i would love to make some comments if they are going to be heard by someone who will actually take them into account. I wasn't in Cleveland when they first asked for comments (if that indeed was two years ago). But still, how does this react to any comments that were made before the architect was chosen? I'm sure people said that they wanted something modern. Sure this is modern, but its not good. Well, here are my two-beer thoughts..

 

First, we have the 60's RV dome thing. I can't even express how tacky it looks. The two horizontal bands of windows, while its nice to let in some light, are so bland and 70ish. I do like that they will provide some great views of the downtown skyline, but isn't this a prime opportunity to open up the building even more and tie it visually into downtown. How great would it be to work in this buildng and have giant windows that look towards our tallest buildings. The current food court does a wonderful job of that. Build off of that.

 

Secondly, the front entrance looks like a skeletal grid superimposed upon the building. It really looks like the architect is trying to take some elements from the old student center and put them into the new one. This is not a bad idea in concept. However, he's taken one of the ugliest parts of the current building and chosen to use it on the new one. Also, this grid looks like it was pulled out of some other building design and slapped onto the front of this one. It looks so out of place. I think that it also looks too heavy. Thin beams will allow the pedestrian's eye to focus upon what's inside those windows. These heavy-looking beams really detract from that possibility. Lastly, the grid patter seems to have no relation to the different levels/floors behind it. Its kind of chaotic. Where's the subtle symmetry?

 

Thirdly, nothing about the entire design looks coherent. The stairwell has no relation to the facade, which has no relation to the east or west elevation, etc. Its just so random--and in a really bad way.

 

I feel that I am usually a bit more restrained on my architectural comments than most on UO, but I feel very strongly about this. It is just bad. We don't have very many opportunities in this city to build things like this. This building is in the heart of campus. It will be the most prominent structure on CSU's portion of Euclid Avenue. We are paying a lot of money for something that is, at the very least, a lateral architectural move for the university. I know that its still somewhat preliminary and that we haven't seen a color version of the structure, but i don't see anything redeeming at all. I don't see any strengths to build off of. I hope we can start over from scratch.

My central complaint is that this building, like what it will replace, fails to embrace Euclid Avenue. The front facade curves away from the sidewalk, creating pointless empty space at both cross streets. The main front entrance appears to be buried in the deepest part of the curve, creating a sense that the building is a fortress to be penetrated rather than a welcoming gathering place, open to street. There should be a fluid relationship between the sidewalk and the front door, almost as if a boundary didn't exist. And what's that absurd tube-looking thing affixed to the front?

 

All in all, this building is bunker-like, just like what's there now. We don't know the materials yet, but the design cries out for poured concrete.

Thank you for posting this, Musky.  Of course we are all excited about the possibilities of this project, which is why we are all being so hyper critical.  I hope you aren't taking the criticism as being pointed at you in any way. 

 

It think that this also demonstrates one of the truism of planning and designing- it's alot easier to get people to react to something than to come up with a clean slate vision of what they would like to see.

ps: where are the wind turbines?

ok for an instance like this, look at the Peter B Lewis Building.  First off, iconic, CSU needs this desperately.  Second even thought its a weird inside out sculpture, the building goes right up against the street.  theres a restaurant right visible on the street.  and third, theres still room for greenspace... off to the side and behind the building... not in front. 

 

i think this building needs to lose the curvy footprint, go up to the street, and it needs more glass facing euclid. 

And I think we need a better understanding of the program of uses that will front Euclid.  Do we have any idea of what those are yet?

Although I would rather see something "iconic" be built, I like it a hundred times better than what it's replacing. I think at times we need to be realistic and consider that this is a project being funded by the state and they will always play it safe and will rarely step over the edge. Let's see the cranes in the air!

I don't necessarily want something iconic. This thing would stand out like a sore thumb. Do something simple, a la the law school facade. I think something like that would be much better than the current proposed design.

