Karma Royal Group recently announced the introduction of its first property in the UK – the only hotel on St Martin’s island, part of the Isles of Scilly archipelago off the most westerly point of England. Renowned UK interior designer Nicky Haslam is in charge of fully refurbishing the interiors of the 30-key luxury resort, called Karma St Martin’s, which is nestled on 2.8 hectares of sloping terrain and overlooks

Five cities – Dundee, Bilbao, Curitiba, Helsinki and Turin – have been designated UNESCO Cities of Design for their significant contributions to the international design industry. City of Design status, only previously awarded to 12 other cities, recognises significant input to the worldwide design industry and aims to foster the development of local creative industries. It also aims to build relationships between fellow Cities of Design, in areas such as

Thomas Heatherwick and Joanna Lumley’s controversial Garden Bridge over London’s River Thames has won planning permission from Westminster Council. Planning permission for the £175m (US$294m, €216m) bridge was granted yesterday (2 December) at Westminster City Hall in a packed meeting attended by more than 120 people. The Garden Bridge plan will connect the South Bank and Temple areas of London. Westminster Council is the second body to grant planning permission

A £2.5m mixed-use leisure development in the heart of Newcastle’s rejuvenated quayside will restore historic buildings and create a ‘festival venue’ which will be a hub of food, drink and live entertainment. Headed up by Ladhar Leisure, the company behind several other successful venues in the area, the scheme will create 100 jobs and cover 30,000sq ft (2,787sq m) of Grade I listed property in White Hart Yard on the

Paris-based AWP architecture firm has won a competition, launched in June 2014, to design a new public space and hub along the River Tyne in Newcastle, UK. Malmo Quay, situated in the Ouseburn Valley in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, will be a landmark and cycle hub. The site will provide new space for outdoor sports with a community hall, restaurants and cafés, community spaces, working areas, and an open air cinema – which

Thermes Marins Monte-Carlo has relaunched after several months of renovation, offering two new cryotherapy rooms, in addition to expanded facilities and 28 medical experts. Established in 1895, the expanded 7,000sq m (75,357sq ft) wellness centre is a subsidiary of the Société des Bains de Mer (SBM) – a public company controlled by the Principality of Monaco. It now comprises 30 treatment rooms, seven private cabanas and employs 28 health specialists

The cause of a fire that gutted a business involved in a bitter dispute with English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur FC remains unclear. The fire at the Archway Sheet Metal factory – in north London, UK – was detected in the early hours of Tuesday 25 November. The blaze destroyed most of the building before it was brought under control. Located just yards from Tottenham’s White Hart Lane stadium,

Aqua Boracay by YOO, a five-star 168-bedroom hotel, is set to launch in the last quarter of 2015 in the Philippines. The property is designed by YOO Studio, an international development and branding company led by property entrepreneur John Hitchcox and designer Philippe Starck. Set on 16,000sq m (17,222sq ft) of lush tropical gardens, the beachfront resort on the island of Boracay is the first YOO-branded resort residence in the

Architecture practice EFFEKT has won a competition to create an innovative new street sports and cultural facility in an old train depot in Esbjerg, Denmark. The project will transform a disused train engine depot in Esbjerg into a new destination for street sports, cultural creativity and the community. Realdania, a non-profit organisation, have set itself the task of creating three new cultural hubs filling some of the void left by

JW Marriott Hotels & Resorts have revealed further spa details for its first Italian hotel in Venice - and its first resort in Europe - opening in March 2015. Architecture practice Matteo Thun & Partners is in charge of converting historic buildings on the Isola delle Rose (Rose Island – also known as Sacca Sessola ) into a sustainability-focused 266-key luxury hotel, holiday villas, convention centre and a spa –

Geraint John, an established senior advisor at Populous, is today (28 November) being awarded the Pierre de Coubertin medal for outstanding services to the Olympic Movement. Populous is a global sports design and architecture practice and has worked on several Olympic projects including Sydney 2000, London 2012 and Sochi 2014. John is the first architect, and indeed Briton, to ever receive the Pierre de Coubertin medal. Named in honour of

The Heritage Lottery Fund has pledged a further £11.3m (US$18m, €14m) towards the scheme to redevelop Buxton Crescent and Thermal Spa, in addition to the £12.5m (US$20.5m, €14.9m) it awarded the project in 2006. The project to repair and restore the Grade I-listed building into a five-star thermal spa and 79-bedroom hotel is jointly owned by Derbyshire County Council and High Peak Borough Council and is expected to open at

Designs have been revealed for the third out of five stadiums being built for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Multinational consultancy Dar Al-Handasah is behind the designs, which will see a complete revamp of Doha’s existing Khalifa International Stadium. Dar Al-Handasah, run by the Dar Group, operates as an international consultancy with five different design centres across the world. The group intends to transform the dated Khalifa International Stadium, originally

