I saw this...
If it's hard to tell from the picture, its basically a HUGE canvas image of trees, draped over a structured parking garage. The story goes, people working on this side of the building (from which I took the picture) were tired of staring at a boring garage everyday at work. So either they or the landlord produced three of these canvas images (which were taken of the trees on the opposite side of the building) and hung them along the side of the garage which faces the building. I'm quite positive that it has helped...or at the least provided a mid-day chuckle out of the people forced to have to stare at an otherwise dull parking garage facade.
I personally think this is the greatest idea I've seen in a while. I'm sort of reminded about the Nationals Ballpark which is currently under construction in SE Washington, DC. A big debate between the developers and city officials, prior to construction, concerned where parking for the stadium was to go. The City, obviously wanting the area surrounding the stadium to be as aesthetically pleasing as possible desired underground parking. Additionally, underground parking would allow the space where the above-ground (or "structured" lot) would be constructed to be utilized for some other higher and better use. The developers, on the other hand, stated that there was no way they could incorporate underground parking into the stadium's design because it would no doubt throw off the construction schedule causing the stadium to not be complete by the April 2008 Opening Day. But anyone with half a brain could see the real reason was that the cost to construct underground parking is many times more expensive than an above ground lot...and the developer's weren't about to sacrifice cost (which was already another LARGE issue in and of itself) for aesthetics when an above-ground lot is comparably functional.
Once it was determined that an underground lot just wasn't going to happen, the City tried presenting the idea of putting some sort of multi-family use above the structured lot, but for some reason that didn't work as well. There I go on tangents again...
Long story short, I think doing this imaged-canvas sort of thing and draping the entire above-ground lot with it could be something. I mean, they could even make it into a competition for artists and/or architects (local or otherwise) to compete to design the "art" (if you will) that will engulf the parking garage for the newly constructed Nationals Stadium. If it's done right, I think it could work.
Hey, at the very least they'd win novelty points cause I haven't seen anything like this in the States...or in DC at least.
Cheers.
P.S. More Christmas/New Year's blogs are on the way...
I personally think this is the greatest idea I've seen in a while. I'm sort of reminded about the Nationals Ballpark which is currently under construction in SE Washington, DC. A big debate between the developers and city officials, prior to construction, concerned where parking for the stadium was to go. The City, obviously wanting the area surrounding the stadium to be as aesthetically pleasing as possible desired underground parking. Additionally, underground parking would allow the space where the above-ground (or "structured" lot) would be constructed to be utilized for some other higher and better use. The developers, on the other hand, stated that there was no way they could incorporate underground parking into the stadium's design because it would no doubt throw off the construction schedule causing the stadium to not be complete by the April 2008 Opening Day. But anyone with half a brain could see the real reason was that the cost to construct underground parking is many times more expensive than an above ground lot...and the developer's weren't about to sacrifice cost (which was already another LARGE issue in and of itself) for aesthetics when an above-ground lot is comparably functional.
Once it was determined that an underground lot just wasn't going to happen, the City tried presenting the idea of putting some sort of multi-family use above the structured lot, but for some reason that didn't work as well. There I go on tangents again...
Long story short, I think doing this imaged-canvas sort of thing and draping the entire above-ground lot with it could be something. I mean, they could even make it into a competition for artists and/or architects (local or otherwise) to compete to design the "art" (if you will) that will engulf the parking garage for the newly constructed Nationals Stadium. If it's done right, I think it could work.
Hey, at the very least they'd win novelty points cause I haven't seen anything like this in the States...or in DC at least.
Cheers.
P.S. More Christmas/New Year's blogs are on the way...
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