One of the comments made during Pomeranz's introduction at Vet's today was how Cedar Rapids should strive to move beyond its second place position. Was that comment was directed at population, economic growth, or regional importance? I'm not really sure. However, I agree one hundred percent with the remark. There is no reason Cedar Rapids can't strive to be the best city in Iowa in terms of quality of life.
As my mind was wandering, I started thinking about a topic I posted on here about a month ago, Riverfront Mixed Use. For fun, I decided to do another study of the idea since I believe there is a lot of potential with the Siegal block and the site where the 1st Street Parkade currently stands. Disclaimer: this is just me doodling around. Neither are real or proposed projects.
On the 1st Street Parkade site, a 12 story condominium rises from a lower structure, which I thought could serve as a new History Center and flood museum. The forms are fluid and slightly disfigured, a nod to the powerful flood that wiped out so many homes and businesses along this river. The north side tapers to respect the scale of the old courthouse across the street. A green roof aids in lowering energy costs for the museum.
On the Siegal block, I have also drawn a mixed-use building that combines either offices or residential with ground level retail and a parking garage. Going forward, it would be nice to see more developments that integrate parking garages with the rest of the program, instead of a separate structure. The less unsightly parking garages, the more aesthetically pleasing downtown will be.
Mixed-use ideas for 1st Street SE and Third Avenue SE (imagined).
1 comments:
I like! Especially the idea of no stand-alone parking ramps. Much better to integrate with office and residential use. How many people in CR don't even realize there's a ramp in the IE Tower because it integrates so well? And yet we have several concrete car mausoleums that fill entire blocks. And why can't we move towards multi-level underground parking, UNDER the work and residential space?
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