Two giant glass floors 42m (138ft) above the Thames have opened at Tower Bridge as part of a new attraction marking its 120th birthday. The scheme by Purcell Architects took a year to implement and now offers visitors a completely new view of the bridge, the river and the lifting process from high-level walkways across the Thames. “Purcell is delighted to have contributed to such a unique project, which is

Dutch designer Daan Roosegaarde has unveiled what is arguably the world’s most artistic cycle path in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Vincent Van Gogh’s death. The high-end cycling highway consists of more than 50,000 solar powered, glow in the dark stones which appear to glitter and swirl in a Van Gogh-like fashion after dark. The installation was inspired by Van Gogh’s famous ‘Starry Night’ oil on

Plans for Paris’ first skyscraper in 42 years were rejected on 17 November, following a ‘secret’ ballot. The ballot itself has been called in to question by Paris mayor, Anne Hidalgo, who claims the vote – with a result of 78 councillors for and 83 against – was invalid because some opponents violated secrecy rules. Plans for the skyscraper, designed by Swiss outfit Herzog & de Meuron, were revealed back

In a competition run by The Glasgow Institute of Architects, two graduates, James Hand and Nik Klahre, have been named to transform the derelict Springburn Winter Gardens in Glasgow into a community attraction. The category A (Grade I) listed attraction is the last surviving civic building in this area of Northern Glasgow. Designed in 1900 by James Reid, the Garden was closed in 1985 by Glasgow District Council who applied

A pipe dream of turning a former opencast coal site in Kelty, Scotland, into an iconic landscaped art project headed up by Charles Jencks, has been scrapped. The multi-million pound scheme, the ‘Fife Earth Project’, would have seen the former mining site transformed into a major tourist attraction explaining Scottish history and diaspora. Four different landscaped mounds across the 665 acre park would have been used to represent the continents

Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, UK, welcomed back members of the public on 13 November following the completion of part of its £13.8m (US$21.5m, €17.3m) refurbishment. An ongoing project to completely refurbish the interior of the 1939 concert hall is being headed up by architects Caruso St. John, who have previously worked on sites such as the Tate Britain and the Barbican in London. Originally designed by Herbert Rowse, the project at

The owner and chair of Queens Park Rangers Football Club (QPR), Tony Fernandes, has said the club must move away from its Loftus Road home if it is to exist as a top flight club. Fernandes’ comments come as QPR is in the midst of a drawn-out legal planning process over a possible new site for a 40,000-capacity stadium at Old Oak Common in West London – three miles away

As part of Visit London and StudioCanal’s campaign for the new Paddington bear film, out on the 28th November, 50 statues of the world's most adventurous bear have been unveiled across London. Each bear has been individually designed by a celebrity or architect. From 4 November to 30 December, tourists can follow in the footsteps of Paddington via a series of trails – leading to statues situated in key locations

Global architecture firm Grimshaw and Australian firm Andrew Burges have won an international competition to design and build a AUS$51m (US$44m, €35m, £28m) park and leisure centre in Sydney. Over 140 teams submitted entries for the competition, run by the City of Sydney. Chosen from a shortlist of five finalists, Grimshaw and Andrew Burges winning design will be a leisure and fitness complex with ‘something for everyone’.

Developer Allied London has revealed plans to redevelop Manchester’s Granada Studios, the former home of Coronation Street, into an event hotel. Studios, rehearsal and production rooms - including the studio where The Beatles played their first ever live TV performance - will be brought to life with a programme of live entertainment, for which guests will be able to buy packages. Development of The Manchester Grande is expected to begin

The brand new International helo Sauna & Spa Academy is offering two-day training sessions for architects and project planners on how to design spas according to the latest trends and efficiency targets. The German thermal spa zone supplier helo created the academy – located in Knüllwald-Wallenstein, Germany – which will teach architects and project planners about the design possibilities for spas – using helo’s range of saunas, heaters, control equipment

After years in the pipeline, designs have finally been released for the National Library of Israel, Jerusalem, by architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron. The Swiss company was appointed to design the library in early 2013, shortly after New York-based designer Rafi Segal was dropped from the job. The National Library will be a redevelopment of its 120-year-old predecessor. Herzog & de Meuron said in a statement: “Our project reflects

Following an open design competition which saw more than 50 entrants, three architecture firms have been narrowed down from a list of ten to potentially design the new Beethoven Concert Hall and Festspielhaus in Bonn, Germany. UK-based David Chipperfield Architects, Kadawittfeldarchitektur from Germany and Valentiny Hvp Architects from Luxembourg have been announced as the top three contenders for the £55m (€67m, US$86m) project. Rendering of Chipperfield’s design at night Chipperfield’s

AFC Wimbledon has submitted a planning application to Merton Council for a new stadium at Plough Lane in South London. The League Two football club is planning to build a 11,000-capacity stadium on the site of Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium – a location the club calls its “spiritual home”. The application has been submitted in partnership with residential builder Galliard Homes and seeks permission to build 600 residential units along with