Two new mixed-use projects planned for Eastown

[GR Jackson]

Glass to the ground on storefronts in these climes is a winter problem with window damage from shovels and leakage from expansion and contraction. Additionally, aesthetically speaking, it's also a tiny little - historically inaccurate and functionally dubious - detail that I would argue helps to put the 'fake' in 'fake old'. There's an easy baker's dozen of these kind of little details in this picture that contribute to a huge missed opportunity and an uncomfortable final result.

I was trying to be positive. I don't like the block bottom that comes up high with little store front windows look that you find uglying up corners. It makes for an unwelcoming retail space. I also don't like large block/brick separators between the glass unless it is a large building. The classic look is good, but on classic buildings that should be preserved, but not recreated.

I would say go for a current design. Something that uses innovative materials and technology. Get all creative and stuff.

[fotoman311]

Let me just say that I don't know what they have planned, scaled, look or otherwise, other than the approximate size and height. The parcel on Lake Drive just reminded me of that development in Mount Prospect so I thought I'd post it for discussion.

It's hard to say what architectural style would fit in that area. It's such a mix, with the big records building on the corner, the short squat retail buildings across the street, the modern Richard Terrace next door, and the 70's architecture to the West. I agree that probably simple and classic is probably better.

Don't know what kind of budget something like this would bring:

I like this building pretty well. I like the idea of the balconies overlooking a street like Lake Dr. Although, perhaps there won't be quite as much to watch at this location as there will be from the balcony of the "building that formerly exploded". It might be improved by some wood parklex though. ( http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.ph...st&p=930309 )

I was thinking that I would like something more unique. Maybe not quite as extreme as the Don Rafav's/jewelry building, but something that you wouldn't see anywhere else and would establish a further sense of place for Eastown. Of course, this type of building is more of a gamble and I'm sure costs many more man-hours in both the design and construction ends. But, Bazzani certainly did a bang-up job with the ICCF building (and many other projects). While I don't know if we'll all be blown away by the end product, I don't think we'll be disappointed either.

[Veloise]

... the "building that formerly exploded". ...

... extreme ... bang-up job ...blown away ...

Just reading between the lines here...I would think that a "bang-up job" on the replacement building is not a good marketing scheme.

[fotoman311]

Just reading between the lines here...I would think that a "bang-up job" on the replacement building is not a good marketing scheme.

Wow, those following references to exploding were completely unintended in relation to the exploded building. Wonder what that means for my sub-concious?

I don't think that anyone looking to take up residence in the future building will fear that it's going to blow up on them.

[Gorath]

But, Bazzani certainly did a bang-up job with the ICCF building

Bazzani was not the architect for the ICCF building at 920 Cherry.

[yankee_farmer]

Personally, I think a combination of the traditional and modern architecture would be most suitable at this site. Some of the features found on the modern structures posted can be very expensive (I would argue TOO expensive), and I would also caution against too traditional of a design being built here. I personally prefer more traditional buildings, but with modern and "green" touches. . .

[witulski]

Yeah, why can't they still build something that looks as great as the ICCF building? Did humans forget how to make good stuff?

Buildings like the ones GRDad posted just look so bland and middle-of-the-road contemporary to me. I don't know if they're supposed to look classic or traditional or something, but they all look so cookie-cutter.

[Ted]

Let me just say that I don't know what they have planned, scaled, look or otherwise,

Well, 5 bucks sez it won't be 'modern', will it Nitro?

[grcitydog]

This kind of stuff (infill mixed-use neighborhood development) is exactly what we need to see more of in our city. I would much rather see a number of these developments throughout the near-city neighborhoods than another high-rise downtown. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for a strong downtown, but a downtown won't thrive without a vibrant city around it, and what is better than the type of building being proposed. I don't think it matters so much the style (old, modern, etc) as to the usage, dimensions, and orientation (near the street with windows). I am very excited to see eastown gain some new life!

[GRDadof3]

Well, 5 bucks sez it won't be 'modern', will it Nitro?

Yeah, come on. Mix it up a little bit.

Looking at Center of the Universe, the building in front of 920 Cherry, and the proposed building on Wealthy in the earlier post, it will probably be simple and classic looking. Take Center of the Universe and add two floors.

[GR Jackson]

Yeah, why can't they still build something that looks as great as the ICCF building? Did humans forget how to make good stuff?

Buildings like the ones GRDad posted just look so bland and middle-of-the-road contemporary to me. I don't know if they're supposed to look classic or traditional or something, but they all look so cookie-cutter.

I think if you are talking about using the same materials, they are too expensive. I think architechure as an art form has to evolve and push into different directions. I have caught myself wondering why they can't make art that looks like the David or Starry Night any more, but I guess that isn't the point.

[GRDadof3]

Here's what it looks like now. No real texture to have to blend in with, so it's kind of a blank slate. What a change a new development will make here.

[concretepoem]

Here's what it looks like now. No real texture to have to blend in with, so it's kind of a blank slate. What a change a new development will make here.

Thanks for the pix, GRDad, especially the one taken from the end of Robinson Road looking back across Lake Drive. It indicates to me that no matter the 'style' of the new building, it will have to 'work' not only as a front elevation, its north face, but take into consideration the other views. Because of the unusual street angles at that point, the new building's architecture can't simply ignore the ends (as Gaslight Village does, especially the west end.)

The side facing east back at Eastown and the side facing west toward downtown will have to present themselves as alternative faces of a multifaceted design, and not merely as ends. And if I owned a home on Richard Terrace, I'd be very, very concerned to see how they handle the 'back' side.

