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SCALE
In a downtown area a uniformity of architecture
simi lar to a shopping center would be
impractical, undesirable and gene rally impossi ble.
Buildings need not be id en tical or even
similar. but th ey should relate to each other and
to the i r env i ronmen tin some con sc i ou sway.
Sto res in a sho pping center derive th e i r uniform
appearance because the y are bu i lt using a limited
numbe r of mate rial s, completedin a short period
of time, have an overall ultimate desi gn plan
and, most important, only a few peopl e make th e
dec i sions.
In contrast the downtown area has taken many
years to develop. ha s a great many different
building materials, has countless individuals
making the decision s and has fo l lowed no plan.
A downtown area has infinitely mo r e character
than a shopping center, but few cities take
advan t age or exploit the opportunities available
Downtown must not on l y supply th e necessities for
shoppers, it must provide th e amenities which
SI-lOPPING CENT'EO.
I~
WI I I change a shopping trip into a pleasant ex perience
- enjoyable not only because of the
merchandise bought , but because th e trip itself
was conducted within an agreeable and visually
stimulating environment.
I f an architect has been faithful to one particular
style. when designing a building downtown,
the chances are very strong that his building will
be unre lated and con tr ast wi th most of its neighboring
buildings. A successf ul building on the
drawing board may wei 1 fail when it is constructed
amon g bu i ldings which have also come from isolated
drawing boards o r grown from uti 1 itarian motives
with little r ega rd to any form of aesthetics. In a
g reat many instances a business street will g ive
the appearance of an architectural menagerie of
styles wedging baroque in between Victor ian and
contemporary bu i 1 dings but most often creat i ng
bl ocks of nond esc ript building styles which are
th e result of an inb r eeding of styles.
In downtown Wilson , the app ea rance and relationship
of existing st reets and buildings have
become s uch an integral part of an individual's
daily habits and environment so that he is not
able to eva lu ate it. If the width of Na sh St r eet
was suddenly doubled or reduced by one - half the
effec ts would be a total change i n both the scale
and the cha racter. The same pr inci ple would apply
if the height of th e present buildings was reduced
by half . If all of the signs were r emoved
or twice as many added the effect would be totally
different. These examples point out the presence
of an existing balance between all elements of the
business district which will be affected by any
change which the c i ty or an individual store owner
mi ght choose to make. Each change with i n the central
bus iness d i str ict, must be v iewed not as an
individual change affecting only one particular
building or street. but as an act that possibly
affects the enti re balance or sca l e of the downt
o wn .
Object Description
Description
| Title | Page 24 |
| Full Text | SCALE In a downtown area a uniformity of architecture simi lar to a shopping center would be impractical, undesirable and gene rally impossi ble. Buildings need not be id en tical or even similar. but th ey should relate to each other and to the i r env i ronmen tin some con sc i ou sway. Sto res in a sho pping center derive th e i r uniform appearance because the y are bu i lt using a limited numbe r of mate rial s, completedin a short period of time, have an overall ultimate desi gn plan and, most important, only a few peopl e make th e dec i sions. In contrast the downtown area has taken many years to develop. ha s a great many different building materials, has countless individuals making the decision s and has fo l lowed no plan. A downtown area has infinitely mo r e character than a shopping center, but few cities take advan t age or exploit the opportunities available Downtown must not on l y supply th e necessities for shoppers, it must provide th e amenities which SI-lOPPING CENT'EO. I~ WI I I change a shopping trip into a pleasant ex perience - enjoyable not only because of the merchandise bought , but because th e trip itself was conducted within an agreeable and visually stimulating environment. I f an architect has been faithful to one particular style. when designing a building downtown, the chances are very strong that his building will be unre lated and con tr ast wi th most of its neighboring buildings. A successf ul building on the drawing board may wei 1 fail when it is constructed amon g bu i ldings which have also come from isolated drawing boards o r grown from uti 1 itarian motives with little r ega rd to any form of aesthetics. In a g reat many instances a business street will g ive the appearance of an architectural menagerie of styles wedging baroque in between Victor ian and contemporary bu i 1 dings but most often creat i ng bl ocks of nond esc ript building styles which are th e result of an inb r eeding of styles. In downtown Wilson , the app ea rance and relationship of existing st reets and buildings have become s uch an integral part of an individual's daily habits and environment so that he is not able to eva lu ate it. If the width of Na sh St r eet was suddenly doubled or reduced by one - half the effec ts would be a total change i n both the scale and the cha racter. The same pr inci ple would apply if the height of th e present buildings was reduced by half . If all of the signs were r emoved or twice as many added the effect would be totally different. These examples point out the presence of an existing balance between all elements of the business district which will be affected by any change which the c i ty or an individual store owner mi ght choose to make. Each change with i n the central bus iness d i str ict, must be v iewed not as an individual change affecting only one particular building or street. but as an act that possibly affects the enti re balance or sca l e of the downt o wn . |
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