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The Ellington

archiham04

By archiham04
in Asheville

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hauntedheadnc Hamlet

hauntedheadnc

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I think that you should propose a constructive counterpoint or point of reference for your attacks on local architects and building design. You are certainly entitled to your opinion about these structures but simply bashing them gets tiresome. Be an advocate for an alternative style or for an ambitious designer that you think would give Asheville an appropriate building. I think that this addition would make the editorials that you write much more worthwhile. You did ask for feedback...
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archiham04 Burg

archiham04

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So getting back to being an advocate for SOMETHING... you are saying that new construction in downtown should have street level retail on all building facades with street frontage. That street level retail should be of similar scale to the buildings around it. The facades should meet the the setback of the buildings to either side. The retail should be more than "token" retail, (x number of square feet, or x feet deep from the street front)... and the architecture should refined or streamlined, not clunky, and shouldn't look cheap.

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hauntedheadnc Hamlet

hauntedheadnc

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So getting back to being an advocate for SOMETHING... you are saying that new construction in downtown should have street level retail on all building facades with street frontage. That street level retail should be of similar scale to the buildings around it. The facades should meet the the setback of the buildings to either side. The retail should be more than "token" retail, (x number of square feet, or x feet deep from the street front)... and the architecture should refined or streamlined, not clunky, and shouldn't look cheap.
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pyalberice Crossroads

pyalberice

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I've written this guest editorial in response to the Ellington's approval. I'd like some feedback about it.

-----------------------

I'm glad that the issue of the Ellington Hotel is, finally, dealt with, and I'm glad the city council made the right decision. Tall growth is smart growth. It's smart to put as many people as possible onto the smallest footprint, and it's smart to put them in a place where they can walk around and spend money rather than clogging up the streets in their cars. It's certainly better than wasting downtown space on surface parking.

Is it still many times better than it could have been? Again, absolutely. You need only look at the dreary, lifeless architecture of 21 Battery Park, 12 S. Lexington, or the upcoming Indigo Hotel to see how much worse things might have been.

The Ellington will house 52 condos' worth of rich people, and will host hundreds of upscale, and likely uppity, hotel guests every week. This is not necessarily a good thing. It could be, if new residents and guests appreciated downtown's existing culture, but they likely won't. They'll have no use for shops such as Sword and the Grail, but they will have use for Prada. Nearby rents could soar. Upscale chains could chase out established businesses. Downtown has already tasted the bitter prospect of gentrification, though I like to pretend that the landlord who threw Vincent's Ear out on its ear in a blatant bid for a higher-rent tenant has regretted that decision in the years that space has since sat empty.

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hauntedheadnc Hamlet

hauntedheadnc

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I don't think your editorial has said anything that has not already been said in editorials in the Citizen Times or Mountain Express, but you certainly have a right to make a submission. You can continue to bash our building (12 South Lexington) if you like. Six years of architecture school has exposed me to much more cutting insults from people way more knowledgeable in architecture, urban design and development. There are certainly many people in this community who like the building very much, particularly the owners. When we lease and finish the retail space fronting Lexington, the building will be much more lively at street level. We are looking for a small restaurant of coffee shop type tenant. An upstart local business looking for a great location would be a nice addition to the street.
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macrocosim144 Unincorporated Area

macrocosim144

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I preferred the Haywood Park Towers project, which would have been better for downtown over all, what with better architecture, more commercial space, and the fact that it would have housed a green business incubator. The city council turned it down because that 20-plus story building was "too big," (while this particular 20-plus story building is not) however and its construction might have tipped people off to the fact that Asheville is a city and not a small town, and the city council's motto is "death before urbanity."

I was a big booster of the Ellington until I saw what their interpretation of "neo-deco" was and it turned out to be the same kind of b.s. they're building in Charlotte these days. If I wanted uninspired knock-offs and ugly, disjointed buildings, I'd go to Charlotte. I really don't need that kind of thing up here.

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