As I type this, a sizable contingent of your AIA Board is en route to Washington D.C. for the AIA Grassroots Conference.  Held annually, representatives from every chapter across the country convene in the nation’s capital to discuss issues relevant to our profession, followed by a day on Capitol Hill to meet with our respective representatives to discuss those issues that are important to each of us as architects.

The national AIA identified three primary issues to promote on Capitol Hill:  First, extend the Energy Efficient Commercial Building Tax Deduction (179D).  Second, improve government procurement methods for federal projects.  Third, invest in the next generation of leaders by extending debt relief to recent graduates in exchange for work in underprivileged areas.

This is democracy at work, promoting issues that are important to you as a professional, and represents one of the most relevant and valuable benefits of your AIA membership.  Thank you for allowing us to represent you in Washington, D.C.  If you’d like more detailed information on AIA Grassroots and the issues we presented, please visit www.aia.org/grassroots.

Another exciting development is the roll-out of our new chapter website.  A dedicated committee of volunteers, including Chris East AIA, Wayne Hardy AIA, Randy Palculict AIA, and James Meyer Assoc. AIA has been hard at work alongside Joie in creating an intuitive, easily navigable site that provides the information most relevant to our chapter in a beautiful new format.  Having previewed the site, I trust you will agree they’ve done an exceptional job!