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CONSTRUCTION THREAD: Federal Courthouse


goodbye

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  • 4 months later...

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This is pretty sad. It's been almost 10 years, and this is what we have to show for this prime real estate.

gateway.jpg

It would have almost been better to leave the structrually sound Memorial Auditorium there as an exhibit hall, wouldn't it?

The Carroll Campbell Federal Court House won't be built for what? at least another 3+ years?

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Interesting pic. It IS pretty sad, in Charlotte or Atl a space like this would not have lasted 10 months. Perhaps we have quite a ways to go yet. I remember when it was envisioned as "the gateway to the city" and leaders wanted something first class, unique, and signature. Now ten years later all we hav is a green wall in the middlt of a growing DT. SO I guess at least the unique part came true, not too many of our peer cities have such a wall! :P

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It's the truth too. I swear, that those of us here on the forums could form a consortium, and more than likely within 5 YEARS have at least two new towers built, and working to promote proper growth. This is an embarassment to Greenville to have the first green monster. Ahh, hopefully someone, someday will listen to us.

/end rant

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I am bracing myself that the courthouse, when it is finally built, will be a very bland 8-story box. Sure, it will be an improvement over what we currently have, but for 10 years of waiting that would be quite a disappointment for such a prominent piece of land.

Hopefully the delay will allow for a better and more dramatic courthouse to be developed. That is what the optimistic side of me says, but any optimism is definitely guarded and cautious.

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I am not inclined to guarded optimism, because I believe it has been so long that anything less than a dramatic, signature tower would be a blatant insult to the many eager and waiting citizens of Greenville. If a mediocre design is settled upon, I will lose most of my ambition for the City's future. -_-

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The Federal General Services Administration, in an effort to stream line the bidding process for Federal structures, like courthouses, has in recent years had architect bidding weekends, where competing firms present plan and bids for proposal to the GSA in the towns where the structures are located.

Often times, these bids involve innovative designs that are unique to communities and that focus on energy saving techniques and structures that are ergonomically designed for their use, in this case a facility of Federal law enforcement and administrative offices.

I would bet that it is not a bland, glass box.

Part of the benchmarks for the new courthouses, which for the taxpayer, believe it or not, are cheaper than previous construction projects.

Commissions the country's most talented artists to create artwork for new federal buildings and conserve a substantial inventory of artwork from the past.

Read more: http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/channelVi...hannelId=-12922

An example of a new Federal Courthouse

Public%20Buildings%20Home%20Page%20Photo_R22-z3_0Z5RDZ-i34K-pR.jpg

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Here are more, the new Montgomery, AL Fed. courthouse

img_89.jpg

The new courthouse in Tucson, AZ

Tucson_R2I-f6-e_0Z5RDZ-i34K-pR.jpg

The Courthouse in Charleston, West Virginia (like the rest of the state, it's named after Robert Byrd)

court1.jpg

Sandra Day O'Connor Court in Phoenix

phoenix.jpg

Albany, GA Courthouse

albany.jpg

Howard Baker Fed. Courthouse in Knoxville, TN (the glass building is not the courthouse)

414544.jpg

All of these structures have been built in the last 10 years or so.

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Really, in truth, for all of these new courthouses going up throughout the county, 8-10 stories would be a pretty tall one for Greenville, seeing how the one in Phoenix is only 12 stories tall and that Greenville is a lot smaller city than Phoenix.

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Really, in truth, for all of these new courthouses going up throughout the county, 8-10 stories would be a pretty tall one for Greenville, seeing how the one in Phoenix is only 12 stories tall and that Greenville is a lot smaller city than Phoenix.

It all depends on land though and therefore how big your footprint will be.

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Don't forget, this federal courthouse will also be a regional one, meaning it won't only be used for cases in and around the City of Greenville. In that case, it will need to be larger. At 260,000-square-feet, plus the parking facility, it will definitely be a sizeable building. I really hope it has a smaller footprint and a nice large public plaza with plenty of greenery, a fountain or two, and nice sculpture. A dome on top would be really attractive from afar as well. :shades:

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Hey...not to try to drag the "Off Topic" thread back onto any topic, but there's already a thread dedicated to the Gateway Site and the Federal Courthouse. :thumbsup:

Thanks RT. I figured there was some interesting information above that could be beneficial to the construction thread, so I moved them here and reopened this thread. I figure there will be a few bits of news over the next several months, so hopefully something more complete will eventually come out for better discussion. ;)

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I think the big thing with the development of the courthouse will be the expansion of pedestrian-oriented development. Right now, the area around the vacant area is anything but. Put 275-300k sf of office in the middle of it all, and the pressures to redevelop from here to Main Street will be strong.

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I have read that it could be similar to the one in Cola, anybody have any pics of that one? Any info regarding size, floors etc on that one?

I agree with breed, this could really help to spread out our main st feel to other parts of DT. Does anybody think DT could ever spread out across laurens rd/stone ave?

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I think the big thing with the development of the courthouse will be the expansion of pedestrian-oriented development. Right now, the area around the vacant area is anything but. Put 275-300k sf of office in the middle of it all, and the pressures to redevelop from here to Main Street will be strong.

The city has ideas for how to link main st. to the new Court House and the Bilo center.

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