Michael Singer and Linnea Glatt were hired as artists by the Phoenix Arts Commission and the Department of Public Works to provide the architectural concept design for the 27th Avenue Solid Waste Transfer and Recycling Center, a twenty-five acre, 100,000-square-foot, $18 million facility for the transfer and recycling of garbage. The artists were asked to design the site plan, landscape, architecture and structure for the facility. Singer and Glatt formed a design team with Sterling McMurrin and Richard Epstein, architectural consultants. During construction of the facility, Singer and Glatt were represented by architect Dino Sakellar to insure that the team's design remained intact. The engineering firm Black and Veatch, Inc. addressed technical concerns and were responsible for the construction drawings and the construction administration.

Singer and Glatt's design invites public involvement and understanding of recycling and waste issues in an infrastructure facility that would normally be closed to the public. Traditional designs of solid waste facilities promote expediency and a non-distinct design whose goal is to conceal the facility. In contrast, the Singer and Glatt design reveals the process of recycling as well as other issues related to disposal of garbage. The concepts of renewal and transformation are integral to all elements of the design: buildings, roads, landscape, water, and wildlife habitat. The project won several awards, was featured in many publications and is credited with promoting aesthetic design excellence for infrastructure in the U.S. In 1993, The New York Times chose the design as one of the eight most important architectural events of the year.

Artists/Designers: Michael Singer and Linnea Glatt
Design Team: Sterling McMurrin, Richard Epstein, and Dino Sakellar
Engineers: Black and Veatch, Inc.
Project Managers: Gretchen Freeman, Phoenix Arts Commission and Ron Jensen, Director, Phoenix Department of Public Works
Photography: David Stansbury and Craig Smith

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