February 15, 200718 yr Nice! Muncie is smaller that I expected, but pleasant! It doesn't seem to have as much repulsive 60's and 70's infil as Anderson, but it certainly has its fair share.
February 15, 200718 yr Good job! You captured not only the images, but the spirit of downtown Muncie, and the gray skies helped bring out its character. :| I used to hang out there a little in the late sixties, and it was far from Nirvana then. It looks like it hasn't exactly improved. The Mark-whatever Tap was typical of small-city gay bars of the era, dark, stuffy and full of stuck-up queens who didn't have all that much to be stuck-up about -- among whom was the then-owner of the now-closed florist shop; he ranked among the top three most pompous, loud, unpleasant queens I ever encountered. Hmm. I seem to harbor some bad feelings toward Muncie. It's probably somewhat revealing of the feelings I had about myself in those years. :roll: Some of the residential neighborhoods are still pretty nice, and Ball State University is a credit both to Muncie and to the state. You'd think that having a university with a fairly respectable school of architecture would be reflected more in the appearance of the city. The downtown has some good vintage buildings tucked in among the overabundant sixties-seventies stuff, and it would be nice if more folks recognized what they had and took some pride in it.
February 15, 200718 yr Speaking of Ball State...no pics?!? Great shots, otherwise! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 15, 200718 yr The downtown has some good vintage buildings tucked in among the overabundant sixties-seventies stuff, and it would be nice if more folks recognized what they had and took some pride in it. Rob, if you haven't been to Muncie in a while, it may be worth a trip to check it out again. Although downtown still bears the many, many scars of the 60's and 70's urban renewal projects, they have done an outstanding job renovating the historic buildings on Walnut Street. I believe the street was closed off and was a pedestrian mall at one time, but has since been opened back up to traffic. There really seems to be a nice mix of nice dining with outdoor patio seating, loft apartments, and specialty shops. Although right now the revitalization efforts seem to be focused on that one street, I did notice that smaller efforts seemed to be spilling over into the surrounding blocks. Although there is still a long way to go, it would be remiss not to commend Muncie on the recent effort they have made to bring back downtown.
February 25, 200718 yr I'll add some Ball State pics: http://www.pbase.com/archetype/university_green_shafer_tower http://www.pbase.com/archetype/bsu_spring http://www.pbase.com/archetype/bsu_fall_color and the Ball mansions, now Minnetrista cultural center: http://www.pbase.com/archetype/minnetrista
March 3, 200718 yr One would have expected some small skyscrapers downtown, like what one sees in Ohio cities of similar size (or even in Anderson), but the tallest thing in downtown Muncie is the Indiana Bell switching tower. Downtown Muncie wasn't as dead as one would expect (certainly not as far gone as Springfield), but the whole town seemed somewhat blah. Ball State doesnt seem to have much affect on the place, as the campus is on the edge of town somewhat.
March 5, 200718 yr man that at&t building.....whew! it was certainly a better skyline beacon when the church spires were the tallest points.
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