Let's face it folks - taken as a whole, Hawaii architecture sucks. And the urban planning leaves a lot to be desired.

While the islands have seen a few distinctive architects that were compelled, nurtured, and influenced by Hawaii's natural environment - Dickey, Ossipoff, Morgan - the last 40 years has been witness to a slow decline of the man-made environment. Can you name one local architect, much less visually describe their works? Internally, your living environment affects how you think, how you plan and conduct your daily life, and how you act towards others. Externally, the look, mood, and design of living environments affects geographic desirability, how society and government is viewed, and a myriad of economic issues. If you live in a concrete box, you will think like a concrete box.

The Honolulu Weekly featured a particularly nasty McMansion recently. Some local architects, such as Patrick Tozier, have rallied against local mediocrity (September 2003):