SAN DIEGO | Boom Rundown, Vol. 2

[Nerv]

I've seen the building listed at 370 and 389 feet depending on the site.

So which is it?

[tyleraf]

It says 389 on the superior court website so that is my guess.

[tyleraf]

Originally Posted by Nerv

Oohhh, yeah. Forgot about the new county courthouse too.

That will be another interesting looking building to SD's skyline. Good to see some projects that look different in a good way.

Groundbreaking still set for this December?

No, it was moved to mid-2014.

[spoonman]

Anyone know what will happen with the old courthouse site on Broadway, once the new courthouse is completed?

[tyleraf]

I read that it will be sold to an office developer. The part between b & c will become a park.

[Streamliner]

Originally Posted by spoonman

Anyone know what will happen with the old courthouse site on Broadway, once the new courthouse is completed?

I get mixed up with all these courthouses downtown. Let me see if I have this straight.

Federal:

The new Richard Meier & Partners-designed Federal Courthouse is south of Broadway, between State and Union Street. This was finished earlier this year.

State:

The new SOM-designed Central Courthouse building will be built north of C Street between State and Union Street. This 389 foot tall building will replace a parking lot and the bail bonds building with the American flag mural. It is set to commence construction next year. A skybridge will connect this to the Hall of Justice.

The old 1961 Central Courthouse is on the north side of Broadway between Union and Front Street. This older building will be torn down (?) and possibly sold to an office developer and part of the complex made into a park. This building currently extends north of C street and on to a parcel just north of B Street.

The Hall of Justice building is also north of Broadway between State and Union Street. This is the one with the curved and pillared stone facade, and is also part of the County Courthouse complex. Being built in 1996, this will remain. A skybridge connects this building with the old Central Courthouse.

The San Diego Central Jail lies north of C street between Front St and 1st Avenue. It connects to the old Central Courthouse via a skybridge.

Anyone know if I got this all correct? How will the new Central Courthouse connect to the Jail? I don't see a skybridge in the renders, will there be a tunnel?

[tyleraf]

Streamliner: You have everything right about the courthouses. The new SOM designed state courthouse was originally to be connected to the jail by a tunnel, but due to a budget reduction they will transport prisoners from the jail to the court by vehicle.

[Northparkwizard]

[QUOTE=Nerv;6326741]




That's straight-up ugly, does anyone else see a huge #1? Clinical and tacky.

Tearing down the 1961 courthouse is also a mistake symbolic of a attitude that prevails somehow downtown. Plenty of real estate to build out and not enough vision i.e. (all-time shitty waterfront edition) The Headquarters, Lane Field & NEVP.

[tyleraf]

The Sheraton Suites downtown is now the Declan Suites and will undergo a multimillion dollar remodel. http://www.sacbee.com/2013/11/05/5882252/san-diego-debuts-downtown-hotel.html

[SDfan]

Originally Posted by Northparkwizard

That's straight-up ugly, does anyone else see a huge #1? Clinical and tacky.

Tearing down the 1961 courthouse is also a mistake symbolic of a attitude that prevails somehow downtown. Plenty of real estate to build out and not enough vision i.e. (all-time shitty waterfront edition) The Headquarters, Lane Field & NEVP.

No. That's more straight-up modern. I like it. It's probably one of the few well-designed structures going up downtown soon (IMO of course).

As for the '61 courthouse, that thing is a testament to mid-century CHEAP modernism. That building needs to come down, or risk marking Broadway forever with San Diego's historic frugality-focused civic identity. It is a horrid, asbestos chocked trap. Gross.

It ain't no Hotel Del, if you know what I mean...

No disagreement about the NEVP site though, totally a waste of potential.

[Bertrice]

Regarding the NEVP, why does expanding a sidewalk cost 28 million?

[tyleraf]

I kinda like the NEVP, at least if it is ever completely built.

[Northparkwizard]

Originally Posted by SDfan

No. That's more straight-up modern. I like it. It's probably one of the few well-designed structures going up downtown soon (IMO of course).

