Populous are working on the largest esports arena in the US – a flexible 100,000sq ft (9,300sq m) venue in the City of Arlington, Virginia. The global sport and entertainment architecture firm are converting the Arlington Convention Center into the Esports Stadium Arlington – a facility designed to draw competitive players and fans from around the world. The City and investment firm Esports Ventures will together invest US$10m (€8m, £7m)

Health club design specialists zynk Design have completed a third Intencity training studio for fitness firm Fusion Lifestyle, which has just opened its doors at Park Road Pools and Fitness, Haringey, London. The team were briefed by Fusion to transform an existing studio into a dedicated, multi-functional training zone designed to give users “access to a boutique fitness experience.” The Fusion brand’s distinctive red and black aesthetics have been used

Plans to revitalise a 19-mile strech of the Lower LA River have been revealed, with new renderings showing how desolate concrete stretches – famously providing the dystopian backdrop to Terminator 2 – could be transformed into vibrant community hubs. Architecture firm Perkins+Will have worked with the County of Los Angeles, Tetra Tech Engineers and the LA River Working Group – formed of 13 stakeholder communities – to create the Lower

Work has started to renovate Newcastle City Pool and Turkish Baths in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, following a campaign to save the Grade II listed building. The £5m ($7m,€5.7m) renovation will be carried out by leisure charity Fusion Lifestyle, in partnership with design firm Creatability and a number of undisclosed companies. The baths, which originally opened in 1928, closed to the public in April 2013. Fusion secured planning permission and

The architect behind Everton FC’s planned new stadium at Bramley Moore Dock in Liverpool has told CLADglobal that his design will “embrace the future of English football without totally forgetting the past” – avoiding the pitfalls that have befallen clubs such as West Ham when moving away from a much-loved home. Dan Meis, founder of Meis Architects, admitted he feels “a huge responsibility” at the task of creating a replacement

Brazilian design studio MMBB Arquitetos and legendary architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha have collaborated on the transformation of a disused tower block in central São Paulo into a vibrant leisure destination for the city. Created for Brazilian non-profit SESC, the 14-storey building, situated on Rua 24 de Maio and Rua Dom José de Barro, has been stripped of several unnecessary elements – including a bankrupt department store at its heart

French architect and urban planner Odile Decq has spoken to CLADglobal about the role of women in architecture and her concerns about the “narrow” way architecture is being taught. “Things have improved a little bit for women in architecture since I started out, but not enough,” she said. “There are more and more women studying architecture, but there are very few actually working in the field of architecture, particularly as

Avani Hotels & Resorts will open a property in Dubai in 2020, to include both hotel suites and branded residences, as well as an AvaniSpa. Developed by real estate firm Alfahim, the 48-storey new-build property will be the third Avani in Dubai and will represent the launch of Avani residences in the region. Avani Hotel Suites & Branded Residences will be located directly overlooking the famous Palm Jumeirah, adjacent to

English football club Fulham FC has announced that its plans to redevelop the Riverside Stand at its Craven Cottage stadium have been approved following a planning hearing at London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Construction work on the new stand, which will raise the overall capacity of Craven Cottage to around 30,000, is set to commence by the summer of 2019. Sports architects Populous are behind the design, which club

Experimental New York design studio Snarkitecture are returning to Washington D.C.’s National Building Museum, three years after their enormous ball pit became a huge attraction for the institution. The museum has announced the New York collective will create a sprawling Fun House in its Great Hall for the 2018 edition of its annual Summer Block Party, from 4 July to 3 September. The freestanding structure will recall and re-imagine the

A new attraction has opened up high on the Rock of Gibraltar, with Star Wars actor Mark Hamill on-hand to launch the aptly-named Skywalk to the public. Sitting 340m (103m) above sea level, the new attraction offers 360-degree views of the British overseas territory, with views spanning three countries and two continents. The new attraction links up with the existing Upper Rock Nature Reserve, Windsor Suspension Bridge and the Apes’

New York-based hospitality designer Adam D. Tihany has revealed details of the newly-renovated spa at The Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park. The Spa at Mandarin Oriental is due to open in May this year and was overseen by Tihany and his design studio. The new spa is designed to create a luxurious and peaceful atmosphere to aid relaxation, and provide guests with ‘a haven of tranquility’. It unites traditional Chinese elements

London architects Sergison Bates have won the international competition to convert the Citroën Yser Garage in Brussels – once Europe’s largest car factory – into a new branch of the Pompidou Centre art museum. The firm, along with Zurich studio EM2N and Brussels practice Aarchitecten, have been selected ahead of the likes of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Christ & Gantenbein and OMA for the high-profile commission – the largest new

A new museum exploring the life of Isambard Kingdom Brunel has opened its doors to the general public in Bristol. Called Being Brunel, the £7.2m (US$10.1m, €8.2m) museum explore the life of the man who is known as one of the greatest minds in the history of engineering, hailed as the “genius who built Britain”. The new attraction, designed by local firm Alec French Architects, is made up of six

