Architectural Commentary - Cantey-Hangar Plaza

I’ve gotten some inquiries asking when I planned to do more architectural commentary, so here’s one for you - Cantey-Hangar Plaza, going up right now next to the Bank of America garage on 6th Street across from 500 West 7th and Burnett Plaza.

I didn’t have too many issues with this building in the past, but the more I learn about it, the more problems I have with it. I’ve learned that, for one, it is not really being designed to accommodate ground-floor retail, as was stated in the Startlegram. Secondly, the site has been leveled in such a way that the ground floor will be quite noticeably elevated above 6th Street, and won’t really interact with it in any way. I never like it when a building in an urban setting basically ignores the street. This also ties in with my next problem - namely, the building’s only two entrances will be the skybridge from the garage, and an entrance door by the garage. There will be no entrances on any other side of the building, furthering the “ignored” feeling it will give to the other streets. One of the aspects of good urban architecture is that buildings present entrances to the street in a friendly, welcoming manner. By putting the entrance by the parking garage and ignoring the rest of the streets, you create a sealed-off, isolated feel that does not make people comfortable walking around the building (further aggravated by the building being set up above the sidewalk on most sides, presenting blank walls below the windows to these sides). In addition, I’m disappointed to see the scourge known as the skybridge making a new appearance. Skybridges suck the life out of the street and isolate people from street activity like hamsters in a habitrail. I thought we’d learned from the ’80s that skybridges aren’t a good idea (this also goes for tunnels, such as the one from Burnett Plaza to 500 West 7th, or the ones that help ruin downtown Dallas’s street life). Finally, the facade is being described as very “flat,” lacking any real interesting variation or detailing.

There’s also the issue of the site plan. This is an odd triangular corner lot, which faces an important intersection. The street grid of downtown shifts in this area, creating several interesting sight-lines. When faced with this area, architects of the past chose to do something creative with their designs. Sanguinet & Staats put a graceful, elegant curved corner on the Neil P. Anderson building at 7th & Lamar, creating a signature landmark. SOM set the rectangular 500 West 7th on a complex lot, and used the empty space for an attractive plaza with sculptures and outdoor dining areas. Cantey-Hangar Plaza, on the other hand, simply fills all the space and presents little more than a blank wall of glass to the intersection. It’s something of a wasted opportunity.

So there you go - another episode of Architectural Commentary.