Here’s the final product of that demolition on Breckinridge Street and Library Lane. Yeah, that one. That grass is useless, but hey, we now have a great view of that beautiful and inspiring grey wall. Stop tearing perfectly good things down, Louisville.
Founder and Editor at Broken Sidewalk
Branden founded Broken Sidewalk in 2008 while practicing architecture in Louisville. He continued the site for seven years while living in New York City, returning to Louisville in 2016. Branden is a graduate of the College of Architecture at Washington University in St. Louis, and has covered architecture, design, and urbanism for The Architect's Newspaper, Designers & Books, Inhabitat, and the American Institute of Architects.
Latest posts by Branden Klayko (see all)
Good riddance to a hideous building that did nothing for the area but add gloom to the street. There can never be enough cheerful open space on a college campus.
I hated to see the old building go, but I think the result is nice. I like the green space… looks like an inviting campus. Some benches would be nice.
Honestly, I’d rather have green grass, flowers, shrubbery than a dilapidated old building any day. I wish this could happen all over downtown. Get rid of empty, ratty buildings, get rid of unnecessary expanses of blacktop. Plant something that will bloom, grow and breathe.
You’re all right. We should have adopted that policy a long time ago! So long West Main Street. Who needs a Slugger Field? The Green Building is better off a patch of green grass. Why have an Old Louisville when we could have an Old Louisville Park.
Come on, folks. Have a little imagination and creativity and see beyond the boarded up windows. It takes longer to grow a building than to throw down some cheap sod.
That was a gorgeous old building and I’m sad to see it gone. It could have been renovated to create unique studio space for the University’s new art program with the big windows creating conversation with the street.
The green patch of grass is nice, but the landscaping, hardscaping and lack of outdoor furniture is too poorly planned to create an effective courtyard space.
Such a complex subject. In the city, where space is at a premium, I believe every effort should be made to salvage and reuse the existing structure. It’s expensive and difficult, but look at the Henry Clay as an example of how to do it.
If it’s an unused parking lot or an empty lot, absolutely it should be used for growing things. An influx of small lot-gardens, rain gardens or even raised beds would be a welcome sight. We are not at a loss for empty lots in every area of our city. Imagine the effect thousands of community gardens could have on our neighborhoods. Plants filter water and the air, and can provide healthy food options even in dense areas of the city.
Unfortunately, all these worthy initiatives take time, a long-term vision and money, which are all scarce lately.
I’m having a hard time understanding the attitude that the fate of “old and ratty” buildings should be solely limited to the wrecking ball. At one time, Slugger Field was nothing more than an abandoned warehouse; Old Louisville was once a sorry collection of rotting, dilapidated buildings; more recently, what was once a “old and ratty” trolley barn has now been transformed into the beautiful African American Heritage Center (apologies if I got the name wrong). We CANNOT be so close minded when it comes to evaluating old buildings. Such thinking has a name: Urban Renewal, and if you want to see the kind of effect it can have on an urban environment, look no further than the vast surface level parking lots that mark the grave of the old city’s commercial heartland.
Having just returned from Italy, where, oddly enough, they have no “old and ratty buildings”, I saw how almost all buildings can be recycled and used creatively. But not in Louisville. We either tear it down or let it fall down. The gym at Spalding was a wonderful example of masonry work that would have made a great theatre for community groups. Now we have a green patch of grass with a Lowe’s style shelter and cheap lawn furniture under it. Lovely! I can’t wait to see the lawn when the Blues let the Iron Quarter fall down. Maybe at least they’ll terrace it as it slopes to the river. As usual, no leadership, no vision in Louisville.
Let’s erase all of history and its artifacts. It’s gloomy.
Geez.