First blush reactions, H.S. Wright competition:
Why not make the required problem solving exercise a "collaboration" rather than a competition?
Isn't genesis of "fresh vision" a bit much to expect of a 9 acre site, central to the center though it may be?
Wouldn't such a major city, with such a storied past and history of innovation and civic engagement already be doing its inspirational magic?
Why should "great public spaces" be transformational unless unchallengeable models for such change exist? By what criteria is "transfomational" to be understood in this context?
What are the challenges of the future that can be met with more "great public spaces"? Is the area truly blighted? Characterized by transformations no longer considered transformational?
A lot of urban renewal projects have been "transformational", but history records many as misdirected and destructive of the urban fabric. Hence, I doubt that hyperbole can be a reliable tool for understanding the urban condition.
Of course "we" can generate ideas that will inform future cultural centers and public spaces; that is what has gotten us to wherever it is that we are; maybe the term "ideas" should at minimum be preceded by the phrase "sustainable and nurturing", vague and as indeterminate as such terms may yet be.
Just a snack for thought.
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Gary Collins AIA
Principal
Gary R. Collins, AIA
Jacksonville OR
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