What's the most shameful monstrosity ever built in your city?

[slapshot™]

The ugly Soviet/bunker styled bldg in Winnipeg has a brother in Edmonton called the down town police station but I was unable to find a pic of it. They look very similar.

Instead, here's a looker....



The Ministry of Transportation, in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Actually, I kinda like it.

[Attrill]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ I'm sorry, but the HW Library does NOT belong on this thread.

I know, it was heavily criticized by the Blair Kamins of this world back in the 90's, as everybody was in a panic that CHicago had lost its architectural nerve for cutting edge design.

But those fears are clearing away, and over time I think this building will get its due appreciation. It's absolutely breathtaking and pretty unique in its own right.

I put it in because of the criticism it received in the early 90's, I don't think it is the worst bulding in Chicago at all (I'd actually include it in my top 20) but since it did receive recognition as the "worst building" years ago I posted it.

[tyler82]

I like this building a lot. Looks like something you'd see in the Sunset district. I could live in something like this, look at that personality!

Originally Posted by Dracmus

Oh good grief...and that one takes the cake it seems...



Notice it is abandoned too...and for good reason

[ed21x]

Taipei has far far worse to offer, but not in an area of so much potential:

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by m0nkyman

Originally Posted by kenratboy

Wow, now thats a building you can be proud of!!!

I love that truck on the second to last picture, must belong to the architect!

sorry man, i just couldn't afford the whole paint job. i kept changing my mind. i didn't realise it would end up in pictures. normally it just scares childern. but what can ya do. i mean the wife left me and i can't afford anything better.

[olga]

Originally Posted by slapshot™

The Ministry of Transportation, in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Wow, haven't seen that one before. It's truly awesome - or maybe awful, can't decide...

[Dolemite]

Why all of the hate for 311 S Wacker?

I think the building is decent, especially at night.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by LMich

There are definitely worst buildings in Chicago, IMO, but I think where this one went wrong is that this is an example of trying to hard. It looks like they tried to replicate, too exactly, a bunch of historic motiffs with modern materials, and tried to mash them altogether creating a really disjointed construction. It looks like some Chinese rip-off of historic American architecture, or something that would belong in a Disneyland.

i must respectfully disagree. many of you know that i have no great love of '80s po-mo, so what i'm about to say may shock you, but the harold washington library in chicago is actually one of chicago's finest examples of the po-mo movement. the building is over-scaled (intentional), but it is not "disneyfied" or a chinese rip-off. it is the real deal, with the real deal materials and very finely crafted ornament. it is by no means a cheap imitation.

i think the reason it received so much inital scorn from chicagoans is because the building was such a radical departure from the regular modern civic structures we had become accustomed to over the decades, but as this building has now settled into its place in the cityscape and in the city's legacy, it seems to just be getting better with age, and it is also slowly becoming more accepted by your average joe chicagoan.

summation: the HWL in chicago does not belong anywhere near an "ugliest buildings in chicago" list. it is one of chciago's stand-out stars of the po-mo movement.

[svs]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

i must respectfully disagree. many of you know that i have no great love of '80s po-mo, so what i'm about to say may shock you, but the harold washington library in chicago is actually one of chicago's finest examples of the po-mo movement. the building is over-scaled (intentional), but it is not "disneyfied" or a chinese rip-off. it is the real deal, with the real deal materials and very finely crafted ornament. it is by no means a cheap imitation.

i think the reason it received so much inital scorn from chicagoans is because the building was such a radical departure from the regular modern civic structures we had become accustomed to over the decades, but as this building has now settled into its place in the cityscape and in the city's legacy, it seems to just be getting better with age, and it is also slowly becoming more accepted by your average joe chicagoan.

summation: the HWL in chicago does not belong anywhere near an "ugliest buildings in chicago" list. it is one of chicago's stand-out stars of the po-mo movement.

I can't believe it, but for once I agree with you.