Underscoring the important connection between design and wellness, Antonio Citterio, the architect behind the design of Technogym Village – the 2018 Global Wellness Summit venue – will be a keynote at this year’s conference in Cesena, Italy, set to take place 6-8 October. Citterio is co-founder of the multi-disciplinary design practice of Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel, which works in architectural, interior and urban design. The firm’s projects include residential and

Architect Steven Holl has blamed “a crisis of ignorance in high places” for a lack of progress in adopting environmental building practices, reserving particular ire for US president Donald Trump, who he predicted will be impeached. In a sweeping interview with CLADglobal, Holl argued that politicians through to developers, architects and contractors must do more to “get free from our dependence on non-renewable fuels” throughout the design and construction process.

Design firm HBA London has completed the interiors of The Orient Jerusalem by Isrotel Exclusive Collection – a hotel that doubles as “a timeless love song to the city.” Situated at the entrance to Jerusalem’s historically rich German Colony district, The Orient is formed of two 19th Century Templar houses, which have been restored and reinvented as a collection of 39 luxury guestrooms. These are joined by a new, modern

The US’s largest aquarium has revealed details about its major expansion plan, with a new saltwater gallery home to a variety of different sharks at its heart. The Georgia Aquarium first announced the plans in February, naming PGAV Destinations as lead architect on the project, which will cover 41,000sq ft (3,809sq m) and is slated to open in 2020. In a new release, aquarium president and CEO, Joesph Handy, said

Remote holiday specialists Off the Map Travel have created another of their mobile semi-transparent glamping cabins, designed to be towed into the remote wilderness of the Arctic Circle so that guests can experience the Northern Lights from the comfort of their beds. Three rooms, each set on skis, have been made available for booking until mid-April 2018. They are situated in the Aurora Wilderness Camp, six kilometres east of Kilpisjärvi,

Remote holiday specialists Off the Map Travel have created another of their mobile semi-transparent glamping cabins, designed to be towed into the remote wilderness of the Arctic Circle so that guests can experience the Northern Lights from the comfort of their beds. Three rooms, each set on skis, have been made available for booking until mid-April 2018. They are situated in the Aurora Wilderness Camp, six kilometres east of Kilpisjärvi,

A planning application for a new Welcome Pavilion to be built at Liverpool's Albert Dock has been submitted to the city council. Designed by K2 Architects, the structure represents the first phase of a masterplan to upgrade the dockland attraction – home to the largest group of Grade I listed buildings in the country – to the evolving needs of visitors, who travel to the landmark for its mixture of

After the debut of Chablé Resort & Spa Yucatan in 2016, Hamak Hotels has announced it will operate a second Chablé Resort on Maroma Beach, Mexico. Scheduled to open in Q3 2018, Chablé Maroma will include an expansive 17,000sq ft (1,579sq m) spa created by Bonnie Baker, co-founder of Satteva Spa & Wellness Concepts. Baker also worked on the Chablé Yucatan’s spa, alongside Amy McDonald of Under a Tree Spa

Radical Innovation, an annual competition that calls for the “best and brightest” concept ideas in hospitality design, is seeking entries for its 2018 edition. Professionals and students alike are encouraged to submit creative proposals via the Radical Innovation Award website by April 30 to be in with the chance of winning a US$10,000 (€8,100, £7,100) prize and the chance to make their vision a reality. Last year fiver concepts were

Surrealist hospitality designer Henry Chebaane has completed his latest project: a hotel room concept that puts his expectedly unexpected twist on British popular culture. The project, called Hip Pop Britannia, has been launched this week in three “rockstar rooms” at The Megaro, a colourful boutique hotel next to London’s King’s Cross station that is best-known for featuring the city’s largest graffiti mural over its 19th-century facade. Chebaane’s rooms feature recurring

A dramatic drone video released by international design studio Ennead Architects has offered a glimpse at their planetarium for the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum taking shape in the Chinese city. The footage provides a sweeping overview of the 38,000sq m (409,000sq ft) structure as it rises from the ground in the city’s Lingang district. Construction began on the project in November 2016, and completion is scheduled by 2020.

Studio Alberto Apostoli will design the spa of the new Grado Thermae in Italy, a thermal centre in an area with a long history of marine baths dating back to the early 19th century. The masterplan of the redevelopment is being overseen by architecture firm Archest, and it is hoped that the new thermal centre will boost tourism in the area. The first baths were built in Grado in 1932,

Italy-based spa consultants Wellness & Spa Solutions have helped to transform the spa at the Aleph Rome Hotel, part of the Curio Collection by Hilton, from an opulent 1930s bank building into an Arabian-style spa. The Aleph Spa is located in the basement and includes a thermal whirlpool, Finnish sauna, emotional showers, a heated indoor pool, massage cabins and an elegantly gilded hammam with marble mosaics. A contemporary gym with