Edmonton Construction 13 (November 2015)

[Hallsy's Toupee]

I stand corrected re: Milner library. I agree with the others, the older renders are much better than the updated ones.

[s211]

Originally Posted by MalcolmTucker

A new one:

http://skyrisecities.com/news/2016/10/new-renderings-stanley-milner-library-released

"The conceptual genesis of the dynamic form is no longer carried around the entire perimeter of the building as previously presented."

Isn't that the most lovely explanation ever heard to express value engineering.

[EdmTrekker]

Originally Posted by s211

"The conceptual genesis of the dynamic form is no longer carried around the entire perimeter of the building as previously presented."

Isn't that the most lovely explanation ever heard to express value engineering.

Indeed - and we are left for the next 50 years with a pile of — in the very centre of the City that shouts out to the world ...this is us. My statement is not so poetic.

[Boris2k7]

Originally Posted by s211

"The conceptual genesis of the dynamic form is no longer carried around the entire perimeter of the building as previously presented."

Yeesh, that's a lot of words for "it looks different."

[Chopper]

The sad part is it's in the centre of downtown Edmonton. An architectural marvel-Edmonton standard.

[technomad]

Originally Posted by EdmTrekker

Indeed - and we are left for the next 50 years with a pile of — in the very centre of the City that shouts out to the world ...this is us. My statement is not so poetic.

maybe they can hire tessco for the exterior work? it'll need to be redone in 5 years, not 50

edit: something like this design from Calgary's library competition would have been a better look for the Milner redo imo

[Coldrsx]

Looking forward to hosting and moderating tonight. If anything, join us for the talk and stay for the most beautiful 2nd floor lounge overlooking the river valley and city with the best furniture I have seen of late. Modern Teak.

Free tickets:

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/the-future-o...-discussion-tickets-34871128484?aff=eac2

[EdmTrekker]

Originally Posted by technomad

maybe they can hire tessco for the exterior work? it'll need to be redone in 5 years, not 50

edit: something like this design from Calgary's library competition would have been a better look for the Milner redo imo

That design is spectacular. Makes me sick to think what we have to look forward. Is that the actual design that Calgary is getting? Its a world class design. The Edmonton design being built is simply bush league and already passé.

[hilman]

Keep in mind the price tags of $62 million and $245 million gets you a little different facility. Not to be that guy but a quarter billion on a library is just nuts.

[MalcolmTucker]

Calgary's competition short list - you can get awesome entrants with a budget of $500 a square feet constructed plus:

3XN and AECOM (Denmark and Calgary) http://www.3xn.com/#/architecture/by-year/175-calgary-central-library
KPMB and BKDI (Toronto and Calgary) http://theflatsideofdesign.com/following...ic-Library-Competition-KPMB-Architects-1
REX and Group2 (New York and Calgary) http://www.rex-ny.com/calgary-central-library/
Snøhetta and Dialog (Oslo/New York and Calgary) [Winner] http://snohetta.com/projects/194-calgary39s-new-central-library-and-library-plaza#

[240glt]

They never should have tried to save the structure

That right there guaranteed you'd never get a decent contemporary facility

[technomad]

Originally Posted by hilman

Keep in mind the price tags of $62 million and $245 million gets you a little different facility. Not to be that guy but a quarter billion on a library is just nuts.

oh for sure, thus the 'something like' qualifier. pretty sure it'd need to be a lot smaller, don't think something of the full scale could be built onto the milner structure... but to me, Edmonton's selected design of white with funky window shapes and the open atrium area inside just came off as a cheap knockoff of the snohetta design Calgary ran with.

a scalled down version of the REX design I posted would have been unique, very different from what Calgary is building, and would have given a nod to the library's brutalist roots

[DRan]

Originally Posted by hilman

Keep in mind the price tags of $62 million and $245 million gets you a little different facility. Not to be that guy but a quarter billion on a library is just nuts.

Thinking back to the regular season you might say we spent half a billion on a new library

[hilman]

^ Zing!!

[kcantor]

Originally Posted by 240glt

They never should have tried to save the structure

That right there guaranteed you'd never get a decent contemporary facility

i'm not sure i would agree that they never should have tried to save the structure. from my perspective it would be more like "they never should have tried to incorporate the structure into something totally inappropriate and unsuited to the existing structure".

i think the existing structure would have been quite able to have been incorporated into a decent contemporary facility. the problem was moving the design past what should have been a handsome, striking contemporary facility to something iconic and completely unsuited to the existing structure

the fault lays not in saving the structure but in pursuing an iconic imagery that places too much value on imagery without understanding it and with a complete misunderstanding of the surrounding urban context.

now the problem will be compounded in that iconic is "all or nothing". you can't be "half iconic" because all you do is reinforce the fact you don't understand iconic and/or that you couldn't/refused to pay for iconic.

[EdmTrekker]

Originally Posted by kcantor

i'm not sure i would agree that they never should have tried to save the structure. from my perspective it would be more like "they never should have tried to incorporate the structure into something totally inappropriate and unsuited to the existing structure".

i think the existing structure would have been quite able to have been incorporated into a decent contemporary facility. the problem was moving the design past what should have been a handsome, striking contemporary facility to something iconic and completely unsuited to the existing structure

the fault lays not in saving the structure but in pursuing an iconic imagery that places too much value on imagery without understanding it and with a complete misunderstanding of the surrounding urban context.

now the problem will be compounded in that iconic is "all or nothing". you can't be "half iconic" because all you do is reinforce the fact you don't understand iconic and/or that you couldn't/refused to pay for iconic.

That is to the point and bang on.

[CMD UW]

Originally Posted by Coldrsx

People do not quite realize the scale/scope and impact of ICE District on our Downtown yet.

No, they do not.

[Chopper]

The design is just mediocrity at its best, its like a zaha hadid knockoff. Its unimaginative and poorly designed, they should just used the original design for MacEwan's new building, extend the glass until you cover the hideous mechanical/sign on top of the library.


Imagination and creativeness makes a structure worthy of positive recognition.

[Chopper]

Only few renderings in Edmonton are really noteworthy. Anyone here thinks that everytime there's a big ticket government/private proposed projects here, it looks like it was made by architecture students in their sophomore years. The renderings are just BS, even for finalists. I am shocked that a $50+million dollar project proposal here looked liked crammed and very unprofessional. Big and small firms here in Edmonton are just mediocre in presenting their proposals while in asia/Europe, they will give you a finalist worthy rendering even on the preliminary pitch.

[Coldrsx]

What a great evening at the beautiful new Hyatt Place Edmonton lounge (please go experience it) to discuss The Quarters. Community, respect, investment and people are what is needed.


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