UK-based design and engineering group Atkins has been appointed to draw up plans for a five star hotel and residential complex with sea-side views and private beach in the Chinese city of Sanya. Atkins' scope of work consists of concept design development, schematic design and landscaping. The masterplan is centred on seashell-like curvaceous buildings and strategically placed landscaped platforms that terrace towards the sea, optimising beach views for the hotel

A new US$300m (€ 230m, £195m) Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is being developed in Los Angeles, US by architects Renzo Piano and Zoltan Pali. The Museum, which is slated to debut in 2017, will span 300,000 sq ft (27,870sq m). Located in the 1939 May Company Building on the campus of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the museum will feature six levels of exhibition and programming

Bristol City FC has appointed a project manager for the proposed redevelopment of their stadium at Ashton Gate - a back up option should its plans to build a new £60m stadium at Ashton Vale fall through. Capita Symonds has been appointed to the £40m redevelopment that would comprise new stands and pitch widening, which would be expected to be complete by the 2016/17 season. The Wedlock and Williams stands

A £35m retail and leisure development, IntoOutdoors, has received planning permission for a location near Stratford-Upon-Avon on the banks of the River Avon. Owner and developer Eagle One will create a 45-unit retail centre, outdoor leisure pursuits and holiday lodges within its 125-acre site near the A44 and A46 trunk roads junction. The project will break ground this year and is expected to be completed by summer 2014. In addition

Shelburne Museum in Vermont, US is set to open a new Centre for Art and Education that will transform the museum from seasonal to year-round operation. For the first time, the public will have year-round access to the museum's collections. The eco-friendly centre will create a modern, flexible venue for exhibitions of art and design featuring loaned works and touring exhibitions. Designed by Boston-based Ann Beha Architects, the centre will

Legoland has officially opened its new hotel at its California resort in Carlsbad. The 250-room, three-storey hotel has been developed in response to guest feedback that it takes more than one day to explore the resort. Construction began in 2011 and the hotel opened on 5 April ahead of its summer 2013 schedule. The hotel, which caters to children aged two to 12 and their families, offers kingdom, adventure and

Science Oxford has submitted a planning application for its proposed £38m attraction The Magnet - the UK's first integrated science discovery and innovation centre. The development has been designed by Foster + Partners to be built next to Castle Mound. Its centrepiece attraction would be a world-class planetarium but it would also include displays, events and lectures promoting all forms of science. The innovation centre would provide accommodation and support

W Hotels Worldwide has opened its first mainland hotel W Guangzhou - on the city's ancient Pearl River. The property features China's first AWAY Spa - open 24 hours a day for W guests and locals - with treatments that combine Eastern and Western elements. Designed by architect Rocco Lim the 317 room hotel has a black glass exterior and the centrepiece of its entrance is a 19m tall water

New York's One World Trade Center has offered a sneak preview of the panoramic views of the city visitors will see when its observation deck opens in 2015. The skyscraper in Lower Manhattan will be the tallest in the Western Hemisphere when it reaches its final height of 1,776ft. The Hettema Group, in partnership with Legends, have been selected to design and produce the observation deck experience, which will occupy

The former Queens Museum of Art has announced it is rebranding as it prepares to reopen in October following a US$68m (53m euro, £45m) 50,000sq ft (4,645sq m) expansion, which will see it double in size. The international art space in Flushing Meadows will now be known as Queens Museum. The institution says the change reflects the breadth of the museum's mission to display not only contemporary art but exhibits

Starwood has unveiled the spa and wellness facilities at its first St Regis-branded resort in Africa. Located in the UNESCO World Heritage site of Le Morne, St. Regis Mauritius Resort houses the region’s first Iridium Spa featuring 12 treatment rooms including two couples’ rooms, all with views of the Indian ocean. Facilities at the 21,500 sq ft (2,000sq m) spa include a relaxation lounge, spa pools, a sauna, a spa

Details have been revealed for the US$350m (273m euro, £232m) Zalal Wellness Destination Spa - set to open in Qatar in 2016. The resort will include 70 rooms and 10,000sq m (107,639sq ft) of spa and wellness amenities, 40 private residences and a 125-room family hotel on the 1.5m sq m (16m sq ft) site. Its target market will include domestic visitors and visitors from regional countries such as Saudi

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has released its monthly member survey for February regarding the health of the profession and the larger construction industry. The survey revealed confidence in future growth prospects for the profession has grown for the third consecutive month, with practices employing more than 51 employees the most optimistic about future workloads. Confidence in the commercial, public and community sector was up compared with January

Tipton Leisure Centre has opened its doors to the public, at a formerly vacant site on Alexandra Road. Facilities at the centre include a 25m six-lane pool, a 12.5m teaching pool, a dance studio and a fully equipped 54-station gym that overlooks the centre's pool. Sandwell Leisure Trust will manage the new centre, which was designed by Sandwell Urban Design Architects - the council's in-house service. Construction was led by

