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A30 people & Arts
Monday 8 June 2020
Architects earn design awards for New Mexico port of entry

By LAUREN VILLAGRAN chitecture of any kind can
El Paso Times make human environments
COLUMBUS, N.M. (AP) — healthy and dignified. This is
The construction of a 30- a thoughtful, durable build-
foot border wall marches ing made to last."
on in the southern New Separately, the Texas So-
Mexico desert — a real and ciety of Architects chose
symbolic barrier to entry. the Columbus port design
But where the U.S.-Mexico as one of 19 projects rec-
border wall ends, a tiny ognized from 205 entries
border crossing has won around the state.
top architecture awards for "It's an effort to connect
its welcoming design. people with the land they
The Columbus port of entry, inhabit and to create a
designed by Corpus Christi- space where crossing the
based Richter Architects, border can be celebrated,
has earned recognition once again," wrote Jesse
from the American Institute Miller, an architect at Me-
of Architects and Texas So- gamorphosis in Harlingen,
ciety of Architects. for Texas Architect maga-
The port — with its wide zine.
covered walkway, solar "Aside from the way it looks,
panel-topped roof and it's more functional," he
south-facing windows — is People take advantage of newly lowered COVID-19 protective restrictions in most of southwest added. "The cargo facility
built largely of the same Pennsylvania and have lunch outside on the re-opening day for seated patrons at a diner on is way better. Before, it was
rusted steel as the border Pittsburgh's Southside, Friday, June 5, 2020. Associated Press very, very small. Especially
wall. But the look and feel during chile season, you
of the port is design to in- attend school in Columbus. team that includes her Architects recently award- didn't have a lot of room
vite in, not keep out. The new design also re- husband, David Richter. ed the port its "Committee for the trucks to be in there.
The slated roof undulates routed cargo traffic into "They're multi-modal. You on the Environment" Top And it flows better."
like the mountainous desert a new, broadly shaded have passenger vehicles 10 award for design excel- The port sees a surge in traf-
landscape that surrounds it. dock, where U.S. Customs coming through, pedes- lence and sustainability. fic in the late summer and
Indigenous plants and and Border Protection can trians, cargo. or even a The award judges projects autumn harvest seasons,
grasses thrive in stepped more comfortably inspect dog. There can be a lot of on the basis of their social, as farmers in Mexico move
landscaping around the tractor-trailers. chaos."What this project economic and ecological green chile, jalapeños and
walkways to trap water The $85.6 million project, tried to do is bring a sense value. other produce to process-
where rains used to flood finished in 2018, replaced a of order and a sense of The award jury comment- ing plants on the U.S. side.
the port and clog walk- tired customs building dat- welcome as you cross the ed: "A port of entry is a In a conversation with the
ways with thick mud. It ing to 1989. border on a daily basis," challenging building type. El Paso Times, the architects
makes for a safer passage "Land ports of entry gener- she said. "That's to really hu- The designers in this proj- said that they approached
for the hundreds of U.S. citi- ally are very complicated," manize it, to make it a feel- ect not only met that chal- the design with the experi-
zen children who cross from said Elizabeth Chu Rich- good experience." lenge, but achieved more ence of "the passage" in
Palomas each weekday to ter, half of the port design The American Institute of by showing us how the ar- mind. q

JK Rowling's tweets on transgender people spark outrage

Devex, a media platform cuss their lives. It isn't hate I do not believe it's hateful
for the global develop- to speak the truth." to say so." GLAAD issued a
ment community, that Rowling's tweets caused a response on Twitter, call-
used the phrase " people firestorm of responses from ing Rowling's tweets "inac-
who menstruate." the LGBTQ community curate and cruel." The ad-
"I'm sure there used to be and others who were up- vocacy organization dedi-
a word for those people," set with her words. A Harry cated to LGBTQ equality
the famous British author Potter fan group tweeted then asked those upset by
tweeted. "Someone help its disapproval of Rowling's the author's comments to
me out. Wumben? Wim- post and encouraged support organizations that
pund? Woomud?" followers to donate to a help black transgender
She continued with anoth- group that supports back people.
er thread speaking about transgender women. "JK Rowling continues to
the concept of biological Rowling said she respects align herself with an ideol-
In a Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2019 file photo, author and Lumos sex. "every trans person's rights ogy which willfully distorts
Foundation founder J.K. Rowling attends the HBO Documentary "If sex isn't real, there's no to live any way that feels facts about gender iden-
Films premiere of "Finding the Way Home" at 30 Hudson Yards,
in New York. same-sex attraction," she authentic and comfort- tity and people who are
Associated Press tweeted. "If sex isn't real, able to them." She went trans," GLAAD tweeted. "In
the lived reality of women on to say she would march 2020, there is no excuse for
LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Harry people. globally is erased. I know "if you were discriminated targeting trans people."
Potter" author J.K. Rowling Rowling drew outrage Sat- and love trans people, but against on the basis of Rowling's representa-
is facing hefty backlash af- urday on Twitter when she erasing the concept of being trans. At the same tive has not responded
ter she posted a series of criticized an opinion piece sex removes the ability of time, my life has been to an email request for
tweets about transgender published by the website many to meaningfully dis- shaped by being female. comment.q