This year we took our office trip to New Orleans where Eskew+Dumez+Ripple generously toured us around the recently completed Orpheum Theater, 930 Poydras Residential Tower, and the award winning BionInnovation Center before hosting us for their weekly “Friday Forum”.  We strolled through the historic Garden District and Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, made a quick stop for Po-Boy’s, and toured Tulane City Center’s URBANbuild projects (Grow Dat Youth Farm, Lasalle Markets, Alligator House) with TCC’s Design/Build Manager Emilie Taylor. And of course, we enjoyed beignets + cafe au lait’s at famed Cafe Du Monde! A special thanks to local architect John Williams and Laura Paul with lowernine.org for the passionate, well-informed tour of the historic lower ninth ward as it continues to rebuild 10 years after Katrina.