I think at times we need to be realistic and consider that this is a project being funded by the state and they will always play it safe and will rarely step over the edge. Let's see the cranes in the air!

 

What about all the "signature" buildings on campus at the Univ. of Cincinnati?  That's a state university and they've got some pretty outlandish "iconic" stuff there.  I don't think we should be complacent by any means, especially with this location, this building and this time in CSU's development. 

X, et al,

 

Thank you for providing comments with substance. This is what I am looking for. I am not taking any comments personally.

My role in this project is as a representative of the CSU student body... or the users (students).

 

I just wanted comments that I can forward to the consultants. I can't just tell them "they think its ugly." (I could but that is not going to make anything happen.) The comments given in the past couple of days are what I am looking for. Thank you.

 

Let me try to comment on some of the things brought up - not defend, just clarify, if possible.

 

But before I get into that, my personal feeling is, generally speaking, I like it. I think it could be much better, but I like the direction it is going. I like the way the Euclid "front door curve" is really a front door for all of Euclid Avenue, not just for Rascal House. The user traveling east can see the people sitting on the patio directly outside of the pub. The users sitting in the pub patio (and along the glass windows) can sit and watch other users and commuters along the whole street. This could not happen if the building was square along the street edge.

 

I also like the way the inner-link bridge is reconfigured. The current layout is very disorienting. I feel they did a good job fixing that. I also love the terrace they created for the ballroom. There will be great views of the city from there, as there will be from the eight foot glass windows on the east side of the building in the bookstore and dining areas.

 

I am not completely sold on the ballroom bulge. I really need to see the materials used on this before I can be sold on this idea.

 

There are some things about the renderings that do not transfer well. Mainly, there is no reference to materials or colors proposed - this building is proposed to be transparent, mostly glass. However, based on past projects from GS, it will probably be concrete (white) steel and glass.  I do not think I am wrong in presuming this. Anyway, I hope my esteemed forumers keep this in consideration when providing input.

 

A few other things:

The grid on the Euclid entrance was not there during the fist schematic drawings. Everything 3231 said came up at the last meeting. The University Architect hated it. After it was explained a little more, he did not hate it as much. Basically, the grid could be cantilevered over the entrance so it appears to float. GS said they are going to hire a lighting consultant to see how the grid could be lit at night. If the grid is not there, the souther sun light will shine directly into the building creating some solar heating issues, even if the windows are treated. The grid will help shade the windows.

 

I think when GS was hired (the second time) we lost our opportunity to have something iconic for he university. I personally do not know what to do about that. In the first set of schematics a month ago, I pointed out to GS and the rest of the committee the issue of the pyramid skylight. I told them to make it higher. There is nothing to draw people to the student center, arguably the center of the university. It should be seen from the furthest corners of the campus. They argued it was more function then form. So what did they do about it... they removed it completely. Whatever.

 

The building that will be more iconic for the university, if funded, ill be the proposed visual arts center I posted some time ago. The president absolutely loves Westlake's renderings and is supposedly calling in all favors to try to get that built.

 

Ok, I think I am done with this for today. If I am going to write this much, I should be getting a grade for it.

 

Map Boy, are you referring to windmills on the student center? If so, the answer will be not here. If you are referring to the wind spire, the answer: tied up in court over patent issues. Once settled, and it will be settle, building will start immediately and it wil built on either the MAGNET building or the Physical Plant Building.

well thats wonderful news about the visual arts center, that would look quite amazing in that area of downtown.

Which are the MAGNET and physical plant buildings?  The Convocation Center is totally out now? 

 

I was thinking that because the turbine idea came out around the time that the architect was selected that there may have been an attempt to incorporate this significant landmark into the design.  I think that would do far better than a big glass pyramid to represent the image that CSU is trying to put forward.  Ah well!

MAGNET = Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network

Physical Plant = where I work

CSU Architect's office, Capital Planning, Mailroom, Surplus Equipment auction, Etc,

 

 

 

The turbine is going on top of one of the buildings.

