I'd appreciate you comments on the document below.
Cordially,
Michael
269-2362
The 8th of May, 2008*
Decisions To Be Taken On Hemisfair
- Reintegrate Hemisfair into the urban fabric of the Lavaca neighborhood.
Viewing an aerial map reveals the historical pattern of development in Hemisfair is very much like the adjacent Lavaca Neighborhood. Obviously housing stock was lost in the creation of the fair, but the opportunity exists to create a neighborhood based on the historical pattern of building.
- Preserve the historical buildings.
The preservation of the historical buildings authenticates and legitimizes redevelopment. New construction should relate to the existing historical structures, responding to mass and scale, as well as to architectural elements.
- Reestablish the Street Grid.
Ruminants of a street grid exist in Hemisfair, but with traffic limited to those entering and exiting parking lots. Extending Water, Matagorda, and Indianola Streets to Goliad Street (Hemisfair Way), Goliad Street to S. Alamo and Labor Street through to Bowie Street would restore the original street grid. But the grid should be refined/defined in terms that facilitate variously scaled development, and to relate traffic to Durango Street.
- Redevelop the Federal site and surface parking sites.
The Federal Courthouse Complex has isolated Hemisfair from the community for forty years, and should be moved. Current negotiations for moving the courthouse to the SAPD show promise, but regardless of that site selection, the City should insist on moving the courthouse from the Hemisfair site.
Adaptive reuse of the Federal Building and Spears Training Center buildings is not viable and the demolition of those buildings should provide an opportunity for mixed-use development.
Land used for surface parking on both sides of Durango Street, and within Hemisfair Park should be better utilized for mixed-use development, principally housing.
Mid-rise buildings should be constructed on Durango Street. Development on the southern side of Durango should extend west from the soon-to-be constructed Durango phase of Victoria Commons to the SAISD site, being contained by Garfield Alley. On the northern side of Durango, development should extend from the Federal site to the Institute of Texan Cultures. In both cases, development should relate to the scale and architecture elements of adjacent historical buildings.
The northern edge of Hemisfair Park should provide an additional opportunity for housing development, which would respond to the scale of the Convention Center and Tower.
No single developer should control multiple sites; the design vision should be complex and realization of that complexity requires the talent of more than a single person or firm. Design guidelines should provide a context, but not limit creativity.
- Parking facilities should be developed.
Parking structures should be constructed on the eastern edge of Hemisfair, as part of the development of the Convention Center. The development of parking facilities should provide an opportunity for the development of housing.
- Preserve and extend the core open space of the Hemisfair Park.
A wonderful opportunity exists to establish a plaza on the scale of Main Plaza or Travis Park between the Tower of Americas and the Institute of Texas Cultures.
The plaza should provide the Institute (and the City) with a major venue. The housing development on Durango and northern side of the Institute should provide a north/south containment of the new plaza.
* *Please note the date, as this document reflects the ongoing conversations.