Design consultancy WATG has opened an office in Istanbul, as it prepares for development in Turkey and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Lisya Sullam, who has been with the firm since 2007, has been appointed director of the new office. She has been involved in high-profile projects in country including Olivion Golf Resort and Missoni Hotel in Antalya Belek and Bodrum Viceroy. Raised in Istanbul, Sullam's focus is to

The Duke of Edinburgh has officially opened the Indonesian-inspired Tiger Territory at London Zoo, which will be home to endangered Sumatran tigers Jae Jae and Melati. The £3.6m project has seen the tigers' home expand five fold to 27,000sq ft (2,500sq m) and has been designed by the conservationists and the zoo's tiger keepers. It includes towering trees and a custom-built swimming pool and is the zoo's biggest investment since

UK-based architectural firm Caruso St John has unveiled its proposal for the new Zurich Arena, which saw the firm win the design contract. The project will include arenas for both ice hockey club ZSC Lions and volleyball team Volero as well as hockey training facilities. The design proposes a building with qualities between a monument and a tent. Caruso St John said the clarity of its structure and volume suggest

The British government has launched an independent review of architecture and the built environment with aims to better shape policy to achieve high quality design. The report - expected to be complete by the end of the year - will be led by London-based architect Sir Terry Farrell with support provided by an advisory panel. In addition to the government's role in promoting quality design the review will look at

The team behind London's £14.8bn rail project Crossrail has revealed plans to host permanent large-scale public art across eight stations along the 118km route. Crossrail - to be funded entirely through private sponsorship - will work with leading art organisations and commercial galleries to secure international commissions for the project, called The Cultural Line. Crossrail, due to open in 2018, will include 37 stations spanning from Maidenhead and Heathrow in

Concept designs have been revealed for a £10.5m visitor centre and hostel at the Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site in Northumberland National Park. Newcastle architects Jane Darbyshire and David Kendall (JDDK Architects) have been appointed to explore the initial concepts for The Sill, which will replace existing facilities built in the 1960s. The building will act as a hub for visitors to explore more than 400sq miles of national park,

The Vatican will host a pavilion at the Venice Biennale this year - the first time in its 84-year history as an independent state. The Holy See is one of 10 new participant countries exhibiting at the international avant-garde art exhibition, with others including Tuvalu, Bahrain, the Ivory Coast and Paraguay. The Vatican exhibit will be held in the Arsenale pavilion - a former barracks that is currently being revamped.

West Ham United Football Club (WHU) will be the new anchor tenant of the London Olympic Stadium following the government's agreement to contribute a further £25m towards converting the venue. WHU was chosen as the preferred bidder for the tenancy in December 2012 but the signing of the deal was dependent on a number of financial and commercial terms being agreed upon. It is believed that as part of the

The Royal Institute of British Architects have announced Daniel Madeiros and Jonathan Schwinge as the winners of the Millennium Point Visability Competition. The brief of the RIBA Competition was to enhance the visibility and image of the Birmingham mixed-use development, which opened in 2001 and includes a science museum, 180-seat theatre, cinema, education centres and commercial offices. Philip Singleton, chief executive of Millennium Point said: "The panel was struck by

Ocean Park Hong Kong will likely move ahead with plans to build an all-weather water park at Tai Shue Wan earlier than anticipated, due to a government loan of HK$2.3bn (US$296m, 229m euro, £196m). Announced in the financial secretary's February budget speech, the purpose of the loan is to spur on the project and stimulate Hong Kong's tourism economy - one of the mainstays of its economy. The loan is

Work has started on the first of London's 'pocket parks', which have received £2m of funding to transform neglected urban spaces into mini oases. Twenty-seven 'nooks and crannies' were selected for the first round of funding in 17 boroughs across the city. Benefits of the parks include improving air quality, reducing flood risk, providing shade and offering a haven for wildlife. A £30,000 edible park on dead space behind a

Leading architects, planners and city experts are in London this week to attend Fit Cities-Fit World - a conference organised to look at the role design and planning have in ensuring cities have healthy and active populations. Held at City Hall, the conference will examine and build on what was learned as a result of major infrastructure and urban developments created for the London 2012 Games, including Queen Elizabeth Park

A £2.5m project to transform the visitor experience at Norfolk’s 900-year-old Wymondham Abbey is now able to go ahead due to Heritage Lottery Funding worth £1.5m. Improvements to the Grade I listed site include: two new extensions – including one within a ruined chapel; the removal of inappropriate architectural additions; a recreated medieval herb garden; and public access to county wildlife site Abbey Meadows. A full time learning and events