The latest stamp collection from the USPS, updated visuals of the Buffalo Bills new stadium design, and proposed earthquake legislation are among the new and noteworthy items highlighted in today’s daily digest. Here’s what you may have missed this week:

Buffalo Bills share more renderings for new stadium design

After unveiling plans for its new stadium in October, earlier this week the Buffalo Bills shared additional visuals of the design. Designed by Populous, the proposed stadium will rise directly across from the team’s current home at Highmark Stadium.

In a news release shared by the football team the new venue was described as “a fan-focused, football-first facility that will deliver a vibrant gameday atmosphere unlike any other in the NFL.”

“With thoughtful modern design elements inspired by the architecture and culture of Buffalo, the stadium will harness the pride and energy of the fans to propel the Buffalo Bills forward into an exciting new future,” the team shared.

Despite the region’s cold temperatures and record-breaking winters, like its predecessor the new stadium will be roofless. The recently unveiled new visuals show the stadium facade wrapped in glass and dark stonework. It is surrounded by a massive plaza, where fans can congregate before kickoff and after the game to celebrate a big win.

In the coming months, the team will continue to modify the design and says it plans to provide regular updates on the project and its progress.

Following earthquake in Turkey and Syria, Los Angeles plans to retrofit vulnerable concrete buildings

In Turkey and Syria the recent earthquake, and subsequent aftershocks, have revealed major design flaws in the region’s buildings. As the death toll continues to rise and builders are arrested, in Los Angeles the city is taking steps to ensure its concrete buildings are properly constructed to withstand earthquakes.

This week, the The Board of Supervisors in Los Angeles County voted to prepare new regulations that would require “non-ductile” concrete buildings owned by the county or located in unincorporated areas to be retrofitted.

“Non-ductile” refers to buildings with fragile structures likely to collapse in a future seismic event. These structures were first identified following the Sylmar earthquake, a magnitude 6.6 quake that struck Southern California in 1971. In these buildings, the steel reinforcing bars within the concrete frames are wrongly placed, and as a result of this, during an earthquake the concrete could explode out of the columns.

As part of this still-in-the-works legislation officials would like to create an inventory of “soft-story” residential buildings located in unincorporated areas.

“By taking inventory, we will have a true understanding of the scale of how many buildings and people that could be impacted by a major earthquake,” said Supervisor Holly Mitchell in The Los Angeles Times. “This will allow us to proactively plan and save lives for when — not if — major seismic activity occurs.”

H/t to The Los Angeles Times

A new stamp collection highlights historic U.S. train stations

The United States Postal Service (USPS) constantly comes out with new stamp designs. In its latest collection, which will drop next week, the government agency will produce stamps featuring historic railroad stations across the country.

The five designs will feature stations from across the nation, from the Art deco Union Terminal in Cincinnati to the Mission Revival Style Santa Fe Station in San Bernardino, California. Each of the buildings is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Behind the creative venture to depict the train depots is Derry Noyes, who served as art director on the project. As for the illustrations themselves, those were sketched by Down the Street Designs.

Stations featured in the collection are:

Tamaqua Station in Pennsylvania
Point of Rocks Station in Maryland
Main Street Station in Richmond, Virginia
Santa Fe Station in San Bernardino, California
Union Terminal in Cincinnati

Airports across the U.S. receive funding grants through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

This week saw the opening of the new Kansas City International Airport, a design from SOM that brought a sustainable and accessible travel facility to the Heartland of America. Also announced this week was a series of grants for 99 airports across the country. This funding, which amounts to $1 billion, is part of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. It builds on a previous round of grants last year that gave funding to 85 airports in the U.S.

With this economic boost airports can improve their operations with upgraded baggage systems, renovated security stations, and also make changes that are sustainable. Many of the facilities receiving funding are already in the midst of renovation projects.

“Americans deserve the best airports in the world, and with demand for air travel surging back, this funding to improve the passenger experience couldn’t come at a more urgent time,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement.“These grants will make it faster and easier to check your bags, get through security and find your gate, all while creating jobs and supporting local economies.”

The full list of airports receiving grants can be read here. For those who prefer visuals, the FAA has drawn up an interactive map of the U.S. that depicts the airports receiving funding.

Virginia Tech appoints Tsai Lu Liu as new dean of the College of Architecture, Arts, and Design

Starting July 1, Virginia Tech College of Architecture, Arts, and Design will be under new leadership. The school announced last week that it has appointed Tsai Lu Liu as its new dean.

Liu most recently hails from the Department of Graphic Design and Industrial Design at North Carolina State University, which he headed up since 2012. His appointment follows that of interim dean Rosemary Blieszner, who has held the position since August 2021 when Richard Blythe exited the role to take on a job at Curtin University in Australia.

In addition to his leadership role, Liu will also be a professor of industrial design at the college. Before his teaching career, the incoming dean worked in the private sector developing solutions in health care and telecommunications, while also working on the marketing of semiconductors, toys, and electronic gaming systems.

“I am very humbled and honored to serve as the dean of the College of Architecture, Arts, and Design at Virginia Tech,” Liu shared in a statement. “The academic strengths of AAD, the commitment to excellence, and tradition of service: these attributes place the college as an integral leader in the pursuit of inquiry, discovery, and understanding. I am excited to be part of this extraordinary community as we explore scholarship, expression, and inspiration, and create experiences that will positively enhance and impact our world.”