Hate I missed the last two public meetings on 300 East Main. Apparently, there was a lot of discussion about whether the project is "Carrboro" enough (see excellent CH News article here).
Many expressed concerns over the height -- 5 stories. While I think that's going to be kind of jarring, done well, it could work. But a look at the plans submitted by the developer and architect show that the facades of most buildings don't mesh well with the 100 blocks of East and West Main, nor the train depot and original Carr Mill structures that are a pastiche of our historical building roots. (View renderings here) Heck, I hate the Weaver Street annex at Carr Mill for this very reason. It wouldn't have killed the developer to mirror the Mill in more ways than just using bricks.
We have to face that downtown density requires going up. But we don't have to continue approving projects that don't fit in with the vernacular architecture of our little mill town. From sticks to bricks, there's enough variety for developers to design a solution that's cohesive and cost-effective. But as we've seen with the rash of recent projects, we have to encourage them to do it.
Other cities usually do that by speeding the permitting and entitlement process. Or by creating a facade requirements (see Seattle's and San Antonio's). There are many other possible solutions, including just saying no to projects that don't visually "play well with others". But that's not going to happen if Jackie Gist is the only alderman speaking up.
What do you think? Write a letter to the Citizen, the News or the FreeP and share your thoughts with others. Or post to your blog or record something for WCOM. Better yet, contact one or all the aldermen and mayor (contact info here), and the city manager (contact info here) to express your feelings on the issue. And try to attend a hearing or meeting if you can. The next discussion by the aldermen is Sept. 16 at Town Hall.
Guidelines for Letters to Local Papers
The Citizen: Letters should be no more than 425 words in length and must be accompanied by the author’s name, address and contact information. We will publish one letter per author per month. Typed letters are preferred and email even more so. Send to Letters to the editor, Box 248 , Carrboro, North Carolina 27510; editor at carrborocitizen dot com; fax: 919-942-2195
The News: 400 words or less; please provide name, address, phone number, although only name and city will be used: Send to editor@nando.com
The FreeP: Send to editor [at] carrborofreepress [dot] com
See thread at Orange Politics with more/better information on the project including the developer's response to some recent questions and misinformation about the project. http://orangepolitics.org/2008/09/is-the-300-east-main-proposal-worth-supporting
Posted by: Simone | 04 September 2008 at 03:26 PM