The annual Ratensky Lecture was initiated by the AIANY Housing Committee in honor of Samuel Ratensky (1910-1972), an architect and NYC housing official who was responsible for major housing initiatives in the city from 1946 to 1972, and who served as a mentor to many architects who worked in his programs. The lecture series honors individuals who, like Samuel Ratensky, have made significant lifetime contribution to the advancement of housing and community design. This year, the AIANY Housing Committee will be honoring Maurice Cox.
An alumnus of The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of The Cooper Union, Maurice Cox is the director of planning and development for the City of Detroit. Post-bankruptcy Detroit is becoming a leading laboratory for urban regeneration, and Cox has earned widespread acclaim for his innovative role in this process. To reshape the city into a vibrant and dynamic place, Cox channels citizen participation into democratic practices while achieving the highest quality of design excellence.
Cox previously served as mayor of Charlottesville, Virginia; design director of the National Endowment of the Arts; and director of the Tulane City Center in New Orleans. Early in his career, he spent a decade teaching and practicing architecture in Florence, Italy.
