Winthrop Center | 115 Winthrop Square | Financial District

bdurden said:
I’ve hesitated posting this but will anyway. I find the “wheelchair accessibility” architecture a bit inappropriate where an easier design for those in wheelchairs could have been incorporated, for instance, one of the two staircases that bookend it could have been a accessible incline. Also, the switchbacks just add another layer of effort to what can already be a challenging task. Not to mention, they made it the main feature of the entire hall, no doubt drawing attention to those who will require use of it.
I have a feeling it will be redesigned in a few years.
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Yeah, that was my first thought some time ago when I saw the design. Yes, it works, yes, it's elegant in a way, but what it mostly seems to be, is a way for the architect to thump their chest and use accessibility for the sake of an extravagant display, rather than as the normal and expected element of all good designs that it should be.
 
There's at least 6' of height difference between the upper entry and main level. At the steepest allowed 1:12 ramp (which needs continuous handrails on each side) the ramp would be 72' long plus the need for 2 intermediate landings (needed every 30" of level change), so a minimum of 82'. The stair-ramp as is looks around 30-something feet deep.

This is a much better design approach. The ramps running perpendicular to the hall take up significantly less space than if they were run parallel - would either run into the open hall space or require a switchback, which at that point should be two switchbacks to get the ramp to spill forward into the hall, and then you're eating up at least 14' of depth, all of pure ramp without any other integrated elements like the benches or stairs here and with all the junky extra railing hardware.
 
dhawkins said:
This thread is sixteen years old.
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We can probably say pretty much the same about the Harbor Garage proposal... Hopefully with that, as with this, something substantive will be built in the end. I would be fine if the step down from the current proposal to what's realized is 'merely' proportional to the step down we've seen here.
 
St. Botolph Street said:
I wonder if they'll put Deloitte signage at the top of the building. That would look cool
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Do you mind if I ask why you think that would be cool? I admit I don't like business signs on buildings. They feel kind of tacky and try hard to me--like something you see in a second tier city. But I know there are a lot of people on this board who like them. This might be derailing (mods, please remove), but the only think I can think of is that Boston architecture tends to be bland so the signs are interesting?
 
DwnTwnr said:
Do you mind if I ask why you think that would be cool? I admit I don't like business signs on buildings. They feel kind of tacky and try hard to me--like something you see in a second tier city. But I know there are a lot of people on this board who like them. This might be derailing (mods, please remove), but the only think I can think of is that Boston architecture tends to be bland so the signs are interesting?
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I think a well done business sign can enliven an otherwise boring or bland building. It also helps to let passerbys know who is in the building as opposed to just another anonymous office. Granted a fantastic building doesn't need a sign to make it more interesting but many buildings are just square boxes of leasable space. I think business signs are more common on buildings in Europe and Asia, less so here in the US. Hong Kong, Sydney, Paris (La Defense) come to mind.
 
St. Botolph Street said:
I think a well done business sign can enliven an otherwise boring or bland building. It also helps to let passerbys know who is in the building as opposed to just another anonymous office. Granted a fantastic building doesn't need a sign to make it more interesting but many buildings are just square boxes of leasable space. I think business signs are more common on buildings in Europe and Asia, less so here in the US. Hong Kong, Sydney, Paris (La Defense) come to mind.
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Thanks! I appreciate having a thoughtful conversation about this. I agree that it would be nice to have more fantastic building!
 
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Kept looking at this building from my outside dinner spot last weekend, wasn't sure if it was lighted or if those gold bars were a different material catching the sunlight. It's subtle but I like it.

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