As mentioned several pages ago, the president does not want the wind spire to be representative of CSU because of the Phallac

look of it = he wants to hide it... next to a freeway.

 

Ha!  That's ridiculous!

What about all the "signature" buildings on campus at the Univ. of Cincinnati?

 

If I recall two of those buildings had major private funding. With that money usually brings naming rights and more of a say as to the design. I think with the rumors of a private donation for the Visual Arts Ctr. is why we are looking at a very special building. If the renderings are close to what will actually be built-that is very exciting. WRL deserves a signature project already.

As far as the student center goes, I don't have a real problem with it. If I were in the position that Musky is I would just stress to them how important this building is to Cleveland and hope that they take that to heart.

Well now we can see that the president of the university is bashful to make any sort of statement for the university by looking at his current track record:

Choosing Gwathmey Seigel to do the student center, and wanting to hide a very interesting, cutting edge technology next to the freeway.  I say put the turbine in the crappy front lawn of the Urban Affairs Building if it makes sense technically.

All: I will pass on all comments regarding the Student Center. Thank you for your input.

 

I say put the turbine in the crappy front lawn of the Urban Affairs Building if it makes sense technically.

 

I already have plans for that site.

Let's replace the innerlink with a roller coaster.

Let's replace the innerlink with a roller coaster.

 

It's CSU not the New York New York hotel in Vegas.....interesting idea though. :-D :-D

Awww, who told you my secret

 

**********************************

 

Heard on WCPN this morning:

 

New Wind Turbine for Urban Environments

Aired February 22, 2007

 

Later this morning, officials at Cleveland State University will meet to move ahead with plans to build a new type of wind turbine designed specifically for dense urban environments. ideastream's Lisa Ann Pinkerton has more.

 

Listen to the MP3:

http://www.wcpn.org/mp3/2007/02/0222windSpire.mp3

 

Image courtesy of Green Energy Technologies

 

The Smart Energy Spire, as it's called, looks like a giant corkscrew with two small wind turbines nestled on each side of it's grooves. In principle, it's spiral shape is expected to increase the velocity of low spend winds that encounter the grooves, creating a wind tunnel effect. Dr. Majid Rashidi, a Mechanical Engineering Professor at Cleveland State University who helped to engineer the design, says this wind tunnel effect works whether the spire is a stand alone tower or mounted on top of a building.

 

    Majid Rashidi: So when the wind stream hits it, it's going to go around the structure. And as it goes around it speeds up and we are exposing the wind turbines to a higher wind velocity than what Mother Nature gives us.

 

Rashidi says CSU has secured funding to build a prototype of the Smart Energy Spire on top of one of its academic buildings. The plan is to construct a two groove spire what will test the accuracy of computer models. Rashidi says even on this small scale, the spire should generate between 100 and 500 kilowatts of power per second, depending on the wind.

 

    Majid Rashidi: With this two turn system we can supply four houses full blast with all the appliances and electrical systems on.

 

The Akron Company Green Energy Technologies approached CSU to assist with the spire design, and hopes to mass market it in the future.

 

Dr. Rashidi presented the design plans to a room full of staff members at the Cleveland Natural History Museum on Wednesday, where concerns were raised about the spire's potential to harm flying wildlife. Past wind turbine projects, which didn't undergo proper environmental impact studies have been known to kill large numbers of animals that flew too close. David Krista, coordinator of Biodiversity at the museum, says the small 20-foot diameter of the Spire's turbine blades means they could spin very fast, up to 200 rotations per minute.

 

    David Krista: While the big turbines, like we're talking about on Lake Erie, those turbines have a 300-foot diameter, they don't spin at fast maybe 20 rpms. He quoted 200 rpms. So the concern is how fast those guys are spinning. Those essentially could be blenders. So I'm concerned about the energy efficiency but I'm also concerned about the wild life impacts.

