This one's been simmering for a while, and it makes abundant sense -- meaning it will be opposed by the obstructionists if they can be torn away from their ongoing campaigns in opposition to flush toilets.
New Albany, Floyd officials may use Coyle site for offices, by Grace Schneider (Courier-Journal).
New Albany and Floyd County leaders have opened negotiations to buy the Coyle auto dealership property downtown for a city-county government complex.
The city and county intend to order an appraisal and an environmental assessment of the 3.66 acres on Spring Street and will decide in the next three months whether to pursue the purchase, New Albany Deputy Mayor Carl Malysz said yesterday.
Here's the part that caught my attention:
The Coyle property, between East Fourth and East Sixth streets, bounded by East Spring and East Elm, is zoned for commercial use. It also offers plenty of land to construct the 60,000-square-foot building the city and county would share and provide parking space, (Mayor Doug) England said.
Looks to me like the ideal opportunity to reuse the existing older main building in conjunction with a new design.
20 comments:
Well yeah, If I'm the only one advocating for saving the historic structure, who cares. This is a job for the Historic Preservation Commission et al. Starting ASAP or Mayor Bling will pimp the history out for more festival tents.
What part of this makes sense? The acquisition of a perfectly serviceable building and razing it to construct a suburban-style complex? The consigning to the landfill of one more piece of New Albany's architectural heritage?Are those opposed to such a move "obstructionists"?
The article makes quite clear the plan is to use the site. The site without a building on it.
I don't think the article makes clear that potential plans include razing the existing building or says anything about what types of new structures may be built.
If someone has specific information, please share.
John
The notion of using the Coyle property makes very good sense. Obstructionists will be opposed to any idea that is seen as making government more efficient.
Tearing down the existing building does not make sense at all, although my guess would be county officials tending toward the suburban style atrocity, hence the need for us to remain connected with this.
Regrets if I didn't make this clear.
The Coyle property sits at the intersection of the East Spring Historic District and the Downtown Historic District.
It appears that the Coyle property from 5th Street east (with the non-historic building) is in the ESHA, but the rest of the property (including the poriton with the historic building) is not. Way back when the council approved the district maps, I'm guessing politics was involved to keep the Coyle building out (as it was with other areas). That's irrelevant at the moment, however.
So, if I'm reading the maps correctly, anything built on the ESHA portion would require design review, but the city is free (under the ordinance) to bulldoze the historic building.
I only have access to the district maps found in the design NAHPC design guidelines (see www.newalbanypreservation.com), which are not the official maps. So please correct me if I'm wrong.
All of that said, the city could easily do the right thing and (1) incorporate the historic building into the new design and (2) happily participate in the design-review process for new construction.
Consider the design of the new YMCA building, and you can see how a new government complex could have a wonderful impact on the downtown streetscape. Everyone wins.
All of that said, the city could easily do the right thing and (1) incorporate the historic building into the new design and (2) happily participate in the design-review process for new construction.
Exactly. According to the article, the site is 3.66 acres. The historic building's footprint is a small portion of that. There's no reason that new and old construction couldn't coexist harmoniously.
The City's NSP proposal contained the caveat that any new construction undertaken on behalf of the City would be LEED compliant. I'd hope that standard could be applied here.
I’d heard a month or two ago that razing the Coyle building was an option. If we do a pure cost-benefit analysis of new versus old, we need to make sure we’re looking at all the options. The city, as a not-for-profit entity, cannot take advantage of the federal historic tax credit. A private developer could use the tax credit and lease the property to the city. You’d have to jump through some hoops if you wanted to guaranty the city could gain fee ownership in the future without recapturing the credits, but there are options. The federal historic tax credit is 20%; a $5 million rehabilitation in the city’s hands would be a $4 million (after tax) rehabilitation in a developer’s hands. Not using the credits may be leaving money on the table, depending on how the numbers work out.
I’m not suggesting that this is necessarily the route the city should take. I’m just saying the city has many options on how to structure a deal. Before a figure starts floating around (like the ridiculous $2 million figure to make Spring St. two-way, a figure which includes much work the city would have to do to the street whether it were one way or two), we need to make sure the numbers are honest and everyone is on the same page.
I also heard the city is interested in the corner of State and Main, next to the Hour of Power (Todd Coleman’s Monkey Wrench). Either site presents interesting possibilities. Coyle has a lot fronting Spring St. immediately east of their building. That lot could make for excellent infill new construction, for example.
I have no problem going on the record stating that if the city does attempt to raze the Coyle building, I will be one of many fighting it.
Excellent point. I almost threw in (3) require the building to meet LEED standards.
I wonder if federal money might become available, should we go LEED.
