January 2005 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

Architect's rendering of the proposed new Hampton Inn and Suites, downtown Saratoga Springs, New York, a brainless, off-the-shelf piece of crap designed for an airport service road. Note the entrance at lower right (or is that the janitor's broom closet?) Why not put the entrance in the center, as tradition recommends? Note the stingy little industrial windows, as if tourism was an industrial activity. Note the chintzy eschutcheon under the pediment, as though the building was a bottle of cheap cologne. The balconies look like they were copied from a low-income housing project. The design shows what contempt large corporate chains have for the public.