LexRides

[brokebike]

I hate reading through the comments on the newspaper article. It makes me want to take all of those people, line them up, and give them a good swift kick in the ass for being an idiot...

"Oh goodie! A skyscraper! How lovely!"

"Who needs a dive like the Dame anyways? Maybe if you tear it down, all those drunks will finally grow up and get a job"

"I would go downtown if there were more things to visit, like a mall or a bigass, pretty glass hotel"

what's really unnerving about all this development and these "big ideas" about building up downtown is that it makes the idiots believe that it's nothing but a good thing because it provides employment opportunities, and there's always some underlying notion of beautification and modernization that usually appeals to everyone.

The truth is, developers aren't contributing to anything... sure, they stir the pot, ruining things by making hasty, bad decisions... tear some old stuff down, build new stuff up... but ultimately, they're doing what they do best, which is to sit back and make a huge profit off something, then move on to something else. You think developers care what they have changed or destroyed? Hell no. They could care less... in fact, they probably don't even live here.
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[brokebike]

taking a look back at that sad Sacto photoblog that Christopher posted a link to, it's shocking how closely that resembles the outskirts of Lexington. It's no surprise that all of this greedy nationwide speculation over property and development (both residential and commercial) has the economy so fucked up.

Think about all those new retail spaces out in the sprawling shit that sit empty, and now picture that same scenario with the current glut of condos and hip new retail space going up in downtown Lexington and around campus.

What if... all that they tear down to build up eventually sits empty because no one can afford it?
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[charlenemingus]

Brian-

The comments you posted about the "Towering Idea for Downtown" article are so ridiculous that I can't believe those people aren't being sarcastic. ie. "Oh goodie! A skyscraper! How lovely!" The sad thing is, they're dead serious.

[DHB]

[sailorjames]

[brokebike]

anyone know what's up with that preserve lexington site?

An awful lot has been happening lately with "the Block", both news-wise and rumor-wise... but the person updating it has been oddly quiet on that front.

maybe recent developments have them feeling just as depressed and apathetic as the rest of us.
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[Christopher]

Does the Farmer's Market have some guaranteed place to move or something? Shouldn't they be throwing some shoulder about this?
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http://www.lexingtonbikeracecalendar.com

[catamount]

I do not believe Farmers Market has anything shored up at this point. They have been exploring a permanent structure at the corner of Maxell and Broadway - weather is a big issue for them. Although the downtown spot is really nice they take a real big hit when the weather is bad.

Their moving will be sad - downtown Lex is like a ghost town during weekend days and without the market that will become even more apparent.
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"The path of least resistance is what makes the river crooked!” - Utah Phillips

[jkizzle]

I still dont see why the parking garage along vine and water cant be used for the market. It is an insignificant structure, low cost, already owned by the city, and really doesnt park that many cars. it would provide an easy pull up for farmers trucks, and might help the revitalize that end of the city a little bit better than condos will.

[seicer]

Well, we know that the Triple Crown Lounge will be demolished, along with Rite Aid and the row of non-historic or severely degraded buildings along Limestone. I won't miss the building Club 141 was in either (which is closing at any rate).

What I hope is that the Webb Cos. will save the row of historic properties along Upper, the building that houses the Dame, and the building that housed the Mad Hatter, and properly restore those buildings to their former glory.

There is plenty of space otherwise for a 40-story building, sans a massive plaza or a streetscape detracting parking garage, as we have seen in other Webb Cos. developments such as the Lexington Financial Center (5/3) and the Radisson/World Trade Center complex (which was a rushed job). There are other spaces where a parking garage can fit, such as across the street along Vine, or somewhere along Upper. People can walk from their cars to work, right?

The Webb Cos. can make this one of Lexington's premier developments, but they can make this one of the worst. Given that it is within the Courthouse Area Review Board's jurisdiction, any attempt to demolish the historic properties will be met with criticism -- not only from the board itself, but from citizens like me. The board has made great strides in saving the lot of buildings along Limestone north of Main, and prevented a historic building from being demolished by a rogue owner. I have great hopes that we can work this out with the Webb Cos.

Let's hope that this is not another railroaded through project. Newberry has already said in the past that Lexington's greatest urban mistake was demolishing the warehouses and buildings along what is now Vine when the C&O Railroad was dismantled in the early 1970s (how cool would those be today as lofts and venues!), and he has already expressed concern about Webb Cos' plans...
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Sherman Cahal | Cincy Rides

[brokebike]

[elzie5000]

I'm really interested in seeing how the EPA settlement impacts this project and others.

If it is strictly enforced (which, this being lexington, it probably won't be) developers would have to get clearance from the city saying the sewer system can handle the additional load before anything new can be built.

[seicer]

I know that the Rosenbergs' owned much of the block for a while, but it may have passed entirely to the Webb Cos. by now. Note that they are not looking at a local architect for the design of the tower as they originally intended to, but have gone national. If constructed, it would be a prominent tower for the city and a new local landmark.

Personally, I would rather see Rite Aid and the group of buildings on Limestone flattened, along with Club 141, and see a decent 6-7 story building erected instead. It would be much more sensitive to the surrounding buildings, and parking requirements could be solved by allowing parking at the Park Plaza/Library garage, which has a surplus of spaces (3-4 floors typically).
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Sherman Cahal | Cincy Rides

[jkizzle]

Unfortunately, they will likely go with some scrub washed up architect rather than going with a young firm with fresh ideas. Ideally they pick morphosis out of LA, but Graft, Studio Gang, or another young firm would awesome. At least then we wouldnt get another Webb Co pile-o-turds.

[brokebike]

it'll probably be some sandstone-hued monstrosity, with cheap modern detailing and that fucking green tinted glass.
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