I just hope our leaders will appreciate that the complex will be around for a long time and send a message to future generations. Is there really anyone left who looks at the current city/county building and doesn’t curse the prior generation for accomplishing such a colossal cluster f*ck?
Couple points - last first: the present city-county building is in my opinion a fine example of art modern architecture. It's needing restoration and reuse that is more "sustainable". But as an historic building, it adds a lot to the list of good old buildings downtown.
second - I've been on record with my family that I will also publicly oppose an development plan that does not save one of the few 1930-40s auto dealerships left in this country. The building has much to offer as a window into NA's past.
Just one tidbit...in the 1950's it was pretty damn glamorous when new model year cars came rolling out of Detroit. Picture the cream of that crop of 1955 all steel body muscle cars coming into town... smell the exhaust?... Krafts up a couple blocks created enormous flower arrangements for the glass windows. Everyone came decked out and partied and ohhed and ahhed the amazing machines.
Third comment - have no doubt my dear Uncle had his way with the historic map. Is everyone reading starting to see how politics has worked here for 60 years?
Full disclosure - I've always liked my Coyle cousins, they're nice people. But if there's one thing the Coyle's have always stood for: it's sucking down the maximum resource factor with abandon. History - schmistory. That whole generation is going down with all they can grab on the way out. NA's only hope really is obstructionism until there's a progressive administration who get it.
...oops, I think that's Uncle mike on the phone, shit...
Re: the current building - I guess there is no accounting for taste. ;) It's the incorporation of the old columns from the building they demolished that gets me. It's like a giant middle finger ar the past, in my opinion.
I do hope it was Nance's, not Kraft's, that provided the model year rollout flowers. Uggh!
Thank you Bookseller - I always confuse the two, it was Nance's that did the flowers! I guess they called Kraft's for the models that didn't "sell".
http://cityofnewalbany.blogspot.com/2008/03/city-acquires-historic-baptist.html
March 14, 2008 archive of this blog. I found the 17 comments to be interesting reading.
The main Coyle building is externally a significant component of the streetscape along Spring and is, therefore worth saving. The inflatable looking building along Sixth Street is not worth saving. Behind the main building is a, by New Albany standards, near state-of-the-art garage.
The existing structures, minus the fun dome,would make a good location for City offices and for a maintenance garage.
I fear that when attempting to make it a City/County facility,the issue of parking enters the mix. The 60,000 foot figure from The Courier would suggest a 40,000 foot building for the County. Renovation cost for the City-only building would be used as a cudgel to persuade those favoring a City Hall to acquiesce toward a combined building instead, to capture economies of scale.
Granted, the trend toward City-County combination seems to be a likely outcome at some point. It has some practical points to support it. But the attempt to get ahead of such a merger by building a combined government facility, I believe, places the Coyle building squarely on the expendable list. I would like to be wrong about this.
B.W. Smith - if you want a single piece of built history that sums up the last 100 years of NA history, I dare you to find a better setting than those magnificent Victorian columns juxtaposed with the Art Moderne 1950's building. Why do I feel like the only person who sees this stuff? Am I the only person with a 100 year memory? As NA plans for it's next birthday I hope it'll be "historic", if you know what I mean...
John Gonder - I think someone downtown should be running lots of numbers on brown field abatement issues at the Coyle property. The cost of containing 60+ years of contamination will be high. Where is or who will do the environmental discover on the property? From what I know about the local appraisal business, is it's mostly a scam. The parties decide what the deal is and the local appraiser writes it up. I think Dan mentioned earlier that transparency in this process will be essential to it being good for the city as a whole.
Oh I see it, and it sums a lot up, but I think we're getting different messages.
The current City-County Building, built in 1961 I think, has some limited art moderne qualities, but to me is a cheapened facsimile of the genre rather than a fine example.
In short, they tore down something architecturally significant to replace it with something largely insignificant.
I see environmental value in reusing the building but, more in tune with B.W., have to consider the overall site as a monument to poor decision making.
If Hauss Square is closed, it's likely that the facade will be so obscured that no one will ever again see it. That seems like a real stretch to fill that whole area with a justice center, but stranger things have happened.
Thak you B.W. and Bluegill for agreeing with me, albeit inadvertantly. Yes, it's the perfect "Springfield-ish" monument to stupidity!! For 60 years NA's only vision was "out with the past". Now, if I had a hand in the big birthday party a-comin', I'd make me a plague says just that. Then we can have a few rounds of truth and reconciliation and move on. All of you have to choose between fighting the past class wars that made the town into a war zone, a ghetto, a slum, or you can pull your heads outta the mud and plan on something COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. Going forward.
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