Paul Rudolph’s Orange County Goverment Center in Goshen NY, completed in 1971 (via), is slated to be demolished, and replaced by that marvel of faux-historical-factory-colonialism below.
File under “supporting the case for historic preservation.”
Auto-reblogging my Unconsumption post because:
a) the project is in Toronto, and involves b) adaptive reuse of old buildings, c) the preservation of green space / creation of a nature preserve, d) a public-private (non-profit) partnership, e) a farmers’ market, f) a repurposed shipping container, g) community gardens, and h) sustainable building principles, among other things that are of interest (to me)!
Via unconsumption:
A retired shipping container, known now as the Welcome Hut, helps to orient visitors as they enter the grounds of Toronto’s Evergreen Brick Works (EBW), a new 40-acre nature preserve / redevelopment project — billed as “Canada’s first community environmental center.” EBW is a project of Evergreen, a national charity dedicated to bringing nature into public spaces, schools, and homes.
Several components of EBW’s master plan have been completed on the site that was, for more than a century, a brick factory with massive kilns (decommissioned in the 1980s), with adjacent clay/shale quarry in a ravine along the Don River.
From an August 2010 Toronto Life story:
In an earlier age, Toronto would have torn down the brick sheds, but we are beginning to see new value in these old places. We don’t just come for the food or the chit-chat with a charming artisanal cheesemaker. We also come for the worn-down bricks and the history immersion. We crave these historic buildings that can root us in our city’s past and tell us where we came from. The fashion for ruins was also hugely popular in 18th-century England. Back then, people were leaving the land to work in factories. Similarly, as our factories close, we’re developing a nostalgic appreciation for manufacturing.
EBW’s offerings are slated to include a sustainable garden center, farmers’ market, demonstration gardens and kitchens, conference and event facilities, community bike space, art exhibition areas, and programs for families and kids.
The Welcome Hut — Dwell.com slideshow here — was designed so that it could be relocated elsewhere on the property, to serve other purposes as needed.
(spotted on Twitter, via Dwell’s Miyoko Ohtake, @miyokoohtake)
Wright matters:
Dramatic, historic and prices slashed, yet no buyers are biting - chicagotribune.com
In Los Angeles, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ennis House and La Miniatura remain on the market, despite significant price reductions/buyer incentives. Begs the architectural stewardship question: Who is willing and able to take care of these historic homes?
[hat tip to @ChiArchitecture]
Related: June 2009 post.
City of Houston strengthens its preservation ordinance
Houston City Council passed a temporary law yesterday that represents the strongest protection of historic property in the city’s history.
Previously, a property owner could proceed with a proposed renovation, demolition, or relocation in one of Houston's historic districts after a 90-day waiting period, even if that proposed change had been rejected by the Houston Archaeological and Historic Commission.
For now, the commission’s ruling will stand while the city goes about making permanent changes to the law. Stay tuned for what could prove to be one of the most heated debates in years over land use and the character of Houston.
Houston council eyes temporary demolition moratorium – chron.com