Teresa Rosano Receives Dual Honors at the 2025 AIA Arizona Design Awards
In November, Associate Professor Teresa Rosano received two top honors at the 2025 AIA Arizona Design Awards: the Architects Medal and a Community Design Award for a student-led capstone project. The recognized project—the Tucson Hope Factory Micro Shelter Village—aims to support unhoused communities in Southern Arizona through a collaborative, student-designed micro-shelter prototype. Rosano’s awards highlight both her influential architectural career and her deep commitment to education, adding to her recent series of teaching achievements.
Balancing Buyer Protections with Development Costs: A Panel Discussion on Arizona’s Construction Defect Liability Law
In this panel discussion, we will explore the impact of Arizona’s construction defect liability laws on multifamily development, with a particular focus on possible legislative reforms to better balance buyer protections with development costs. While construction defect liability laws provide important protections for buyers, there is a growing concern among researchers and housing advocates that, if overly restrictive, these laws can increase development costs and lower production.
Lecture Recap | Immersive Design: The Intersection of Site, Craft and Collaboration | A Lecture by Kevin Kudo-King
Kevin Kudo-King explored strategies for immersive design at the intersections of site, craft, and collaboration.
Exploring Urban Challenges: CAPLA Students Engage with Oakland’s Evolving Landscape
Students in the ARC 410F/510F Advanced Studio Urban Design course, part of CAPLA’s Senseable Environments track, recently traveled to Oakland, California, to explore the complex social, economic, and environmental issues shaping the Bay Area.
Low-cost housing in a high-cost city: London’s approach to affordable housing | Lecture by Kath Scanlon
London, an undisputed global city, is well known for having some of the world’s most expensive housing but also boasts a substantial amount of low-cost social and affordable housing. This talk sketches the historic roots of affordable housing in London, explains how it is currently built and operated, and explores current political and practical challenges—some of which are shared by Arizona cities despite their very different contexts.
Ladd Keith named 2025 Western Planner of the Year
The Western Planner organization has named CAPLA Associate Professor Ladd Keith its 2025 Planner of the Year, honoring his pioneering leadership in climate-responsive planning and community resilience across the American West.
CAPLA Professor’s SunLink Research to be Published in Harvard Law & Policy Review
A new study co-led by CAPLA’s Arthur C. Nelson and the City of Tucson’s Daniel Lawlor finds that the Sun Link streetcar has reshaped Tucson’s growth, economy, and equity since its 2014 launch, driving major real estate investment, population growth, and city revenue gains. The research, to be published in the Harvard Law & Policy Review, highlights the streetcar as a national model for successful urban transit planning.
Behind the Design: Andrew Weil Center recognized for outstanding architecture
The University of Arizona’s Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine has been recognized internationally for its innovative design, earning an honorable mention in the 2025 International Architecture Awards. The distinction highlights the university’s commitment to creating spaces that advance health, wellness, and architectural excellence.
Urban Planning Students Win Statewide Award for City of South Tucson Project
A team of Master of Science in Urban Planning (MSUP) students at CAPLA received the Arizona APA’s Best Student Planning Project Award for their capstone, “Community Investment Strategy Toolkit for the City of South Tucson.”
CAPLA Dean Nancy Pollock-Ellwand Receives University of Guelph Alumni of Honour Award
CAPLA Dean Nancy Pollock-Ellwand has been named a recipient of the University of Guelph Alumni of Honour Award, recognizing her global leadership in cultural heritage conservation and lifelong dedication to education.