If you live in or plan to visit New York City during the month of October, we suggest you set aside some time to participate in one of Archtober’s many events. What is Archtober? Archtober is New York’s official Architecture and Design Month. Hosted by the Center for Architecture and the AIA New York Chapter, the annual festival organizes a plethora of architecture activities, programs and exhibitions to take place throughout city during the month of October. The goal is to raise awareness of the important role design plays in the city, celebrate the richness of New York’s built environment, and simply enjoy some great architecture.

Archtober highlights include the Architecture & Design Film Festival at Tribeca Cinemas; the Municipal Art Society Summit for New York City, featuring over 100 speakers gathered “to debate the future of our city and spark conversations about planning, design, infrastructure, preservation, culture, and development;” the Pratt Institute’s "City by Numbers: Big Data and the Urban Future” symposium; and 31 architect-led “Building of the Day” tours.

Preview a selection of building’s on tour after the break and find out how to reserve tickets.

The 2014 Restaurant & Bar Design Award winners have been announced! The award, now in its sixth cycle, is one of the most prestigious in hospitality. Projects from the UK to China and Australia have all been recognized as being some of the world's best designed restaurant and bars. See who was selected from 3000 international submissions, after the break.

Mecanoo, in collaboration with engineering consultancy Movares, has been chose to redevelop the Ede train station in the Netherlands. An important entry for the city and Veluwe National Park, the design hopes to transform the station into a “showpiece” and vibrant center for the Veluwse Poort.

“The vision of the design is defined by an unobtrusive appearance; the natural environment serves as a starting point for the characteristic materialization that connects the buildings and the station square, emphasizing the area’s built identity,” described Mecanoo. 

Hagia Sophia, Guggenheim Bilbao, and Burj Khalifa are amongst 90 structural feats in which Pop Chart Lab has deemed to be “mankind’s greatest architectural achievements since prehistory.” Each are hand-drafted and presented on this blueprint-style infographic to commemorate great architecture.

Demand for design services in the US continue to increase, as momentum from July’s highest recorded strength since 2007 continues. The American Institute of Architects reported the August Architecture Billings Index (ABI) at 53.0, down from July’s mark of 55.8, and the new projects inquiry at 62.6.

“One of the key triggers for accelerating growth at architecture firms is that long-stalled construction projects are starting to come back to life in many areas across the country,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “Long awaited access to credit from lending institutions and an increasing comfort level in the overall economy has helped revitalize the commercial real estate sector in recent months. Additionally, though, a crucial component to a broader industry-wide recovery is the emerging demand for new projects such as education facilities, government buildings and, in some cases, hospitals.”

A breakdown of regional highlights, after the break…

Álvaro Siza has won top honors in the “2014 Fritz Höger Awards for Excellence in Brick Architecture.” The awards, now in their third edition, highlight projects that harness the creative potential of brick. Projects from New Delhi, Barcelona and Frankfurt have all been awarded gold and silver prizes.

View all the winners, after the break.

Groundlab, WOWHAUS and Urbanica have been announced as winners of an international competition to redesign Sokolniki Park, Moscow’s largest park. Over the next 15 years, their 515 hectare masterplan, "Sokolniki. Nature's embassy in Moscow," will focus on preserving the 19th century park’s unique natural landscape as an extension of the Losiny Ostrov nature park by dividing it into three zones: Forest, Forest Park and Regular Park.

Images of the winning design, after the break.

Jury chairman Winy Maas has announced three projects by Arup, Studio Tamassociati and Elemental as winners of the 2014 Zumtobel Group Awards. With a goal to promote innovations for sustainability and humanity in the built environment, the awards represent three categories: Applied Innovations, Buildings and Urban Developments & Initiatives. This year’s winners were selected from 15 nominees, shortlisted from a competitive pool of 356 submissions.

The winning projects are marked by their innovative and ground-breaking character: “The voting to find the number one project was very close in all three categories, because in each case we were able to choose from among a large number of heterogeneous projects of high quality," Described Maas. "One key criterion for the jury this year was the innovation factor, both in a technical sense and with a view to planning and participation processes as well as ecological and social challenges.”

See the winning projects, after the break.

Sunday marked the completion of the New York City High Line, a three-phased project that transformed the once disused elevated rail tracks on Manhattan’s West Side into one of the world’s most respected public parks. With the first section opening in 2009, architectural photographer Iwan Baan has been documenting the entire process. Now, for the first time we present to you a photographic journey through the completed High Line designed by James Corner Field Operations with Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Take a look, after the break.

Today, Olson Kundig Architects’ first-ever retrospective Anthology opened its doors at Omaha’s KANEKO. Spanning five decades of Olson Kundig work, the site-specific exhibition will focus on the Seattle-based firm’s unique creative process, showcasing the many influences and design explorations that have shaped the practice over the years. Follow us after the break for more information and a sampling of the firms work.

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The Getty Foundation has named the first 10 recipients of its philanthropic “Keeping It Modern” initiative, which aims to advance the understanding and preservation of 20th-century modern architecture. From Louis Kahn’s Salk Institute to Le Corbusier’s Parisian apartment, each recipient has been chosen for their architectural significance and potential to advance conservation practices related to modern architecture.

View all 10 projects, after the break...