Peavey Plaza

Downtown - North Loop - Mill District - Elliot Park - Loring Park
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Nathan
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby Nathan » August 12th, 2013, 9:33 am

the city was at fault for
... neglecting the plaza in the first place...

John
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby John » August 12th, 2013, 9:44 am

rybak has basically washed his hands of this project now. he is quoted as saying he's tried to negotiate a resolution but has moved on to other development projects he can resolve before he leaves office. this is sad because peavey plaza is such a pivotal piece of south nicollet mall. it's really a gem of a block, along with the hall itself.

the city was at fault for pushing a total reconstruction through without weighing the original design's value and importance.
According to Oslund , they studied the idea of renovating the fountains , but said it was too expensive and the use of water was inefficient and wasteful. I do believe it's quite possible the fountains will need to be rebuilt. However, that should have been an absolute given from the beginning of this project, and a fundraising effort should have been inititated with that additional cost in mind.

Quite frankly, the problem from the get-go was Oslund was the wrong architect for the project. Truthfully , Oslund doesn't have the expertise. It really should be a landscape architectural firm with more experience in historical preservation. I attended the meeting of landscape architects at the convention center who were finalists to design the renovation. It was very clear from the start of that meeting Rybak was smitten with Oslund and mentioned Gold Medal Park several times as the expample of why Oslund was such a great firm. IMO, that rationalization was superficial and a bit ignorant given the complexity of this project. Don't you need to pick the firm that is most capable ? :?

mullen
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby mullen » August 12th, 2013, 10:05 am

well yes they were at fault for neglect. but some aspects of the plaza, specifically. the fountain is extremely expensive to repair. it's very easy to just bitch about the city "neglecting" something. money doesn't grow on trees. there are roads and sidewalks etc etc to repair. perhaps city should be more pro-active in seeking private partners for the plaza.

places like kansas city and dallas are fortunate to basically have one benefactor writing a check for a brand new performing arts center.

mulad
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby mulad » August 12th, 2013, 10:06 am

It is cheaper in the long run to keep up with repairs -- it helps the balance sheets on a year-to-year basis to defer maintenance, but it comes back to bite you.

at40man
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby at40man » August 12th, 2013, 3:03 pm

This is just awful news. So now that pile of concrete crap remains the same. The updates would have been beautiful and made the space a place to go. I would bet all the money I've ever had that the people who were so upset about the proposed renovations have never spent a second there.
Then you bet terribly wrong. I still go there regularly. AND I really enjoy the space, geometries, and material usage. Brutalism is breathtaking to me, and many other people. Your definition of a pile of concrete crap was actually designed by a great landscape architect from a significant movement in modern architecture. Whether you like it or not, it's important to maintain and display the history of architecture and design in our city. It might not seem like a big deal to you now, but in another 40 years it will be 100 years old and people will look back on it the way we look back on buildings and structures from the 1920's.

They will figure something out. Just like they will figure something out with the Armory, just like they always do.
I am no fan of Brutalism. While there are some excellent examples of brutalism that I really enjoy (Orange County Govt Center! Preston Bus Station!), in general it is too cold, impersonal, and having had to go to class in a Brutalist building brought all the problems of this form of architecture to the forefront. Most Brutalist structures ARE complete piles of crap. The interior concrete walls of one particular Brutalist structure I had the displeasure of attending college in literally would SWEAT when the weather warmed up.

Peavey Plaza, on the other hand, is breathtakingly beautiful. It feels human, instead of windswept. It is to scale with surroundings, rather than imposing. The use of concrete doesn't seem overbearing or ugly, but more organic in the "concrete jungle" of the city - water is flowing over it. It is one of the few areas in downtown Minneapolis that one is able to relax - and downtown Mpls is sorely lacking when it comes to city parks.

mullen
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby mullen » October 4th, 2013, 11:03 am

settlement reached between city and preservationists.
http://www.minneapolismn.gov/www/groups ... 114610.pdf

John
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby John » October 4th, 2013, 11:41 am

Sounds good on paper at least. Now the hard part comes with funding the renovation and revising the design to accomodate both sides of the issue. From my interpretation of the document, if nothing happens in three years , the city will have the ability to demolish it. And it doesn't obligate the city to do anything with the plaza in that three year time frame. Not sure if this is really a victory for the preservationists. :?

