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UrbanCharlotte

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those are old photos for sure. they are mostly done adding stucco/paint and architectural moulding to convert them to a clock tower.

The article doesn't appear to be online anymore, but there was a doug smith article explaining the towers a while ago. the deck was built to hold a a third tower, which i thought was actually going to be more hotel rooms, but the hotel market went south around when they were constructing it, so they went ahead and built the parts that required a crane, so that when they were ready to expand, it would be easy to put up. (i am anticipating that this will get put up if/when the nascar hall of fame comes online across the street).

while they do look goofy, and i know that the stucco-based design is the bain of most of us here... the clock tower doesn't look too bad.

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...especially if you're drunk and wearing really dark sunglasses at night.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

:lol:

You know I HATE this Hotel MC with a passion. I am still trying to figure out why they removed the Large Hilton sign, later to replace it with a small sign(barely visible).

I went by the other day and now even the Small Hilton sign is gone. What's up??? can't these guys make up their minds. It is the god-awfulest looking building inside the loop. Someone should be fined for making such an UGLY bldg. It looks like it belongs on a Beach somewhere. It would fit in fine in say Miami, or Myrtle, BUT CHARLOTTE ?! ;)

I HATE THIS BUILDING :angry:

A2

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It is the god-awfulest looking building inside the loop.

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are you still wearing those dark sunglasses at night? this is a boring building, and barely worth a second glance... but there is no way this is even close to be the ugliest building in downtown. although it got one notch closer with a certain recent implosion, but we don't have to go there.

what about jail central? what about that the civil courts building facing marshall park? what about the CMS towers? what about the best western/old 4pts? what about the adam's mark? what about the post office on mcdowell?

i give the hilton/hampton inn complex a 2 out of ten... but those others i give 0 to.

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are you still wearing those dark sunglasses at night?  this is a boring building, and barely worth a second glance... but there is no way this is even close to be the ugliest building in downtown.  although it got one notch closer with a certain recent implosion, but we don't have to go there.

what about jail central?  what about that the civil courts building facing marshall park?  what about the CMS towers?  what about the best western/old 4pts?  what about the adam's mark?  what about the post office on mcdowell?

i give the hilton/hampton inn complex a 2 out of ten... but those others i give 0 to.

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:lol:

Damn D, I forgot about all of those Ugly pieces of Crap we refer to as dwelling places and offices in Uptown.

I have to hand it to you, those building SUCK. I am just venting a bit because everytime I have a visitor in CLT, they alll comment about the Arlington and the Hilton Garden Inn. I am just being a bit over the top when I say they are the ugliest towers, but they come real close.

BTW, I have to give 700 Stonewall (a building I just got back from ), a big thumbs down too. What a piece of crap, inside and out !

We ought to start a thread to list the ugliest bldgs in CLT.....I am sure it would get a lot of activity. :P

A2

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well there you have it. The one I hate is pic 12517101001. U-G-L-Y !!!!

I guess you are right there are unfortunately a ton of bldg's in Center City that are god-awful. Thanks for posting the thread. It might get some renewed activity now.

A2

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well there you have it. The one I hate is pic 12517101001. U-G-L-Y !!!!

I guess you are right there are unfortunately a ton of bldg's in Center City that are god-awful. Thanks for posting the thread. It might get some renewed activity now.

A2

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Just remember, once they were considered high style to be placed downtown in a world class city like Charlotte. In a number of years, people will think what is going up now is butt ugly and needs to be recladded or torn down. ;)

Actually the first two buildings in that thread have already been recladded at least once. :lol:

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i'm thinking that stucco buildings just tend to look old/rundown and ugly very fast... buildings with higher quality materials and some redeemable human-scale architecture last much much longer before falling out of favor.

that is a major reason i forgive uncc and cpcc for doing neo-georgian brick buildings, as they will be more likely to still look good after 20 years, as natural brick ages like wine. stucco ages like bread.... i looks okay for a couple days and then it gets moldy.

i'm a little nervous about some of the resi high rises, because they have stucco in them... but at least residential towers have baked in maintenance fees, vs a hotel or office which are subject to the business cycle and often drop maintenance when times are tougher.

by the way, i think there should be certain torture doled out of the person who invented those rough verticle-lined concrete blocks like those used on the mcdowell post office.

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The term stucco is used very loosely here. The stucco on 1920s buildings is the real thing and has stood the test of of time. The "stucco" used on modern Charlotte buildings is really a product called EIFS (exterior insulation finishing system). It is a layer of insulating foam, nailed to the exterior of a building then a layer of chemicals are sprayed on the surface to give it the appearance of stucco.

EIFS gained noteriety a few years ago because it was found to retain moisture leading to rot of the studs and black mold growth. The problem is so prevalent it is banned in many coastal counties in NC, but it is still approved for construction in Charlotte and as noted, used quite often here. EIFS can also mask termite problems as it is often the finishing material that goes all the way to the ground. These problems are caused by improper installation.

I've noticed that homes and buildings using EIFS look pretty bad after a few years. The stuff fades (it can be repainted however) and really needs to be pressured washed every year to keep the mold off of it, though that can lead to other problems. It is a cheap way to get an "upscale" look.

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Great News ! (at least one can hope)

I saw today where the Hilton signage might be being replaced. they had a huge crane on the site working on the area. I know Meisian Corners, dubone, and atlrvr know how I feel about this one. :lol:

Here is hoping they replace it with a better Hilton sign than was previously on the building.

The last sign was so small you would have needed binoculars to see it from 277.

A2

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I also saw that they had taken down the micro-sign a week or so ago. I wonder if they moved that lil' one to the north-facing side. There's an identical tiny-sign on that side but it fits in much better since there are windows on that facade. Hilton recently came up with a new logo for their Garden Inn frachise, so maybe that's what they're gonna put there. As long as it's big enough to cover the "Hilton" shadow that remains on the faded wall, I don't care.

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I also saw that they had taken down the micro-sign a week or so ago.  I wonder if they moved that lil' one to the north-facing side.  There's an identical tiny-sign on that side but it fits in much better since there are windows on that facade.  Hilton recently came up with a new logo for their Garden Inn frachise, so maybe that's what they're gonna put there.  As long as it's big enough to cover the "Hilton" shadow that remains on the faded wall, I don't care.

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I agree TC. There was like a mildew stain on the stucco from the removal of the Large sign that originally hung there.

I do not know what they were thinking when they pulled it down.

I told a few others here on UP that they were successful in makeing an ugly building even uglier when they did that.

A2

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

According to someone over at SSP, a condo project will be announced soon to take up the space between the Hampton and Hilton Garden Inn where the elevator shafts are....it'll be called Smith Curry Condos.

I guess we'll see....I would assume it will be horribly ugly....

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