JHK’s Three-Act Play
Behold the new Easton, Pennsylvania, city hall, yet another dismal composition of blank masonry walls and tinted glass curtain claddings for that perfect despotic government effect. Note how its demeanor resembles the attitude of a prison chain gang guard. See below the old Easton city hall, a 1920s beaux arts beauty (and the tallest building in town) connoting beauty, virtue, and aspiration. It still stands a block away, though sold and repurposed for general office space.
The new city hall comes complete with an adjoining massive parking deck (below) — a guaranteed killer of street life. Local Easton urban design activist Dennis Lieb says: “There is uniform contempt among the general public here for both these structures, but as usual the emperor’s new clothes syndrome persists in polite circles.”
It looks like the Ministry of Truth.
Dreadful city hall!
On another note, one of your past eyesore winners–San Francisco’s transit hub–is causing trouble in the neighborhood. The multi-billion dollar project has interfered with a neighboring building, the Millennial Tower, home to the ultra-posh, uber-rich city elite. Finished 8 years ago, the tower has sunk 16 inches, and is leaning two inches.
San Francisco will have its own Pisa tower! The homeowners association met yesterday and are gearing up for a huge lawsuit. It’s going to be hard to sell over-priced condos when unsecured balls and marbles roll toward Oakland.
Jen in San Jose
Thanks for the update.
The 1929’s city hall building pictured looks similar to Albert Kahn’s General Motor’s headquarters building in Detroit, minus two towers. It has been re purposed also. The so called, New Center north of downtown Detroit, became the Old Center after the freeways allowed everyone to move into suburbia..
How very sad. This is the best the architects could create? Swapping a multi-level concrete parking lot for the fine civic structure? Pathetic indeed!
Hey, don’t be so hard on the architect. After all Albert Speer and his children have to make a living somehow!
Darth Vader meets bombing shelter.