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NashWellington11

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Everything posted by NashWellington11

  1. NashWellington11
    I have lived in Nashville on and off for the past 15 years, so I am fully aware that this building is iconic and has its charms. Due to that icon status, I am also aware that any architectural criticisms of it are typically not well received BUT... These renderings highlight some of the REALLY weird / quirky / unique (pick your least offensive term) aspects of this building. I don’t know which part intrigues/bothers me more: (1) its 45 degree diagonal orientation pushed into a corner of its huge, square lot; (2) the gigantic atrium lobby that serves no real function and feels like an old mall food court; (3) the building’s refusal to properly address ANY of the streets it sits on or provide pedestrian-friendly street activation, or finally (4) the strange two story “auxiliary” building plopped on top of the parking garage like an after thought. Some of these quirks could be easily explained away if the architect was working with an oddly shaped lot but this building has an almost perfectly square lot taking up more than 2/3 of a city block and THIS is what they went with. ***Rant over.***
  2. NashWellington11
    Love this use for this site. We need more build out of Hermitage Ave to really connect the trolley barns and all the residential units on the old hospital site to the rest of downtown. On another note, "RMH House" is already a widely used acronym for Ronald McDonald House Charities so they may end up rethinking this branding...
  3. NashWellington11
    Looks great! I would take this design over any of the hotels that have been built on KVB.
  4. NashWellington11
    LEED has started to somewhat fall out of favor. LEED is a private certification and it can cost tens of thousands of dollars for large projects to get the certification. If there is no requirement to get certified these projects are essentially paying for a plaque on the wall and slapping the USGBC logo on their marketing materials. This is why many states have moved away from legislation and rules requiring "LEED certification" and instead require buildings to be "built to LEED standards" or give other alternatives to LEED certification. Also, LEED only covers the construction of the building and the materials used. LEED certification does not address ongoing operation of the building and energy savings. For these ongoing measurements, a lot of folks have switched to seeking certification from the EPA's Energy Star program. These ongoing savings are what often pay for and help to justify the increased initial construction cost of a "green" building.
  5. NashWellington11
    Just a giant shipment of tanks passing through Nashville via the Asurion construction cam. Coronavirus prep?
  6. NashWellington11
    Nope. That side is going to stay orange to match the roofs of the food hall and the siding on the NMAAM.
  7. NashWellington11
    Same. Looks like foam insulation boards that have some sort of silver coating.
  8. NashWellington11
    Zero parking is going to be interesting. Not sure there are enough walkable basic amenities downtown or public transportation infrastructure for a zero parking building at this point.
  9. NashWellington11
    The awning looks like it may be to shield views of the restaurant patio from pedestrians at street level. Apple doesn't control the rooftop space, so they have no control of the plantings, decor, etc. This is likely their way of keeping the Apple store looking streamlined from the street.
  10. NashWellington11
    Woonerf 101: https://www.bisnow.com/washington-dc/news/mixed-use/dc-architects-innovate-with-new-pedestrian-focused-streetscapes-62831
  11. NashWellington11
  12. NashWellington11
    Only with the magic of golden hour lighting can you take a photo that manages to make so many dated and architecturally questionable buildings* look this good! [*Looking at you, Parkway Towers, Capitol Towers, & Public Square Garage.]
  13. NashWellington11
    The edges won't be cut off. The roads leading to drop off areas/parking garages will curve through the square portion of the platform, creating wide sidewalks/plazas in the corners. Here is a map showing what that square portion of the platform will look like when it is finished.
  14. NashWellington11
    This one is going to be pretty! Also, the glass looks much bluer in these photos than it does in real life. In actuality, it's almost more of a gray color. Definitely different than all of the variations of blue glass already all over town.