 

Dr. Rashidi says the spire prototype will go through environmental impact studies as well to satisfy public concerns over wildlife impacts and sight selection. Contracts with fabricators and parts suppliers will also need to be negotiated making it a year or more before the first wind spire can be built. Lisa Ann Pinkerton, 90.3.

wow...!

The first prototype could be built in the next two years.

 

by accelerating the wind, I wonder if it's going to make campus a little more windy?

more windy, and a little more phallic. 

SUMMARY OF ACTIONS

March 16, 2007

 

  10. Approved contracts with Heery International for construction manager services for the Student Center and for the College of Education building projects.

 

  11. Authorized amending the contract with CBLH Design for additional architectural work in Viking Hall to accommodate additional cooking and dining spaces for the relocation of the catering kitchen from University Center to Viking Hall when the existing facilities in University Center are closed next fall.

 

Any word on when the Graduate Administration building will open? Who are the ground floor tenants? A restaurant?

Sorry for the delay. I wanted to make sure I had correct information regarding the restaurant from the pm and he had been out the past couple of days.

Last week was moving day for the Administration Center. Floors 2 and 3 are occupied by the president, VP and their staff, plus some other university functions. The first floor is not complete yet, but will house human resources and the restaurant. The restaurant is at 80% design and will be located on the western portion of the Admin building. The mansion has been having many unexpected issues. The last one involved one of the contractors having to completely rip out all of the conduit for the fire alarm in the whole building because they put the wrong kind in. Right now the main contractor is saying the building should be ready by the end of May. It will hold functions like Purchasing, Auditing and Graduate functions, among a few other things. There is supposed to be some leasable space in there as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

thanks for the effort muskers

Apologies for posting a long article.

 

From Cool Cleveland:

 

 

 

Cleveland State University Works to Transform Its Soviet Block

 

Jack Boyle and I look out the windows between the cement block walls of Cleveland State University’s main classroom building. A striking view of Cleveland’s skyline opens up before us.

 

“We are like a city of 20,000 residents,” says Boyle, the Senior VP of Business Development for CSU. “We have to create demand on our campus for housing and other amenities, and then show others that the demand is there.”

 

Boyle led CSU’s Master Plan efforts, completed in 2004, and three years later, the $250 million investment is beginning to show – a new, landscaped plaza by the student center, a green-built rec center, five hundred new dorm rooms in Fenn Tower.

 

We are standing by the student plaza, which is situated between Euclid and Chester Avenues at the heart of campus. A redesign has broken up the once barren concrete into a softer, more inviting green, a landscape of shrubs, flowerbeds and paving stones. The plaza has the laid-back feel of a college quad – a stark contrast to the grey, prison-like buildings around it.

 

Plaza renovations included taking down a stand of trees, opening up the vista to downtown Cleveland. When CSU was founded in the 1960s, the defensive style of campus architecture (a trademark of Urban Renewal, more Soviet than Socratic) walled off the campus from the city. The new Master Plan has unveiled a visceral connection to downtown, a metaphor for changes at work here.

 

With the Euclid Corridor project taking shape just beyond its sidewalks, the campus these days is filled with hard hats, cranes and orange barrels. Yet how long will it take CSU, given limited capital dollars and flat enrollment, to make a dent in the project “wish list” of its ambitious Master Plan? And how will CSU attract the private investment needed (bars, restaurants, retail and apartments) to complement its Master Plan, turning the “collegetown” idea into a reality?

 

Some area business owners express skepticism, even as they back CSU’s efforts to remake itself. “Our business is hurting,” says Dave Kaufman, co-owner of Brothers Printing, which has been on Euclid Ave., across from the CSU campus, since 1974. “CSU was inward-thinking for so long. They built these tunnels that take people off the street; there’s no one on Euclid anymore. But the Master Plan is definitely an improvement, and Schwartz is doing a good job. The construction isn’t helping – but I see a light at the end of the tunnel.”

