283 replies to this topic

[BigPlayJ]

It looks like the for sale signs have left 65 Monroe Center and someone is beginning work on the building, including what appears to be a removal of the granite skin that covers it.  Anyone know what is goin on here?

[GRDadof3]

That's great to hear Big Play J!  65 is the black building on the corner of Ionia and Monroe Center, correct?

[GR_Urbanist]

I hope it's not that building. One of the unique things about that structure is the black exterior. I wonder why they would remove it?

[BigPlayJ]

GRDadof3, on Jul 31 2006, 10:48 PM, said:

That's great to hear Big Play J!  65 is the black building on the corner of Ionia and Monroe Center, correct?

That is the one.  I'm not sure what it going on, but it looks like they are looking at removing that skin.  There was a hi-lo there yesterday extended up to the roof area it looked like they had removed a piece of the skin to expose the brick.

I'm pretty sure that building is actually two buildings that were connected together at one time.  I think it was originally a bank and then the FBI used it for a while.

We shall see.....

[dbrok]

That building is across the street from my office so I've been keeping tabs on the work the past couple of days. They basically have removed only one piece of the black exterior and exposed some tan colored brick. I walk past here every day and am torn with which design I'd like better, the original brick or the black cladding from the 40s. I have to say though that the current exterior is in pretty bad shape in some places and is actually crumbling. Whether it's worth fixing, I'm not sure.

[joeDowntown]

I get dibs on the two deco light fixtures in the main entrance!!

Joe

dbrok, on Aug 1 2006, 08:38 AM, said:

That building is across the street from my office so I've been keeping tabs on the work the past couple of days. They basically have removed only one piece of the black exterior and exposed some tan colored brick. I walk past here every day and am torn with which design I'd like better, the original brick or the black cladding from the 40s. I have to say though that the current exterior is in pretty bad shape in some places and is actually crumbling. Whether it's worth fixing, I'm not sure.

[civitas]

joeDowntown, on Aug 1 2006, 09:52 AM, said:

I get dibs on the two deco light fixtures in the main entrance!!

Joe

You better make your claim for the lights.  The contractor on site says they have been hired to remove all the black panels.  They don't know what happens after that.

[snoogit]

civitas, on Aug 1 2006, 10:09 AM, said:

You better make your claim for the lights.  The contractor on site says they have been hired to remove all the black panels.  They don't know what happens after that.

GAH! NOOO!!!  

[grrwymg]

Anyone have a pic of this? I can't picture it in my head - too much bong resin.  (If you get that reference, 10 of Jaybloggers bonus points for you.)

[mejane]

grrwymg, on Aug 1 2006, 10:58 AM, said:

Anyone have a pic of this? I can't picture it in my head - too much bong resin.  (If you get that reference, 10 of Jaybloggers bonus points for you.)

Got it (Should I be embarrassed?)

[grrwymg]

mejane, on Aug 1 2006, 11:08 AM, said:

Got it (Should I be embarrassed?)

Of course not - we're all teen-agers at heart and love potty humor, right?

[gvsusean]

wait tis this the building with the two eagles on it???

[dbrok]

gvsusean, on Aug 1 2006, 10:52 AM, said:

wait tis this the building with the two eagles on it???

Here are some shots from this afternoon:

[civitas]

dbrok, on Aug 1 2006, 12:46 PM, said:

Here are some shots from this afternoon:

It looks like the "new" window patterned may have completely ignored the original window placement.  

If true the brick wall could be a mess.

[grrwymg]

dbrok, on Aug 1 2006, 12:46 PM, said:

Here are some shots from this afternoon:

<snip pics>

Muchas gracias.    

[dbrok]

I tried to track down some photos of what the building looked like pre-black exterior cladding and couldn't find any. Anybody have one?

[GRDadof3]

civitas, on Aug 1 2006, 12:52 PM, said:

It looks like the "new" window patterned may have completely ignored the original window placement.  

If true the brick wall could be a mess.

I don't know JR.  It looks like the tops frames of the windows line up:



It will be interesting to see what comes out.  Are we going to have another painted brick building in the end?  


edit:  I think the section to the right is already the exposed brick painted black???

Look at this:

[dbrok]

GRDadof3, on Aug 1 2006, 12:16 PM, said:

I don't know JR.  It looks like the tops frames of the windows line up:


edit:  I think the section to the right is already the exposed brick painted black???

Look at this:

Yeah, the section to the right is painted brick, as is the rest of the lower building behind it. I also didn't see which company is heading up this project.

[intovb]

I am interested to know....does anyone have any ideas as to what they think the facade for this building should look like?

We have been going round and round for months on what to do with the Albarene stone that was installed in 1927 (incorrectly, by the way) and still keep within our budget.  It is literally peeling away from the building and has posed a safety issue.

I think our only option for the rear portion of the building is re-painting it.  It would be unwise to blast it due to the cost, and because the two brick styles do not match. Any ideas will be welcome!

I would be glad to share our plans with Urban Planet in time, we are currently in negotiation with a few different users.  The final product will be a positive addition to the block!

[john_denver]

intovb --
Thanks for asking UP!  I am sure you'll get many quality and thoughful opinions here.  It's a great group!