Grabbed these three photos of TCC from the street. The fourth came from Fort Worth Forum member monee9696 from the Paddock Viaduct.
Thoughts:
1. Yes, this is how they planned it to turn out.
2. The pit is getting glass. I find it odd that the pit gets glass while the streetscape has to make do, thus far, with blank concrete slabs. Not good from an urban design perspective.
3. The only way this might be redeemed is if the rest of the ground floor apart from what’s already slabs is finished with glass. It would still be less than ideal for the Belknap frontage to be slabs, but glass on the rest would at least make the building more friendly to the street. With the upper floors being mostly slabs, it’ll never be exactly attractive, but if there’s at least some transparence and permeability on the ground floor, it won’t be so smothering of the streetscape.
Listen - above all else, this isn’t about style. This is about urban design and honoring the streetscape and public realm. Building a building whose street interaction is nothing but concrete slabs is just bad from this perspective. Within the framework of good urban design, there’s a nearly infinite array of stylistic variation available to work in. Nowhere did I ever say everything should look the same. I appreciate good modernism that’s subdued and of good urbanity. In fact, I plan to do a post next week about modernism I do like, so y’all will realize I’m not a zealot. I just want it to have good urbanism, especially in a setting like downtown. Everybody please realize I’m not trying to dictate style into a handful of genres.
Kevin — I haven’t been by there to see it so I appreciate the photos. I have ridden my bike by there many times from the other side of the river prior to the building going up.
I agree with you, although I am hoping the whole, upon completion, is greater than the sum of the parts while building.
If it isn’t, it is a bad start to the TRV.
Kevin, I am right behind you. When I saw these pictures I almost cried. Now, granted, it does look like it has potential to be pretty cool in some respects, but not downtown and NEVER next to the most beautiful court house in Texas.
I agree Kevin. Although, now that Belknap is opened up there and you can see through to the river, I think it looks better than expected. The slabs are no good though.
From your perspective, what would be a better fit for the piece of property across the street (between the Family Law Center and the “TCC” buildings: a plaza/park, civic building (like the family law building) or an office/mixed use project?
I hate this building. But to say the lack of glass inhibits pedestrian interaction is a little bit disingenuous. Won’t it be completely impossible for the parts of the buildings up for discussion to have “street interaction”? Belknap is a bridge now. The E and W sides will also be below ground, right? The whole thing is stupid, really. And I think it was doomed to fail from the beginning.
You’re talking about “impressions” of “feeling” welcoming, not actual ability to interact. These buildings won’t be easily accessible from downtown level without the sunken ramp/plaza if I understand correctly. And I don’t think that is happening. Therefore, there will be compromised street interaction, with or without a “welcoming” feeling.
The bad exterior isn’t what makes this building a failure. The overreaching ambition, blown budget, and design compromises/cancellations is what makes it a failure. Of course, using modular highway retention wall blocks just exacerbates the problem.
Thanks for the pictures, Kev! I need to go by there and visit the site for myself before too long.
Opinions of the South side are surely mixed (at best) but I’m thinking the North side of the TCC building may be the action side. It may be fantastic from the Trinity River Vision lake. We surely will know more about its looks in the next month or two, it would seem.