黑洞社区

Patrik, bitte, halt deinen Mund

I know there鈥檚 been a bit of a brouhaha over an email Patrik Schumacher, the face of Zaha Hadid Architects, sent to staff last November. It was a response to the media storm which he created when, among other things, he suggested social housing be scrapped, Hyde Park built on and all public space privatised. In his email, which has been leaked, Schumacher promises to learn lessons but I fear staff may have been left bewildered by his final comments. He says: 鈥淧olitics and professional service don鈥檛 mix. I have written about this at length. How these aspects of a meaningful and ambitious life might co-exist peacefully, without compromising and subverting each other remains to be carefully defined and (most cautiously!!!) probed in due time (not now !!!).鈥� Perhaps the lesson he should learn is to stop talking gobbledygook and concentrate on running the business instead.

Loved by all

Some architects might be interested to know that the Arb, the statutory body set up for the registration of architects in the UK, has now more than 38,000 members. Basically, to be a practising architect in the UK you have to be Arb registered 鈥� otherwise you can鈥檛. So some might think Arb chief Karen Holmes is pushing it when she says 97% of those paying their annual retention fee on time 鈥渃learly reflects the value that architects place on their regulated status鈥�. That and the fact that it鈥檚 the law.

Sticking the boat in

In a new book (see below) Renzo Piano, who hails from the port city of Genoa, talks about his passion for sailing. He鈥檚 designed six boats in all and goes into some detail about the very first boat he came up with, a 7.2m long vessel made out of marine plywood. He adds: 鈥淲hen I鈥檇 finished her she wouldn鈥檛 fit through the door (I had to demolish it).鈥� It鈥檚 not clear whether he meant the boat or door but typical architect, I say, getting his sizes wrong.

Profit of doom

Cenkos analyst Kevin Cammack thinks this week鈥檚 news that David Ritchie, the chief executive of Bovis, is leaving was not a huge surprise, given its profit warning over the Christmas period. 鈥淥kay,鈥� begins his daily briefing note, 鈥渉ands up who saw this one coming? Okay, wow that鈥檚 a lot of hands.鈥� The writing, I conclude from this, was on the wall, then. The question is whether Ritchie read the writing on the wall before the board pointed to it.

New right hand man

And now for something puerile. One of my hacks has been sent a release from Savills announcing the appointment of a new director for its fund management arm in Singapore. His name? Volker Wanka. I鈥檒l leave it there, save to say Mr Wanka is in good company with that surname. Did you know that there is a Peruvian football club called Deportivo Wanka? I didn鈥檛.

After they鈥檙e gone

With Laing O鈥橰ourke chairman Ray O鈥橰ourke pledging to fix things after posting an overall 拢246m loss, it鈥檚 good to know some of our readers have faith in the promise. 鈥淜nowing Mr O鈥橰ourke and Ms Anna Stewart, if they say they will turn it around in 2017, they will,鈥� I noticed one had written on our website after we had reported that the UK construction arm racked up a 拢141m loss. It seems churlish to point out that Anna Stewart, the former chief executive, left the role 13 months ago.