Frick's answer to the then-new Woolworth Building in New York City, the world's tallest.

 

Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers are lined with wonderful bike trails full of history and scenic beauty.  After a lesson about how to use the bicycles and travel safely, we’ll get our helmets on and hit the trail.  This moderately paced bike ride along this gentle trail will take the group along and over the Monongahela River.  Along the way the group will be able to view models of urban redevelopment from the Southside works to Station Square, have an opportunity to cross some of Pittsburgh’s famous bridges, and have time to learn about the region’s heritage. 

 

The tour will begin at the Hilton hotel. Dress appropriately for the activity and the day’s weather.  The cost includes bike rental, helmet, guide, water and a snack.

 

Luis Garden Acosta, founder of El Puente, a community human rights and environmental organization, and recipient of the Heinz Award for the Human Condition

(R) – Advance registration required.

(+) – Additional fee applies. All events are included in your registration fee except as noted (+).

This schedule is subject to change.