 

No master developer has stepped up to redevelop Euclid between East 18th and 24th Streets, and that makes CSU’s “big bet” at redeveloping its campus seem more challenging. Planners dream of a “collegetown” here – older office buildings turned into market-rate apartments, restaurants and retail buzzing below.

 

“We’ve got 15,000 students across the street,” says Bill Beckenbach, Director of the Quadrangle Development Corp. “Something’s gotta happen here.” He says that 1900 Euclid Avenue, a conversion of a former office building to eighty plus apartments, has done well. Hopefully, he says, this will encourage others.

 

During a recent tour of the 1900 Euclid Lofts, Rachel Holden, Assistant Property Manager for Somerville Development, cited twelve vacant units out of about eighty. At points, she said, vacancy has hovered at just 3-5 percent. The one and two bedroom suites here offer lake and city views from the upper floors; most contain tall ceilings, fireplaces and in-suite laundry. Tenants park in an attached garage. As far as plans to redevelop the area around the property, Holden says she “hears rumors, but it’s taken a long time” for plans to materialize.

 

Despite these challenges, Boyle argues that the Master Plan has already changed CSU’s image: “Previously, the high school juniors would come with their parents, and all we could show them was an old Holiday Inn we’d converted to housing [Viking Hall] and Rascal House with its mediocre pizza. Now, we can show them the new housing on campus, the rec center and downtown. They say, ‘Whoah, this is something I want to consider.’”

 

Ed Mills, CSU’s Chief Enrollment Officer, agrees. “The developments on campus, especially the rec center and Fenn Tower, are making a positive impression on visitors,” he says. Mills cites a bump in applications from full-time students that want to live on campus, as well as students who are from outside of Northeast Ohio. The new developments, he says, have also helped to attract parents of full-time students who want their freshman son or daughter to live on campus.

 

Terry Schwartz of Kent State University’s Urban Design Center, which helped CSU to develop its Master Plan, says that CSU’s efforts to “turn its campus inside out” and “engage the campus with the community” are part of a national trend. “Cities are figuring out how to partner with universities to leverage resources,” she says, “and universities are realizing they have to fish or cut bait on urban areas.” One of the most notable examples in our region is Ohio State University’s redevelopment of High Street in Columbus. In University Circle, Case Western is working to redevelop the intersection of Ford and Euclid.

 

With President Michael Schwartz at the helm, CSU has also launched an effort to improve its rankings, and to restructure admissions so that students are of a higher caliber. By doing so, the university hopes to boost its four-year-student population, creating the critical mass needed to spur private development.

 

Two other examples of completed building projects are the rec center and Fenn Tower. According to Boyle, the rec center, funded mostly by student parking fees, is used by about 700 people per day. CSU is applying for a “LEED Silver” rating because it’s a green building. The exterior design blends a red, collegiate brick with metal windows that are more urban in feel. Set almost to the edge of the street, the oversized, floor to ceiling windows allow a visual interaction between occupants and passers-by. Inside, the workout areas are positioned to capture views of downtown and Lake Erie. Placed along Chester at the campus’s eastern edge, it’s a vivid symbol of CSU’s new image.

 

Another change on campus is Fenn Tower. One of the few scraps of historic fabric left on campus, the building’s exterior, lobby and ballrooms have been restored, and the rest converted to 438 beds of student housing. These rooms are ninety percent full. With the addition of Fenn, CSU’s housing supply has doubled from 500 to 950 beds. Other features of this Art Deco gem include two gorgeous ballrooms, three new classrooms and a computer lab. Boyle, who sees demand for another 500 rooms, wants to add convenience retail to the lobby.

 

Student fees, parking revenues and state funds are paying for these campus improvements. The state provides about $6.5 million per year for capital projects. CSU has used some of its future state allocations, issuing bonds to pay for projects, then paying those bonds back once the state issues funding. Research suggests that older campuses across the nation face similar challenges – many are scrambling to update classrooms and dorms for today’s students, and like CSU, they are taking on capital projects in the face of limited dollars.