  15. NashWellington11
    Most people know that. The difference is Aunt Jemima was started as a brand in 1889 which we can all agree was a much different era than when Hattie B's was founded in 2012 . Also, here are some articles on why Aunt Jemima and other similar brands are racist: https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/06/24/besides-the-confederate-flag-what-other-symbols-should-go/can-we-please-finally-get-rid-of-aunt-jemima https://fortune.com/2014/08/12/aunt-jemima-racism/ https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/04/new-racism-museum-reveals-the-ugly-truth-behind-aunt-jemima/256185/
  16. NashWellington11
    It's not Prince's. Literally other than Prince's and a few other small spots, Nashville hot chicken was NOT a thing even 10 years ago. To the extent it did exist it was predominantly an African-American cuisine. Also, "Hattie B's" has always bothered me because it reeks of fake. It was founded and owned by two good ole boy white guys and then named "Hattie B's" to give an illusion of some older African-American woman back in the kitchen whipping up hot chicken. Not usually one to side with those who cry "cultural appropriation" at everything, but there is definitely an argument to be made here. At the very least, it is definitely inauthentic.
  17. NashWellington11
    These criticisms are nothing new. I heard them from people when I was an undergrad on campus. Sounds like sour grapes to me. Vandy has become dramatically more competitive over the past decade. Its student body is increasingly diverse, impressive, and competitive. Around 10% of Vandy undergrads are from Tennessee. Which if you look at the overall state of secondary education and college-preparedness of many other states vs. Tennessee, the university is likely holding open spots for Tennessee kids to a certain extent. One criticism I do have is that the "Why Vanderbilt" essay is no longer mandatory for applicants. They did it to get more Common App applications which had the positive effects of increased number and quality of applications and a lower acceptance rate. However, it also had the negative effect of making applying to Vandy just another checkbox for applicants to click so more kids are going to Vandy just because it is the highest ranked school they got into instead of students with a true connection and dream to go to Vandy.
  18. NashWellington11
    My original post was literally just to let @BnaBreaker know that his suggestion re: relocating the VA is an idea Vandy has floated in the past. Nothing more. Debates about hypothetical tax dollars that were never asked for nor offered to Vandy are irrelevant. I certainly don't know how this then devolved into bashing Jim Cooper. Let's keep the political talk to the coffee house.
  19. NashWellington11
    ZERO ask for taxpayer money. It was a political will/priority thing. Here's a (completely made up) transcript to try to break it down for you: Vandy: "Hey, if we were willing to build a brand new VA hospital somewhere NOT in the middle of our campus just to get it out of our way for our long-term planning, would that be something the VA would be interested in or willing to do?" Fed Gov't: "No. We have other priorities right now, the VA is happy with its current Nashville location and our facilities do not need to be replaced right now." Vandy: "Ok. Cool."
  20. NashWellington11
    From my understanding, the idea of Vandy paying for a brand new VA located elsewhere was floated and still it was a no go. Vandy never asked the taxpayers for anything.
  21. NashWellington11
    Vandy wants the VA out of the middle of campus and has tried to lobby for this for YEARS. Even when Bill Frist was Senate Majority Leader, they couldn't get it done.
  22. NashWellington11
    This also means E. Gordon Gee is still the only Vanderbilt chancellor to have NOTHING named for him on campus. Ironically, Gee is the one who kicked off the seemingly never-ending construction on campus that has been ongoing for the past 15+ years. When the Vandy board hired Gee away from Princeton he assured them that Vandy would be his last job. Vandy had only had 6 chancellors over its 125 years before him. When Gee left for Ohio State after only 7 years the board was not happy. Especially after all of the controversies caused by his wife and the $6 million renovation of the chancellor's mansion (which Zeppos never moved into).
  23. NashWellington11
    I'm thinking this is why it looks like they stopped installing the siding on the base of the Grand Hyatt. They need to know where to put anchors, electrical conduit, etc. for the signs but with that in limbo they have paused that exterior finishing work.
  24. NashWellington11
    You're correct. Looks like that is just the stairwell that goes up another floor for roof access.
  25. NashWellington11
    Took me a second to realize that is the Vanderbilt tower peeking out over the Loews. That's going to look really good when it's done. As a former Vandy alum, it always surprised me that with the old Kissam, Vandy/Barnard, and Carmichael Towers along West End the buildings had little to no presence or gravitas along that major thoroughfare. Carmichael Towers could have been random apartment buildings for all anyone knew. If you missed the Vanderbilt sign on the corner across from the Loews, you could drive by one of the world's top ranked universities and never realize it was there. The new stretch of dorms and now this tower will certainly change that.
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