Quote:
Originally Posted by ahealy
I agree with all of this, but lately I've noticed how much old buildings are just being torn down for the sake of something bigger. Austin is seriously low on historic public buildings....heck, they're even trying to demolish that mod house off 38th & Red River 
I get so feelingsy when I see old maps of downtown with those spectacular ghost buildings everywhere. |
I can see what your saying but think about how little density Downtown Austin would have today if the majority of those buildings remained. Remember we are talking about small buildings with at most 3 floors. For most of this city's history we were a small town. We were never big enough to gain much density in an era when larger cities built up their cores with midrises.
It's just not practical for a city nearing 900,000 people especially when there are already other restrictions such as the CVCs to contend with. I think incorporating original structures into new buildings is a great idea and would like to see more of that, but most of the architectural gems are already protected as historical landmarks. There are some, like the facade that was incorporated into the Austonian, that I just don't see the point of. To me that does not scream out architectural gem.