As for the '61 courthouse, that thing is a testament to mid-century CHEAP modernism. That building needs to come down, or risk marking Broadway forever with San Diego's historic frugality-focused civic identity. It is a horrid, asbestos chocked trap. Gross.

It ain't no Hotel Del, if you know what I mean...

No disagreement about the NEVP site though, totally a waste of potential.

Nope. Straight-up Walmart modernism if i've ever seen it. We deserve better. That thing looks like a huge stucco #1 that attorneys waste peoples time at. Give me something dynamic, not a diet version of a Shanghai Radison (without the hat).

Maybe the best out of the worst, which isn't saying much,

The frugality that you speak about the '61 building is exactly what makes the soon-to-be courthouse look cheap, banal, and undignified. IMO the '61 building (on the outside) isn't the ugly duckling on broadway.

[SDfan]

Originally Posted by Northparkwizard

Nope. Straight-up Walmart modernism if i've ever seen it. We deserve better. That thing looks like a huge stucco #1 that attorneys waste peoples time at. Give me something dynamic, not a diet version of a Shanghai Radison (without the hat).

Maybe the best out of the worst, which isn't saying much,

The frugality that you speak about the '61 building is exactly what makes the soon-to-be courthouse look cheap, banal, and undignified. IMO the '61 building (on the outside) isn't the ugly duckling on broadway.

To each their own.

[Nerv]

As courthouses go, I like it too.

The federal courthouse was decent enough looking but I think the county building will give the downtown skyline some nice diversity.


It has been received with generally good comments. I know more than a few cities are jealous that we are getting a new federal and county courthouses in such a short period of time too.

[Leo the Dog]

Originally Posted by SDfan

No. That's more straight-up modern. I like it. It's probably one of the few well-designed structures going up downtown soon (IMO of course).

It's pretty brutal looking with a modern twist. It kinda reminds me of something from Boston's Govt Center from the 60s. Super imposing, dwarfing the W, guaranteeing a permanent dead zone after 5pm, further isolating Little Italy from DT.

I'd like to see development that livens up some of these dead zones, not expand them.

[Streamliner]

Originally Posted by Leo the Dog

It's pretty brutal looking with a modern twist. It kinda reminds me of something from Boston's Govt Center from the 60s. Super imposing, dwarfing the W, guaranteeing a permanent dead zone after 5pm, further isolating Little Italy from DT.

I'd like to see development that livens up some of these dead zones, not expand them.

You're right that it won't do a whole lot to liven up this area of downtown. However, it is still just a courthouse, I don't know if we can expect it to be much more than that. That said, I think there is some potential with whatever happens to the old courthouse land. A park and a new office building could enhance the area a bit.

As for the tower itself, I kinda like it. I'm a bit tired of all the balconies that San Diego's new construction has, so this is a nice change. It looks clean and has a nice texture. I think we need more office buildings in general downtown (purely for skyline reasons, not because of lack of supply).

[SDfan]

Originally Posted by Leo the Dog

It's pretty brutal looking with a modern twist. It kinda reminds me of something from Boston's Govt Center from the 60s. Super imposing, dwarfing the W, guaranteeing a permanent dead zone after 5pm, further isolating Little Italy from DT.

I'd like to see development that livens up some of these dead zones, not expand them.

I don't see what's so "brutal" about it, and I think the Boston center is a little extreme of a comparison, but okay. As for livening up the area, not all of downtown has to be the gaslamp. There are functional 9-5 aspects that have to exist in a complete downtown. Better they have the new state court house there than in kearny mesa...

And I don't know if anyone has noticed, but many of these federal, state, county, and city offices are being clustered in the core/columbia area because they were planned that way. It's somewhat logical to have government institutions be near other government institutions for collaborative, functional, and geographic reasons.

[SDfan]

Just saw a snippet in the sdbj about an investment group sitting and waiting to purchase and then redevelop the Town and Country Resort in Mission Valley. That is a big site with a lot of potential. It was the first major development in the valley, so it's going to be interesting to see what could be done there.

[tyleraf]

This is good news for downtown! Little Italy association approved a new streetcar line that would run though the district. http://sandiego.urbdezine.com/2013/11/06...ves-historic-streetcars-in-the-district/