[Admiral Beez]

A perfect modern example would be Massey College, which is ageing with dignity that is helped by the use of traditional building materials. I suspect it will look better in 50 years than a lot of the glass and steel buildings will. It's not that this style can't be done well, there are plenty of great glass and steel buildings that have aged well (the TD centre for example), but so much of this stuff seems to be second rate.

The usual response on why we can't make classic buildings anymore is that the cost is too high, or that the labour and skills are not available. But this just isn't true. Yes, stone buildings cost more to build, but they last a lot longer.

I just know that in 30 years I'll be taking my grandkids to the ROM and they'll be buckets under that Lee-Chin Crystal thing catching dripping water.

 

[ganjavih]

Yes, stone buildings cost more to build, but they last a lot longer.

But society has become short-sighted. The drive is to do what costs less now, and not to worry about the future. Architecture has become disposable, flimsy structures that reflect whatever happens to be the latest trend, waiting to be demolished when no longer needed. All the more reason to protect the structures that reflect a time when there was pride in workmanship and quality... because once they're gone, they ain't coming back.

 

[rpgr]

I don't know why but the look of the building makes me think of "recycling center".

 

[Redroom Studios]

I used to work as a manager at the McDonald's just a couple blocks north of here... glad to see this former industrial site being reclaimed into something new and shiny! Should go a long way to revitalizing this main intersection of downtown Kitchener...

 

[Hipster Duck]

But society has become short-sighted. The drive is to do what costs less now, and not to worry about the future. Architecture has become disposable, flimsy structures that reflect whatever happens to be the latest trend, waiting to be demolished when no longer needed. All the more reason to protect the structures that reflect a time when there was pride in workmanship and quality... because once they're gone, they ain't coming back.

This is a misconception. As the fire on Queen street has pointed out, many of our Victorian structures were seemingly built out of matchsticks, albeit with a pretty facade.

 

[Earlscourt_Lad]

Although they did last 90+ years, and were considered to be a positive part of Queen W. Will that be said of the Pharmacy building in 90+ years I wonder?

 

[Urban Shocker]

Lest we forget, in this rush to tar and feather contemporary architecture as only being reflective of the "latest trend", the 19th century had a pretty rapid turnover of style trends too: Greek Revival ( Seventh Post Office, Toronto Street ); Regency ( Colborne Lodge );Late Palladian ( Osgoode Hall ); Early Mock Goth ( Oakham House ); Renaissance Revival ( St.Lawrence Hall ); Richardsonian Romanesque ( Old City Hall ); High Victorian Goth ( McMaster Hall - now the Royal Conservatory ); Second Empire ( George Brown House ) etc.

And the Victorians in Toronto tore down plenty of their own buildings, and those of the Georgian period, to accommodate these changes in fashion.

 

[rpgr]

If we just followed the fashion trend, technically we'd be scrapping building and building new ones every couple of years!

The point is to have many styles and variety.

I still think the building looks like a recycling center for some reason but I can't quite figure out why...

 

[jeicow]

Everytime I see an update for this, it always seems so small. But when I pass it on the bus the scale of it suddenly makes much more sense. I say it's too early to tell how this one will turn out- especially considering it's only part of a much bigger complex. But I like most of the floral pattern on it. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the complex's glass is fitted.

 

[Archivist]

I remember taking a bus in from the airport in Barcelona and along the way seeing a fabulous huge old palace on top of a hill. How lovely, I thought, I want to see that!

What a disappointment, then, to find out that it was opened in 1929 for an exhibition. Discovering that, the building made me think only of Spain's dark past - how it spent almost the entire 20th century dabbling in Nationalism and Fascism and built such a retarded, backwards looking building at that late date, when so many wonderful streamlined things were about for inspiration.

I was much more inspired by Barcelona's current buildings which spoke to me of a society open to the future, full of optimism, and daring you to admire its achievements. I don't think I'm alone, people flock to that city to see it's vibrant, wild architecture.

This building in KW is lovely, and completely of its era. So much better than some faux, crenellated, carved piece of fascist pseudo memorabilia.

 

[scarberiankhatru]

Glad to see the trend of hideously clad pharmacy buildings continue in this province.

 

[SP!RE]

Toronto people who are criticizing this structure need to understand its context.

It adds such a friendly, bright, airy look to this part of downtown Kitchener which is generally dreary. It really couldn't be any better for where it is. I just wish they had included a cafe on King Street that would face onto the sidewalk or something of the type.

 

[TKTKTK]

This building in KW is lovely, and completely of its era. So much better than some faux, crenellated, carved piece of fascist pseudo memorabilia.

I think that's a very 20th century way of looking at Architecture. Isn't historicism just a reaction against the equally hollow cult of the NEW?

 

[Earlscourt_Lad]

Toronto people who are criticizing this structure need to understand its context.

It adds such a friendly, bright, airy look to this part of downtown Kitchener which is generally dreary. It really couldn't be any better for where it is. I just wish they had included a cafe on King Street that would face onto the sidewalk or something of the type.

It's a shame the Epton (Efton?) factory that used to be on the other side of that lot was pulled down. Incorporating that into a very modern design woudl have been a great chance for K-W to embrace its past and look forward.

I guess there is hope they might do something with the former Goodyear works nearby.

 

[unimaginative2]

The pharmacy building is built on the Epton site. Kitchener has a half-decent record of revitalizing its industrial properties. The Kaufman Rubber plant across the road has been very successfully converted into condos. Another industrial building just up Victoria has been turned into office space, and the Arrow Shirt factory is slowly being made into residential as well. Unfortunately, the Forsyth Shirts factory has been torn down, which is a pretty terrible loss. Epton wasn't much of a building, though it had quite a presence on that corner. Kitchener was absolutely devastated by the Mulroney/Free Trade recession of the early 90s. I remember growing up thinking it was normal for a factory to close every week.

The former Uniroyal Goodrich/Dominion Rubber plant on Strange Street is an absolute architectural marvel. I daresay it's close to the most significant bit of industrial architecture in the city. It's designed by Albert Kahn, famed as Henry Ford's architect and the creator of the River Rouge plant. He's often considered to be the greatest industrial architect of the 20th Century, though he also designed some pretty impressive commercial buildings in Detroit, too. I grew up a few blocks away from it, and I was always awed by the structure. In high school, I did a design project on renovating it into a residential and commercial complex. It's got such lovely big windows!

It's gone through a lot of changes over the years, but the historic part is still 100% occupied by a rubber company. They make things like rubber boots. Apparently, they had a big upswing in business after 9/11 making gas masks for the U.S. military. The rest of the mammoth complex is occupied to varying degrees, mostly for warehousing, though there was talk a while ago about turning one of the buildings into a banquet hall.