[DecoJim]

The Chicago Library would only belong under this topic if the design had botched the use of historical style. I like the fact that you can tell right away that it is a modern building by looking at the roof treatment. What I can't stand are modern buildings that try to replicate historical styles but fail because of cheap materials or bad proportions.

I have seen pictures of the Library without the oversize decorations at the top so it appears that they may have been added sometime after the building's completion.

By the way, those owls are rather sinister:

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by olga

Wow, haven't seen that one before. It's truly awesome - or maybe awful, can't decide...

if it weren't so brutalist, and the area around it were developed, it wouldn't be so bad.

[mdiederi]

I don't care for this brand new Hilton building. There will be a total of four of these when they are done.




photo by Don Pacho


photo by marlab55

[murman]

Originally Posted by widedetox

I've had several people tell me that this (the CN tower) in Edmonton is on of the ugliest buildings in the city. I personally never took the time to look at it (and still have not) but lets put it up for nomination anyway.

Sorry, but the casino in the forefront of this shot is 10000000000 times uglier.

[JonVegas]

Las Vegas has quite a few monstrosities, but I wouldn't count the Hilton among them. IMHO I like it a lot.
Do you have any specifics on what you dislike about it?

[JonVegas]

Here's my Vegas pick.
NYNY is bad on so many levels.
The number one reason: Someone already built the Empire State and Chrysler Buildings and did a much better job.
If you watch the DVD extras of Oceans Eleven there is an omitted scene where they implode it. I pray that happens someday.

[GeorgeLV]

^^Agree. The Hilton timeshare are perfectly decent if bland.

The Bridger Building is by far the most shameful monstrosity ever built in Vegas. Thankfully, they're going to demolish it.



Photo by Ralph Fountain/Las Vegas Review-Journal.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_ho...s/9020657.html

[mdiederi]

Yeah, agreed, NYNY and all the other Disneyesque follies are an embarrassment, but they amuse the tourists and bring in money, so what can you do?

Originally Posted by murman

Sorry, but the casino in the forefront of this shot is 10000000000 times uglier.

That's not big enough to be a monstrosity and the Hilton in my post doesn't even have a casino.

Originally Posted by JonVegas

Las Vegas has quite a few monstrosities, but I wouldn't count the Hilton among them. IMHO I like it a lot.
Do you have any specifics on what you dislike about it?

The big blank shafts at both ends, the boring ocher color, the phony stucco texture of the building materials, the mission style ornamentation at the top is completely inappropriate for a highrise, the small windows, the clashing vertical and diagonal stripes framing the small windows, the funky light fixtures below the garish tall narrow windows at the top, the square boxy overall shape, etc., etc., ... maybe the inside is nice. Just my opinion of course, but I'm not the first person to say it's ugly. And yeah, sure, there are certainly uglier older buildings in town, like George's choice for example, wow. Earlier I posted the Aladdin as a monstrosity. But what gets me is that this is brand new and that's the best they could do? Vegas is going modern and upscale and this thing is totally counter productive. Maybe it will grow on me, but I see that ugly shaft everyday and it's just depressing. The Palazzo will have blank ends on it's wings too, which I think is a bad idea.

What do you like about it?

[Independence]

Originally Posted by slapshot™

The ugly Soviet/bunker styled bldg in Winnipeg has a brother in Edmonton called the down town police station but I was unable to find a pic of it. They look very similar.

Instead, here's a looker....



The Ministry of Transportation, in Tbilisi, Georgia.

Actually, I kinda like it.

What the hell?!???!!??!????!?

Good taste has left the building, ladies and gentlemen!

[some_stupid_nut]

Massey Building, tallest in the small city I'm in. Ugliest too.



They are building this that will block out the lower views of the expansion.

[JonVegas]

Bridger Building: 100% agree! The building is in shambles now but I imagine it wasn't going to win any beauty pageants when the paint was still fresh either.

Hilton: I like the light fixtures at the top. I especially like the way it looks at night. I also like the color. It reminds me of some LA faux art-deco.

I see what you are saying about the horizontal lines though.