Parking Garages Inside of Buildings

[Jasoncw]

Now, at first thought having the parking structure integrated with the building (like with the Greektown plan) seems like a good idea, but I was thinking.

First, cars aren't going to be around very much longer (100 years at the absolute most, imo, and probably a lot sooner). once cars are no longer used, what's going to happen with this space? It will be expensive to convert it into something useful, and I think that these kinds of parking garages will be the death of these buildings in the future, when they're historic or whatever.

Also, since the garage parts are so exposed to the elements, what happens when the building is abandoned for 30 years? Will the weather damage the exposed supports enough to make the 30 story skyscraper on top of it collapse? I think Genessee Towers (sp) is having a similiar problem.

So that's what I was thinking.

[hudkina]

the supports aren't exposed, they're usually covered in concrete. Also, I think you're putting to much into a "carless future". Unless someone invents a teleportation device the car is here to stay.

[Allan]

Cars will always have their place, especially here in the US, where the lifestyle for a vast majority of the population is completely dependant on the car.

Reinforced concrete parking structures are very strong, and, when properly maintained, can last practically forever. In the Packard Plant and Fisher Body 21, some portions of the concrete structure have collapsed, but it's taken decades of abandonment and total lack of maintenance.

To think that some of the crap we're throwing up might someday be considered "historic" is a scary thought....

[wolverine]

Heaven forbid buildings with integrated parking structures become abandoned. We'd lose the beautiful First National Building at CM. Kidding. Cars will be here for a very very long time. Whether they fly or are on the ground, they need to go somewhere. Additionally, the number of cars per family is increasing, and more people own cars in dense urban areas than ever. This is why you will see a lot more buildings with integrated parking rise in the future. And that's a good thing, as the height of the tower on top of the parking structure makes the units more marketable. As for structural problems, reinforced concrete has a very long lifespan. It can also be easily repaired or retrofitted if damage were to occur.