About AIA
In 1857, Richard Upjohn, famed architect of New York’s Trinity
Church assembled 13 of his peers to discuss the challenges and opportunities
facing what was then an emerging profession. These men bonded together
with the vision to form the American Institute of Architects, also known
as the AIA.
With over 80,000 members, the AIA today sets the standard for architectural
practice around the world. The Institute believes that the built environment
profoundly affects people, that the work of architects is essential to
human well being, and that AIA members must embrace their ethical obligation
to uphold this public trust.
As they celebrate their 150th anniversary, the Institute has embarked
on a new mission to leave a lasting legacy for future generations by creating
the Blueprint for America:
A Gift to the Nation.
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In South Carolina, AIA has six local components: AIA Charleston, AIA
Columbia, AIA Greenville, AIA Hilton Head, AIA Spartanburg, and AIA Grand
Strand. In 2007, as part of the Blueprint for America initiative,
each local component partnered with a South Carolina community to sponsor
a community design charrette. A charrette is an intense multi-day workshop
where designers solicit public input to create a shared vision for
the future.
The visions created during this process reflected the AIA’s
Ten Principles of Livable Communities, an easy to understand
set of guidelines that promote best practices in community design.
Following the charrettes, the AIA & the South Carolina Design Arts
Partnership identified the common goals all six communities needed
to achieve to survive and thrive in the 21st century. From this, the Blueprint
SC Community Objectives were formed. To
read more about each charrette, please visit the Community Visions section of this website.
To learn more about AIA, visit www.aia.org
AIA’s Ten Principles of Livable Communities
1. Design on a Human Scale
Compact, pedestrian-friendly communities allow residents to walk to
shops, services, cultural resources, and jobs and can reduce traffic
congestion and benefit people’s health.
2. Provide Choices
People want variety in housing, shopping, recreation, transportation,
and employment. Variety creates lively places and accommodates residents
in different stages of their lives.
3. Encourage mixed use development.
Integrating different land uses and varied building types create vibrant,
pedestrian-friendly and diverse communities.
4. Preserve urban centers.
Restoring, revitalizing, and infilling urban centers take advantage
of exiting streets, services and buildings and avoids the need for new
infrastructure. This helps to curb sprawl and promote stability for
city neighborhoods.
5. Vary transportation options.
Giving people the option of walking, biking and using public transit,
in addition to driving, reduces traffic, protects the environment and
encourages physical activity.
6. Build vibrant public spaces.
Citizens need welcoming, well-defined public spaces to stimulate face-to-face
interaction, encourage civic participation, admire public art, and gather
for public events.
7. Create a neighborhood identity.
A “Sense of place” gives neighborhoods a unique character,
enhances the walking environment, and creates pride in the community.
8. Protect environmental resources.
A well-designed balance of nature and development preserves natural
systems, protects waterways from pollution, reduces air pollution, and
protects property values.
9. Conserve landscapes.
Open space, farms, and wildlife habitat are essential for environmental,
recreational, and cultural resources.
10. Design Matters.
Design excellence is the foundation of successful and healthy communities.
