Remembering a Pioneering SOM Architect—and Everything Else You Need to Know About This Week

• Robert L. Wesley, who died on January 24 at 88, was the first Black partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, helping lead projects for the Art Institute of Chicago, the Miami University Art Museum, and even the University of Blida 1 in Algeria. Raised under Jim Crow segregation, Wesley later championed access to education through the SOM Foundation, supporting the next generation of BIPOC architecture. (The Architect’s Newspaper)

• For now, the "Zillow ban" stands. A judge just sided with the listing company in its fight with Compass, saying it had to the right to exclude homes initially offered privately by the real estate brokerage. Certain listings, though, are still hidden behind brokerage-only walls, leaving buyers to wonder what they’re missing out on. (Business Insider)

• A new kind of development is increasingly cropping up. "Agrihoods," as they’re called, organize a community around a farm instead of a parking lot, say, promising fresher food, cooler temperatures, and less concrete strip mall blah. But making agriculture the heart of a neighborhood comes with its own set of challenges. Here’s what it takes to make an "agrihood" work. (Grist)

• Throughout history, artists have transformed and beautified neighborhoods only to be priced out of them—from San Francisco to SoHo. But recently, nonprofits have been trying to break the gentrification cycle by placing homes and studios into community land trusts that keep them permanently affordable. (The New York Times)

• It’s widely accepted that concrete just can’t be recycled. But a new study found hard evidence that concrete slabs, beams, and columns from demolished buildings can be safely reused and given a "second life," offering a major opportunity to cut the building industry’s hefty carbon footprint. (Anthropocene)

Top photo courtesy of the SOM Foundation