 

Projects in the works include a new administration building on Euclid, and the restoration of Howe Mansion, one of the original “Millionaire’s Row” mansions, as offices and conference space. These projects are across from Fenn Tower and next to Trinity Commons, where a few years ago Trinity Cathedral developed a coffee shop/cafe, religious bookstore and fair trade gift store.

 

Boyle hopes to secure a pub/restaurant for the ground floor of these buildings. “The major competition we’ll have is people brown-bagging their lunches,” he says, due to the lack of restaurants on campus. It will have outdoor seating in an attractive courtyard – something of a novelty in a university known for its above-ground tunnels. The new admin buildings will also move the President from the relative seclusion of his Rhodes Tower perch to a more visible, public office.

 

The Howe restoration is a story in and of itself. This spacious brick home, though not as grand as another landmark restored by CSU, Mather Mansion, was in need of renovation when the university bought it years ago. The boarded-up building just sat there, however, until the Master Plan led CSU to the idea of developing a “front-office” complex on Euclid. Getting there wasn’t easy.

 

“Have you ever seen the movie ‘The Money Pit’?” Hugh Holley, the Construction Manager with CSU in charge of the project, asks me during a tour. “Some days, renovating this house feels a bit like that. I wonder if we should have just taken a match to it! But in the end, I think it’ll be worth it.”

 

The Howe renovation preserved the historic wood paneling, an ornate wooden banister, and five of the original nine fireplaces. Contractors installed new wood windows, and re-created some of the historic cove ceilings. In essence, a new building was created inside of an old shell. Both the Howe Mansion and the new admin building will be heated by a geothermal system. It will draw heat from hundreds of feet below the earth’s surface via an elaborate system of heat pumps. Since CSU owns both buildings, they will realize the energy savings. Holley says engineers estimate the payback at 7-10 years.

 

Other projects that are funded but still in the pipeline include a new College of Education beside Fenn Tower, a glassy entrance to Marshall Law School, and a new student center. The latter is a centerpiece. The CSU “Cage” – a glass and steel monolith that Boyle describes as having “the acoustics of an echo chamber” and as “a nightmare to heat and cool” – will be torn down and replaced. CSU will build a larger bookstore within the center, accessible to people living or working downtown as well as students. They will also consolidate food services there.

 

According to the Master Plan, this is just the beginning. Terry Schwartz describes the larger goals that will shape CSU’s development plans as concentrating campus activities between Chester and Euclid, developing housing to the north and south, and consolidating parking in multi-level structures, thus freeing up land for development. Other goals include preserving historic buildings, making north-south streets easier to navigate and more pedestrian friendly and creating connections between the convocation center and Euclid. Long-term projects include reusing land freed up by the Innerbelt project, and creating a “Varsity Village” that will enhance CSU’s sports identity and create a new residential community around the athletic fields, between Chester and Payne Aves.

 

Though CSU’s investments will hopefully act as a catalyst, time will tell whether private developers take the bait. Currently, the buildings on Euclid between East 18th and 24th are concentrated among three owners – Heartland Developers, Brothers Printing, and Gus Frangos. Heartland Developers is a Shaker Heights developer well-known for building townhomes and condos in the city and inner-ring suburbs; Frangos is an attorney and parking lot owner.

 

“Brothers Printing is an amateur developer, Heartland has not moved on their project yet, and Frangos is primarily a parking lot owner,” says Beckenbach, who could not say when the “collegetown” project would be launched.

 

Mark Priemer of Heartland Developers describes Euclid Ave. between East 18th and 24th as a “superblock” with great potential, but says that Heartland is still in a “holding period” of waiting for the Euclid Corridor project to be completed. In the meantime, they are putting together plans for the building, which is slated for a residential use, either apartments or for-sale condominiums.