My point is this...if the new development looks good only as you approach it driving up Carlton, or when you stand...as you did in your other picture, in the parking lot of Domino's Pizza...it will have failed, IMHO.

It could/should be a gateway...and should somehow 'open' itself to the east and west...that's what this site represents....it's literally a landmark...the point on the 'Indian' trail where Rix Robinson or anyone headed between his Ada trading post and the fledgling settlement of Grand Rapids would have turned...a spot that's one of the most historic crossroads in our region... and it's still a point where where 'town' greets 'country'...drive for :30 seconds down Robinson Road towards Ada and you've left the city, both the actual boundary line, and to a large extent, the psychological boundary as well.

Whatever Guy and Baird do, the building should express the fact that this site is landmark, and read as such regardless of what direction you approach it from. At three stories, it's going to loom over its surroundings, especially as you drive up Carlton, which slopes steeply below Lake Drive.

[Quercus]

Nice thoughts on this being a gateway and an important historical spot, concretepoem. I'd like to see a structure that transitions between the neighborhood and the business district; large windows at street level and some balconies or a deck on the top stories. But as others have mentioned, I think we can count on a great design from Bazzani.

Also, if memory serves me correctly, there is a Rapid stop just West of this site. Maybe that stop could be moved East and a shelter or bench could be integrated into the design.

[GRDadof3]

Yes, concretepoem. That's what made me think of the development in Mount Prospect, which had the retail bays open up to the main drag and to the back parking lot. It almost had 4 fronts to it. This is the back, but it faces this side street at an oblique angle.

It also sits at an odd angle in its location:

http://maps.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&...1&encType=1

I actually threw down a sketch on the current site, with the red being what I think people will ask to have a nice facade to it (non-mechanical at least):

People from Bazzani watch this forum regularly, FYI. Great info on the significance and history of this corner.

[Allison Slater]

Also, if memory serves me correctly, there is a Rapid stop just West of this site. Maybe that stop could be moved East and a shelter or bench could be integrated into the design.

That would be really cool, because I cannot think of one place that has incorporated mass transit in such a fashion into its design in Grand Rapids.

[concretepoem]

Nice thoughts on this being a gateway and an important historical spot, concretepoem. I'd like to see a structure that transitions between the neighborhood and the business district; large windows at street level and some balconies or a deck on the top stories. But as others have mentioned, I think we can count on a great design from Bazzani.

Also, if memory serves me correctly, there is a Rapid stop just West of this site. Maybe that stop could be moved East and a shelter or bench could be integrated into the design.

Recognizing the role of the Rapid and somehow integrating it into the next phase of developments on the eastside is the real opportunity here...both for Bazzani and Baird's plan....the #6 line that runs from downtown to Woodland Mall stops at Lake and Carlton... and for what the Gilmores are planning right down the street at Carlton and East Fulton, .... the #14 line stops right in front of it before heading out East Fulton past Aquinas and on to the Industrial Park/County Government/GRCC Occupational Training Center off Plymouth between Michigan and Leonard....

Both developments, Bazzani's and Gilmore's, ought to be designed as destinations, not just buildings that happen to have a bus stop out at the curb. They can be places where public transit riders throughout that part of Eastown/ Wilcox Park feel they can arrive at early, or stick around after they've been dropped off, grab something to eat or read, a wait in an atmosphere that makes them feel like the progressive minded citizens they are...which to me suggests something more than just a bench or a shelter inches from the curb.

In fact, if you look at the Rapid routes that run through the east side, it's frustrating because there's lots of that service runs right through the eastside neighborboods and takes riders all over the place... but the lines themselves don't cross-connect. There are several near-misses in the Eastown/Aquinas/Wealthy/East Hills/area that with a shuttle loop could be linked, radically improving the utility and value of the entire eastside service and truly making the whole 'Center of the Universe' less of an inside joke and more of a real motivation for people to choose to live...freed from the burdens of automobile ownership... in that part of town. A simple shuttle connecting the #6 at Lake and Carlton to the #14 at Fulton and Carlton is a good start. But now's the time to integrate the flow of a shuttle bus connnecting those points, so these two new developments...Gilmore's and Bazzani's...can intelligently facilitate bus stops/ riders.

[blodgett]

Here is a more recent air photo.

[Avocado]

Squinting through the snowflakes, I thought I saw signs of activity at the 1500 Wealthy sight this morning.

[Nitro]

Squinting through the snowflakes, I thought I saw signs of activity at the 1500 Wealthy sight this morning.

There may or may not be a hole for a foundation dug Monday.

[Avocado]

There may or may not be a hole for a foundation dug Monday.

I don't know if it was there on Monday, but they've worked up a pretty big pile of dirt now.

[GRDadof3]

More details on the Lake Drive/Carlton development. The project is 75% pre-leased, with 16 apartments dedicated to Aquinas College. Someone help get these guys financed! Project is also planned to have an Ada Bike shop/scooter store.

http://blog.mlive.com/knapescorner/2009/03...ngs_aquina.html

I also got a recent shot of the Wealthy St development the other day:

[joeDowntown]

I was surprised at how far along the building is on Wealthy. I drove by last week still expecting an empty lot and saw a half completed building. Nice!

Joe

[Veloise]

I was surprised at how far along the building is on Wealthy. I drove by last week still expecting an empty lot and saw a half completed building. Nice!

Photos?

(don't make me come over there!)

[Nitro]

Photos?

(don't make me come over there!)

Two posts up