Karen Hundt solution
The truth of the matter here is that, if those buildings were put up in front of a jury of objective architecture professionals, they would fail miserably. Its not so much that its bad design, rather that there seems to have been no design.
It is obvious to anybody with an objective mind that this project was built without the rigorous thought process that architects use to make sure a building looks good and functions well.
Sometimes architects do produce ugly buildings, but this project was not given the chance to be poorly designed. Metal siding is fine as a material, it's how to use it that matters. In this case, there is too much of one material and nothing interesting at all about the boxy forms.
The only thing bold about this is that someone actually built them, apperently not even bothered by the volleys of rotten tomatoes being thrown at them.
But hey, don't worry Chattanooga. There is a quick fix here. Change the material on the ground level to a different color, pattern or texture, perhaps horizontally oriented, to break up the forced vertical lines created by the siding, and break up the monolithic aspect of it.
Then, change the parapets above to something that does not look like the framer went nuts and just didn't know when to stop framing, then went to lunch and did not come back. Put a "hat" on the building, in the form of a deep flat overhang, with perhaps some brackets of some kind. Bada-boom bada-bing, problem solved. Just a few cheap fixes would make everybody happy here.
Mario Piccolo
mariopiccolo@bellsouth.net
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In response to recent comments on how to "fix" the controversial metal clad building on Cherokee Boulevard, I am attaching two suggestions.
The first is a sketch prepared by Karen Hundt, director of the Planning and Design Studio. Karen has made a series of positive design suggestions which attempt to bring the building into the modern design vernacular including ample landscaping to help mask the grossly insensitive design.
Unfortunately, her suggestions, well intentioned as they are, do not go far enough. I fear that, short of a really big bulldozer, there is little that can be done to make this building fit in with its neighbors and the neighborhood's expectations of design quality.
Stricter design guidelines, such as those in place for the nearby commercial district, are needed to prevent such travesties in the future.
As my design/build office is directly across the street, my best suggestion would be a couple of hundred gallons of camouflage paint. I have included my own "sketch" of a possible remediation.
Garnet Chapin
Cherokee Boulevard
Garnet Chapin solution