 

Regardless of how quickly the private sector follows CSU’s lead, evident in the battery of cranes and dumptrucks on campus is the patient turning of dull, gray concrete into something more interesting – and sometimes beautiful.

 

“These buildings are poured-in-place concrete, so they’re tough to change or demolish; it’s a bit like putting lipstick on a pig,” Terry Schwartz says wryly. “For years, CSU has been moving people from the parking lot, to the classroom, and back to the parking lot again. We’re trying to get beyond that bunker mentality.”

 

From Cool Cleveland contributor Lee Chilcote [email protected]

 

Retrieved from http://coolcleveland.com/index.php?n=Main.CityscapeCSU

Page last modified on March 27, 2007, at 10:17 AM

those new windows in Howe mansion are half wood half vinyl. i know. i installed them :-)

Are there really 500 dorm rooms in Fenn Tower?  That sounds like alot.

i think they meant 500 beds...you know how they cram bunk beds in those dorm rooms. that building is nowhere large enough for 500 rooms

nearly 500 beds, not rooms.

those new windows in Howe mansion are half wood half vinyl. i know. i installed them :-)

 

You did a very nice job. Are you still working in there?

 

Another change on campus is Fenn Tower. One of the few scraps of historic fabric left on campus, the building’s exterior, lobby and ballrooms have been restored, and the rest converted to 438 beds of student housing. These rooms are ninety percent full. With the addition of Fenn, CSU’s housing supply has doubled from 500 to 950 beds. Other features of this Art Deco gem include two gorgeous ballrooms, three new classrooms and a computer lab. Boyle, who sees demand for another 500 rooms, wants to add convenience retail to the lobby.

 

 

The number of beds in Fenn were quoted as 438. That number is about right (give or take a couple). When Boyle mentions another 500 rooms- well, this can be taken two different ways. In Fenn, many of the rooms have only one bed in them because of the room sizes. So, this would imply 500 rooms = 500 beds. However, some of the rooms have at leas two beds in them and a few have 3 or 4 (although not many). I would guess Boyle could be interpreted as saying we have a demand for another 500 - 750 beds.

 

 

Musky,

 

When do you think CSU will add more dorms?

CSU will probably not add more dorms unless there is a huge bump in enrollment. They will, however, continue to partner with private developers in creating more dorms. From what I know, the next chance of that happening will be after the student center is complete. When that is done, the old bookstore will be torn down, leaving that  parcel and the parking lot next to it available for housing. It is envisioned there will be market-rate housing there.

 

********************************************************

 

From today's PD a,d everyone's favorite Art Critic/architect wanna-be.  :wink:

 

Cleveland State arts complex proposed

$50 million project would be on Euclid

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Steven Litt

Plain Dealer Architecture Critic

 

Cleveland State University wants to put the arts front and center on its campus.

 

A new plan, described publicly by university officials for the first time Monday, calls for moving the studio art and theater programs from a dark, dingy complex at the edge of cam pus to a dramatic new building on a high-visibility site on Euclid Avenue. Facilities for music and dance would also be part of the package...

 

For more:  http://blog.cleveland.com/plaindealer/2007/04/arts_complex_proposed_for_eucl.html

 

 

You'll recall I reported on this and posted the renderings for your viewing pleasure back in October.

 

See below:

 

Wouldn't it be really cool if there was a press release stating that a certain local businessman and philanthropist and overall rich (and possibly too libertarian) gave CSU money?

 

Wouldn't it be really cool if that money was somewhere in the amount of $25,000?

 

You know what would be reeeaaallly cool? What if that money was to be used for a planning study for a performing/fine arts center - maybe on the land immediately south of the Communications College?

 

Wait, it would be really super-duper cool if the firm doing the planning study was an internationally recognized, award winning local architectural firm who has already done work at CSU.

 

Hmmmmm, that would be great news. :clap:

 

We received the planning study for the Visual Arts Center last week.

