UPDATE 13/02/09: The works of Santiago Calatrava were submitted by a reader and worth having a look at: http://tr.im/g33n. This one architect shows what inspirational and imaginative possibilities could find their way to our city should open competition focused on creativity be extended to the worldwide architectural community for major developments in Saint John.
UPDATE 02/02/09: An extremely interesting landmark building will result from the architecture design competition for the new Solomon R. Guggenheim museum in Vilnius, Lithuania. It has been awarded to British architect Zaha Hadid. Any reason why Saint John couldn't do the same?
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Last year local designer Mark Stephens came up with a suggested building design concept
for a key location (his vision was for the former sugar refinery site) on Saint John's waterfront inspired by the same thinking as this Open Saint John article: http://is.gd/eCpK.
Not everyone needs to like this design but I encourage everyone to acknowledge that it is not mediocre, it is certainly interesting, and it would leave a memorable impression of Saint John on anyone who laid eyes on our city (pictured to the left in a city context).
Such a signature property would add to our identity, focus attention on our waterfront and make us a destination for anyone visiting the region.
But who would build a building like this? The Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain [pictured below right]
was financed to the tune of $250 million by regional and provincial governments. Is this kind of money for this kind of project a priority for New Brunswick? And how would our provincial government manage cries from other regions of the province who also want such a signature landmark?
Within the European context, Spain appreciates the power that architecture can have on the perceived value of a community. Several regions of that continent have tourism industries built on architectural gems that also feed an immeasurable pride and protectionism of the architectural and culture assets of each community. In North America, New York and Chicago
waged an expensive competition in architectural excellence in the first half of the 20th century that has left each city with landmark characters that serve them well today in the same regard.
Saint John is not Europe, New York, or Chicago. But our architectural heritage is significant as is our optimism for the future. At the very least, Saint John should demand a high quality standard for future developments, ban the use of inferior materials such as vinyl siding (Moncton has already done this), and support great visions and plans.
As a new friend pointed out to me today regarding Bilbao, Spain, it "has less local attractions or physical beauty [than Saint John] yet it took only a great building like the Guggenheim to put them on every travellers map".
Saint John should not settle for mediocre when our history is so grand. This is not about our past, it is about our future. And if we support and value excellence, maybe we'll be blessed with a visionary sponsor who will build greatness again in our city.
