world news
RIBA Medal Awarded
to Japanese
ROYAL Institute of British Architects has announced that its Gold Medal for 1965 is to be awarded to Professor Kenzo Tange of Tokyo. Instituted in 1848, the medal has never before been awarded to an Asian architect.
Professor Tange is renowned for his designs in rein- forced concrete. Among these are the Tokyo city hall, town halls at Shimizu, Kurayoshi, Imabari and Kurashiki, prefectural offices at Takamatsu, many schools, libraries, hotels and office buildings and two of the sports arenas built in Tokyo for the last Olympic Games.
He was born in 1913 and trained at the Tokyo Uni- versity, where he now teaches. He first came to pro- minence in 1949 when he won the competition for the Peace Memorial Hall and Museum at Hiroshima. In 1962 he won the competition for a Roman Catholic cathedral in the Bunkyo district of Tokyo.
Professor Tange will receive the medal at a ceremony at the Institute in London on April 6.
Modern Igloo is
of Plywood
ESKIMOS in the Northwest Territories of Canada are to be furnished with specially constructed plywood houses varying in size from one room with bathroom to units containing three bedrooms, living room and bathroom.
Each unit will be equipped with plumbing and mois- ture-resistant copper electric wiring. Walls, roofs and floors will be insulated with 4in. fibreglass, four times as dense as normal insulation. Double windows of un- breakable glass will be fitted.
The structural units wili be made by Muttari Builder Supplies, Edmonton, Alberta.
Auckland Bridge Extension Approved
NEW ZEALAND Government has given the Auckland Bridge Authority approval to go ahead with designing extensions to the existing bridge.
Prime Minister, Mr. Holyoake, said recently that De Leuw and Co., the consultants who made a transport survey of Auckland recommended the immediate con- struction of an additional two lanes on the bridge's east- ern side.
"There are some doubts about the practicability of adding to the bridge's capacity in this way, but that is a matter to be resolved by Freeman, Fox and Partners (London), the consulting engineers", said the Prime Min- ister.
Hilton Empire Spreads Through Egypt
HILTON Hotels International, who last month announced plans for a new hotel in Manila, are now to expand their operations in Egypt. Three new hotels are to be built with the co-operation of the UAR Government.
They are the Luxor, the Aswan and the Alexandria. There is already a Nile Hilton.
The 150-room Luxor will be built on the Nile with a commanding view of the Valley of the Kings. It will have a swimming pool the shape of a lotus blossom.
Far East Architect & Builder February, 1965
Aswan will have 100 rooms mainly housed in 17 separ- ate bungalows and will be sited on a promontory pro- jecting into the Nile River.
The Alexandria Hilton will be built on the Selsela promontory which projects into the Bay of Alexandria, It will have 150 rooms, swimming pool and yacht marina.
Meanwhile back in the States work is rapidly near- ing completion on the Washington Hilton the most magnificent of all. Designed by architect, William B. Tabler and built by Uris Buildings Corporation, it stands on stop of Temple Heights. It is a 12-storey figure 3. with 500,000 sq. ft. of floor space underground and 416,- 000 sq. ft. above ground. Beneath the podium is an oval ballroom free of columns and covering 194,000 sq. ft. Parking for 600 cars is provided on two floors.
Luxor Hilton
150 rooms, view of the Nile
Alexandria Hilton
150 rooms, view of the bay
500,000 sq. ft. underground
Washington Hilton
Paraguay to Develop 2,500 Acres
PARAGUAYAN Government has asked Ian Fraser and Asso- ciates, London architects and planning consultants, to prepare a scheme for the development of the Bahia area
2,500 acres of low-lying waste land in the heart of the city boundaries of Asuncion the capital. Detailed plans are expected to be ready within two years.
The total cost is estimated at £50 million. A Euro- pean consortium has been formed to finance most of the scheme.
Horseshoe Shape for Qantas Hotel
SYDNEY'S most dramatic curtain wall facade will be on the new Qantas Hotel due to be opened in 1966. The guest-rooms will be in a horseshoe of 11 storeys above a garden court which forms the top of the base of the building.
There will be three basements parking 360 cars and entrance floors on two street levels housing bars, coffee
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