Here are a few shots of the conceptual proposal. These are basically massing and programing studies. It is not funded and will likely not look like this. However, the university leadership loves it. No cost has been associated with it yet. It is expected in about a month. If the donor who paid for the study would like to contribute significantly to the construction of said building, it would be the second one in the city with his name on it (on two different colleges).

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see, if anything slightly resembling this concept were built, it would significantly alter the Euclid Corridor landscape in the best of ways. It would likely cause the GS architects/staff to up their game when designing the Student Center.

 

And, yes, this would mean the end of the Corlett Building.

 

Here's hoping it gets built.

Thanks Musky for reposting those renderings.  Super exciting stuff. (Especially if you gloss over the not having any of the money on hand part.)  I'm sick of meek buildings.

No prob.

 

Here is the graphic from todays paper.

 

 

 

thank you musky. no, we put those windows in last summer. working on an elementary school in shaker heights now. that building was a mess, though they did do a good job at saving alot of the original woodwork. i believe that building may have looked much different before (roofline wise). it has a newer roof on it and there are a eight or ten chimney stacks that have been knocked down that are underneath that roof.

The art complex looks great--sleak, up to the street (anti-old CSU!), and a showcase piece for the university.  Great for the city and for Cleveland State.  The only aspect I somewhat dislike are the two indoor pedestrian bridges that take away from the street life.  But if it's needed especially for cold weather, then I'll take it.  Nice job Reed Leskosky firm of Westlake.

Wheew!

 

 

And if that was not enough news. Here is a sneak preview of the new College of Education building.

 

The arts complex looks fantastic.  It's so transparent, I love the mix of transparent space with the spiralling form on the inside of the west wing.  I also like the "shoeboxes" that make up the east wing- like lifesize dioramas.  The idea of a glass back to the stage, so that people can see the performances inside is really amazing too.  It will add alot of visual interest to the walk up Euclid.

 

One thing that worries me about the design- the ramp that takes up half of the street level facade.    This is going to create a space where passersby will be looking at essentially the underside of a ramp and the mostly unusable space underneath, and then people's feet.  I am assuming that the ramp leads to the main entrance.  I think that having the main entrance at a higher level than street level seperates the facility from what is going on outside, instead of inviting people in.  Also I think ramps tend to funnel people out after an event, rather than encouraging them to congregate, but that's just my theory (they don't arrest movement, they push it forward).  Was there a reason why they didn't use a more traditional entrance with either public lobby space or more retail at that portion of the street facade?

 

All in all, I think it is one of the most exciting new proposals in the region.

 

The College of Education Preview isn't coming through for me.

Good critique.

Too bad this will likely never be built as conceptualized.

 

As far as COE goes - it is the only drawing I have available right now.

As soon as more come around, I will post.

Too bad this will likely never be built as conceptualized.

 

Dah!  You tease!

 

Thanks for posting anyway!

is that the Euclid face or another side?

The Euclid face.

That looks much different from last year's renderings that we saw in the Levin Atrium.  I'll have to see more before I comment!

Last years was the result of the planning study from another firm (I don't have the name handy right now).

I have some floor plans back at the office, but they are not loading correctly so I will have to rescan.

Regardless, you are correct. This is a completely different look then the one previously shown.

What's the point of creating a concept that looks awesome and then not doing it? This is like at the Detroit Auto Show where you see a concept car that rocks and the REAL car coming out is a Taurus. BUMMER!

/Begin State process.

 

There had to be a conceptual/planning/massing study first. This help figure out where to put it and how much it might cost.

It went out to bid and a firm completed that study.

State approved the funding for it.

Goes out to bid for design and construction.

The original firm rebid but lost to another firm.

 

/End State process

^Bidding architectural work is a little goofy.  Design isn't quite as fungible as concrete pourring.  Wish we had a Cummins Foundation here to fund design fees for public buildings.