Can't. Write. Too. Angry.
Word's in that the Plains is to be demolished for condo/hotel complex. (LP)
Come on. The Plains? Like there aren't acres and acres of surface parking that they could have chosen from? Really?
Really?
Photo filched from Guy D/Regina in Pictures
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17 comments:
WHAT the FUCK?
Should I come back and chain myself to the bar?
No offence, but y'all don't have enough history in that town to go around demolishing shit.
(A more coherent response will follow, I promise. Right now, this is the best I can do.)
Don't know why you gals are upset. The eight men (I counted) quoted in the L-P article all seemed reasonably happy.
(poke)
There's no need to move away from Regina. The way they demolish old buildings for new ones, it's practically a new city every few years anyway!
Oh, and on a more coherent note: I'm also sick of everyone with power in this city having such a boner for condos.
Can't anyone design a building without turning it into some kind of condo/hotel? (I.e.: proposed plans for new Central Library).
It's like these planners, designers, and architects played too much Monopoly as kids. They think they're on Boardwalk, but it's more like Baltic Avenue ... maybe St. Charles Place.
Feck off, Uncle Pennybags. Really.
I'm livid. I'm officially foaming at the mouth with steam coming out of my ears livid.
Is it official? Really? What is up with this city? Why is it always left to the same 20 people to give a shit enough to save what few pieces of heritage architecture Regina has left. I was just admiring the landscape panels under the weather beacon before I left. Surely that weather beacon is of enough historical value that an argument could be made to save it. Right? Please?
Time to call Jeannie Mah again... I feel a fight coming on.
Vanda: I think there is the tentative plan to incorporate the weather vane into the new complex. More lip service to heritage retention.
Judging by the comments on the LP site, people go crazy for this hyper-new, steel & glass stuff. They say that it makes Regina look like other, better cities.
I'm guessing they've never been to another city though, because what I always noticed about cities like Montreal, Chicago, and New York is the variety of buildings from different architectural eras -- old and new. That's my favorite.
Here's a tear jerker:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regina%27s_historic_buildings_and_precincts
We should be wondering about what'll happen to the people who call the Plains Hotel home, not to mention the colourful social community that resolves around its beer parlour (I wouldn't exactly call the Plains "heritage architecture"). More homelessness in the Queen City, or will they be offered right of first refusal for the penthouse suites?
Today the Plains, tomorrow the Empire...
Don't forget this is all courtesy the Office for Urbanism and the uber-progressive downtown plan.
Emily's comment about parking lots is spot on. Why is it that landmarks get destroyed while vast expanses of asphalt get preserved?
(For the record, despite my misgivings for modernist architecture, I really like the Plains.)
Stuff like this makes me feel pretty impotent. I can't see this being stopped. It's like the Plains has been handed a bible page with a big black inkspot on it.
One telling point from the L-P article, though, is the mayor's comment about the importance of the Downtown Plan in this condo project being proposed. He apparently even said we have a downtown plan.... Actually, no Pat, we don't. One's been proposed but you guys keep postponing debate on it.... One might almost think you're less enamoured of the plan than your rhetoric would lead us to believe...
How about a "Save the Plains" campaign led by everyone here who's outraged? I'll sign the petition, might even come to the benefit concert.
Oh... thought some might find this interesting. From the Built Form Framework section in the proposed Downtown Plan:
Existing Landmarks
Existing landmarks contribute to the cultural history and distinct sense of place of Downtown Regina. Examples include the church towers, the Federal Building tower, the old post office, tall buildings such as the Saskatchewan Power building, and the marquee of the Plains Hotel. New buildings should ensure their visual prominence is maintained and enhanced.
I've been burned by caring before ... like that time I cared about Scott Collegiate. All the advocacy, letter-writing, and benefit concerts in the world won't change a thing if the stakeholders of a project have decided they want something.
Business is what matters here-- not silly things like 'culture', 'character', or 'history'.
Sadly it seems there is only a very small number of Reginans who actually care about this kind of thing.
It's getting pretty tempting to leave like a rat fleeing a sinking ship.
Illuminations: This is the fault of the Downtown Plan? What they've brought forward is only a proposed downtown plan. The developers may be saying they're doing this because of the plan, but developers will say a lot of things when they're looking for approvals.
Moreover, Regina was doing a pretty good job of tearing down its landmarks long before Office for Urbanism got here.
Apparently when Fiacco and his henchmen discuss "revitalizing" downtown, what they really mean is displacing all of the poor people to someplace less visible.
Think about it: go look at Broad Street near Sask. Drive right now, and think of what used to be there (*cough* Souls Harbour *cough*). Is it crazy to think that Fiacco has a similar vision for prominent intersections such as Albert and Vic, and Albert and Sask Drive?
Oh, come on, my one and only memory of the Plains Hotel was getting into a punchup in the parking lot about 20 years ago, because a drunken buffoon was hassling my friend.
I'm sure there are still plenty 'o places in Regina where you can find that kind of fun...
This reminds me too much of the Save the Eaton's Building campaign here in Winnipeg.
That campaign ignored two salient facts:
1) It was a but-ugly building that the Eaton's built as cheaply as they could, with pretty much no exterior adornments.
2) There was pretty much a carbon-copy of exactly the same thing right behind it that's still standing.
The Plains debate ignores a couple facts too:
1) It's an eyesore and a snakepit (or at least it was) that spills out all sorts of trouble into the surrounding neighbourhood.
2) You'll never get enough support throughout the community to stop it.
And I make these statements as someone who actually hates condos, loves old buildings, and likes decent urban environments.
When the current crew at City Hall is ready to pack it in, I really hope the PD runs with the headline: Bland Regina political leadership leaves bland legacy.
As for the UFU, no, I don't believe they recommended the demo of the Plains, but considering they did assess every inch of the Regina downtown, it couldn't have gone unnoticed. As the plan said, save the marquee. Didn't say much about the building.
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