Coventry, the UK City of Culture in 2021, wants to seize a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create an arts hub to establish the city as an international destination for culture. Coventry City Council (CCC) has revealed multi-million pound plans to transform the IKEA building in the city into a visitor attraction showcasing some of the UK's greatest works of art. The new national Collections Centre would be created through a partnership

Plans by Forest Green Rovers Football Club (FGRFC) to play its games at the world’s first entirely wooden stadium have been approved by the English Football League (EFL). Getting approval to host games at the proposed stadium clears another planning hurdle for the project, which would see a 5,000-seat venue built near the UK town of Eastington. Plans for the stadium were first unveiled in 2015 and it is expected

In the depths of the French countryside sits 48° North Landscape Hotel, a holistic ecotourism and wellness destination inspired by Scandinavian and French traditions. Realised by Nordic architecture firm Reiulf Ramstad Arkitekter in collaboration with local firm, ASP Architecture, the secluded hotel is perched on the heights of the Breitenbach village in the Alsace region of France. Accommodation consists of 14 interpretations of traditional Scandinavian cottages – called a hytte

In 2020, the Dubai skyline was updated with an 84,300sq m cube-shaped building with a gaping eight-storey-wide void at its centre. One of the late visionary architect Zaha Hadid’s final projects. Named The Opus by Omniyat, the destination is set apart by being the only project where Hadid was responsible for both architecture and interiors, including select pieces from Zaha Hadid Design’s in-house furniture collection. The two-tower building is located

Omega Mart, a permanent visitor attraction and art installation built by Meow Wolf, is set to open in Las Vegas, US, this month. The attraction, dubbed "America's most exceptional supermarket", is located at Area15 – an experiential, 200,000sq ft retail and entertainment centre – and will feature more than 250 art projects created by 325 artists. In total, Omega Mart houses more than 60 unique environments that include installation-filled rooms,

Design specialist BRC Imagination Arts (BRC) has been selected to design and produce the World Food Center Experience in Ede, the Netherlands. The attraction will become an interactive platform exploring the impact of the world’s food choices and the importance of sustainable and healthy food production. BRC's concept will take guests on a personalised journey that will "challenge what they know about how food is produced and consumed, worldwide". The

The Ritz-Carlton Reserve portfolio has expanded, with the opening of a premium all-season alpine resort at one of Japan's top winter sports destinations in Hokkaido. Owned by YTL Hotels, the 50-room Higashiyama Niseko Village resort is the first Japanese Ritz-Carlton Reserve and YTL's fifth destination in Niseko Village, residing at the base of Mount Niseko Annupuri with panoramic mountain views. Niseko Village has been selected as the venue for some

The Museum of Military Medicine in the UK has received planning approval for a new building in the city of Cardiff. As a result, the historic attraction will move from its current home in Surrey to a new flagship facility designed by architects Scott Brownrigg. The new building – set to be located in Cardiff Bay – will host the museum's comprehensive collection of archives and exhibitions documenting the legacy

Construction work has begun on the huge Shanghai International New Cultural and Creative esports Center. The 500,000sq m venue is estimated to cost around 5.8 billion yuan ($898.2m) and forms part of a larger, US$1.5bn project. Built by Chinese property company SuperGen Group – the parent company of Chinese esports organisation Edward Gaming (EDG) – the venue is located in the city's Minhang District. The 6,000-seat arena is expected to

Frasers Group will open three new regional flagship Flannels-branded retail stores during 2021 – each of which will feature fitness studios. The Mike Ashley-owned retail group is betting on a recovery for British high streets with the plans, which will see stores opening in Liverpool, Leicester and Sheffield. As well as a seven-floor Flannels megastore on Liverpool's iconic Parker Street, Frasers will convert the existing House of Fraser store at

Architecture firm OMA has revealed designs for an ambitious underwater sculpture park which will stretch across seven miles off the coast of Miami Beach, Florida, US. Called ReefLine, the park is being developed by BlueLab Preservation Society in partnership with the City of Miami Beach and Coral Morphologic. It will feature art installations located around 20ft under water, which can only be viewed while snorkeling or diving. Conceived by cultural

Büro Ole Scheeren and Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban have been appointed to create a masterplan for the Hangzhou Wangjiang New Town project in China. Together, the architects will establish a new art and cultural destination in the historical city on behalf of New World Development Company, a Hong Kong-based group focused on property, infrastructure and hotels – and one of the largest foreign direct investors in mainland China. With

Football's world governing body FIFA has filed a criminal complaint over what it describes as "criminal mismanagement" of the World Football Museum project in Zurich. The project was first announced by disgraced former FIFA president Sepp Blatter in 2012 and the attraction opened its doors in February 2017 at a cost of around CHF500m (€459m, £415m). The 3,000sq m (32,300sq ft) museum is part of a larger development which includes

