Baby Got Back (yard!)

The YIMBY moment has arrived. The name stands for “Yes In My Backyard” and is a grassroots movement to make housing affordable and accessible to far more people. Some of its biggest advocates in California include Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman, while YIMBY-ism is rapidly spreading throughout the country in places like Boulder, Minneapolis and Austin.

The YIMBY movement aims to help end the housing shortage and ease the skyrocketing number of homeless people. In Los Angeles alone, the homeless population exploded from 32,000 to roughly 55,000 in just six years.

And even when people do find housing, skyrocketing real estate values mean they’re often pushed farther and farther from the centers of cities, forcing long commutes. Those hours on the road not only rob people of time, they also dramatically increase carbon emissions.

Minarc has designed Plús Hús to offer homeowners a way to become an agent of social change, starting in their own backyard. With recent Accessory Dwelling Unit legislation, homeowners can now legally help alleviate California’s housing shortage, and Plús Hús offers a low-maintenance, environmentally responsible way to do this.

The 320-square-foot home comes delivered completely flat-packed and is assembled on site, easing delivery and construction processes as well as overall cost.

Here’s more information about Plús Hús and here’s info on California’s YIMBY movement.

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Trophy Life!

During the 14th annual HD Awards ceremony in New York at Cipriani 25, Hospitality Design (HD) magazine announced its project and product winners. Nearly 1,000 submissions from across the globe were considered in 23 categories, including Luxury and Upscale Hotels and new categories like Restoration, Wellness and Nightlife. Minarc won top prize in the Upscale Guest Rooms/Suites category for the new Ion City Hotel!

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Now Starring...

Iceland is one of the world’s prime spots to see the aurora borealis. Here’s a quick guide to one of the world’s most dazzling natural performances.

1. The Northern Lights often appear to shoot out of mountains like lava from a volcano, but that it’s merely an optical illusion. The closest that the Northern Lights ever come to Earth is 80 kilometers above the Earth's surface. In comparison, a plane flies about 10 kilometers above the surface.

2. Auroras are relatively dim, and the redder lights often marks the limit of what the human retina can detect. Cameras, however, are often more sensitive, and with a long-exposure setting and a clear dark sky, viewers can get some spectacular shots.

3. The Vikings believed the fiery ring was a bridge to the afterlife.

4. You have to look north to see the Northern lights. (Doh!) Make sure you know which direction is north. The Aurora is quite unpredictable and can be fleeting. When the sky is dim, it can look like a wispy gray or white cloud so be careful not to miss it.

5. The floor-to-ceiling windows at Minarc’s Ion Adventure Hotel are designed for optimal aurora borealis viewing.

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