A new hotel room concept which "shapes around the visitors" looks to transform the overnight experience for hotel guests. Called Heya, the concept was created by a team of designers, led by ReardonSmith Architects. Using technology and innovative design, Heya can be dramatically reconfigured by guests to suit their purpose and is built around the idea that guests shouldn’t have to settle into their room: it should take shape around

Disney has released the first visuals of its Star Wars -themed Galactic Starcruiser resort, which is set to open at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida next year. The ambitious new attraction will offer accommodation in hotel 'pods', which are part of a new type of "ultra-deep immersion" experience into the Star Wars universe. Each guest will be able to become the hero of their own adventure during a two-day,

Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings, one of the most important buildings of the UK's industrial past, is to be restored and redeveloped as a heritage visitor attraction. Built in 1797, the building is known as the "grandparent of the modern-day skyscraper", due to its pioneering cast iron frame, which was the first of its kind in the world and paved the way for the development of skyscrapers. It operated as a flax

Bulgari Hotels & Resorts will open a new property in Miami Beach, Florida, in 2024. The Bulgari Hotel Miami Beach will be a 100-key beachfront hotel, offering a luxury wellness retreat complete with a large spa and fitness centre and outdoor pool. The hotel will be housed inside a building originally created by Miami architect Albert Anis in the late 1950s, located in the National Register Architectural District. The design

Technogym has opened the latest of its consumer-facing retail store concepts in Los Angeles, US. The two-floor store, covering 3,500sq ft, is located in the heart of the West Hollywood Design District and will showcase the full range of Technogym's equipment and services. Specifically targeting the high-end consumer market, the store will allow people to access and discover the company's at-home products and solutions. Staff at the site will include

Architects AZPML and UKST have secured the commission to design the Korean Museum of Urbanism and Architecture (KMUA), a £31.4m project in Sejong, South Korea. The competition was organised by the National Agency for Administrative City Construction (NAACC), which is looking to establish a museum exploring the history and the development of the built environment across the country. With a total floor area of 17,050sq m, the museum will be

Global wellness real estate and technology company Delos is collaborating with TPP Capital Management Group (TPP) – a Black-led social impact private equity fund manager and healthcare real estate development firm – to advance health and wellness through buildings in urban communities. The partnership will first work to transform Tioga District in North Philadelphia, US, with evidence-based healthy building strategies and solutions. The district has an 85.5 per cent Black

The Well has struck its first-ever hospitality partnership and developed a holistic wellbeing retreat for Auberge Resort Collection’s Mayflower Inn & Spa resort, in Connecticut. The opening will complete Mayflower Inn’s property-wide transformation including a redesign of the 35-room resort, led by interior designer Celerie Kembele. The Well is a modern wellness brand known for its first location in New York which offers integrated holistic health solutions and access to

International architecture practice 10 Design has revealed its design concepts for an ambitious redevelopment of Edinburgh’s city centre. The project will transform the former Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) site on Dundas Street into a first-rate mixed-use development, which will create a new urban centre, providing a significant addition of public realm, including hotel, retail, residential and office components. The development will replace the existing car park and the ex-RBS

Western Australia's new $400m WA Museum Boola Bardip, in the heart of Perth's Cultural Centre, has officially opened after four years of construction. Charting the rich heritage of Western Australia (WA), the museum houses eight permanent exhibition galleries, a 1,000sq m special exhibition gallery, life-long learning studios and retail, café and public spaces. The Museum has been conceived as a ‘collection of stories’ about WA's diversity, history and contemporary culture.

The UK government has launched a £1bn Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS), providing grant funding for energy efficiency measures across the public sector. The funding has been made available for capital sustainability and heat decarbonisation projects within public sector non-domestic buildings, including central government departments and non-departmental public bodies in England. Public sector bodies can apply for a grant to finance up to 100 per cent of the costs of

A museum telling the story of the US Army has opened in close to Newington, close to Washington, D.C. The National Museum of the United States Army (NMUSA) is the first to outline the rich heritage of the oldest branch of the United States military had has been designed to serve as a center of education and as the Army’s symbolic "front door". Rather than focusing on battles or wars,

Banyan Tree Group has begun welcoming guests to a new 72-key beachfront resort and spa in Southern Thailand, named Banyan Tree Krabi. Design studio, Architrave, realised the new resort which is inspired by Buddhism, as well as the surrounding natural landscape, water and a mythical sea creature from local Krabi legends. Owned by Asset World Corporation, the five-star hotel houses a 517sq m rainforest-themed spa offering traditional Thai healing rituals

Anantara will expand into the Seychelles in Q4 2020, following a rebrand of the iconic Maia Luxury Resort & Spa by architects Bill Bensley and Lek Bunnag. Located on Mahé, the largest of the Seychelles islands, Anantara Maia Seychelles Villas will consist of a 30-villa resort complemented with a luxury spa, set amongst 30 acres of forest garden. Located in the resort’s fragranced gardens, the Anantara Spa will be home