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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby mullen » October 4th, 2013, 11:49 am

really? preservationists seem to think it's a good agreement.
http://tclf.org/news/pressroom/settleme ... avey-plaza

John
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby John » October 4th, 2013, 11:53 am

really? preservationists seem to think it's a good agreement.
http://tclf.org/news/pressroom/settleme ... avey-plaza
Thanks for the article and preservationist perspective. Sounds hopeful now! :)

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Nathan
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby Nathan » October 4th, 2013, 11:55 am

I think the idea is that the city has to let them know of any interest in demolishing it so that they can bring up the law suit again... It's clearly a suit the City can't win with the MERA around.

lordmoke
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby lordmoke » November 14th, 2014, 3:23 pm

Strib on Peavy:
http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/28 ... page=1&c=y

As an aside, the more quickly they can get to work on this the better. It's such a great space, and it's so depressing right now.

MNdible
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby MNdible » November 14th, 2014, 5:49 pm

Spot on. A little love would go a long way.

Aville_37
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby Aville_37 » November 15th, 2014, 8:32 pm

I hope they get going on this sooner than later. I think monies from the Christmas Market should go towards renovations.

seanrichardryan
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Re: Peavey Plaza Reconstruction Project

Postby seanrichardryan » November 15th, 2014, 9:39 pm

Speaking of the Christmas market, the build out is in full swing. Lots of little menards sheds.
Q. What, what? A. In da butt.

lordmoke
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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby lordmoke » December 8th, 2014, 1:41 pm

Why on earth did the fountain still have water connected? Also, the market IS technically set up in a pool.
http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/285106271.html

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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby grant1simons2 » March 10th, 2015, 6:45 pm

How would you fix Peavey Plaza? I stopped by there today at 6 and although it's gorgeous out and everyone is out and about, the plaza was totally empty besides me. It might've been more full during lunch time or when the sun was shining inside of it, but at 6 it's still a nice place to sit down and drink your coffee. Those benches are great! But here are some basics I think need to be done.

First off, wi-fi. We are a tech driven society now, and sometimes we will go somewhere just to use their free wi-fi. I believe that if people notice that the park has wi-fi, it might attract a bit. Second there needs to be some sort of signage on the corner of Nicollet and 12th. I know most of you might think, "Well that's silly, it's pretty clear it's Peavey Plaza, everyone knows about it." But they don't. There are a lot of new residents downtown who may be completely new to Minnesota, Minneapolis, or even the country. Thirdly, historical kiosk? This is a plaza on the Federal Registration of Historical Places, and I think that they should teach visitors the history of the plaza along with the history of downtown. Fourth, this is more of a question; Are the lights protected by the Federal reg? Because man, those things make a lot of noise, and they seem to be always swinging. Another question is does the DID clean the plaza? There was quite a bit of garbage there today, which is a bit normal because it's spring, but there was a lot that I easily picked up quick and threw away. This will be my final thought for now. New garbage cans and getting rid of those round.. I don't even know what they are, but almost every single one is vandalized and dented :/

Aville_37
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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby Aville_37 » March 10th, 2015, 8:27 pm

Glassy/transparent, well light year round in-door/out door coffee bar/wine bar, etc. with outdoor tables/chairs. I thought Orchestra Hall was going to put in a new restaurant overlooking Peavey?

Better walkways, stairs, ramps, etc. More pedestrian friendly, dramatic lighting, and of course, for 3 of our seasons - better, well maintained plantings.

Aville_37
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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby Aville_37 » March 10th, 2015, 8:28 pm

Oh - I read that Peavey is going to be one of this summer's pop-up parks. Again - why waste money in a temporary fix and not hold off and put the funds towards permanent improvements. Makes me very upset.

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Nathan
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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby Nathan » March 11th, 2015, 7:17 am

Basically if you look at the renovation plans submitted by Friedberg himself (original architect, rejected by city) it's the perfect solution.

And for what it's worth a friend and I went to la belle crepe for lunch and ate it at peavey and it was jam packed full if people.

grant1simons2
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Re: Peavey Plaza

Postby grant1simons2 » May 17th, 2015, 8:35 am

If anyone has missed it, the city is sending out an RFP for the study of , "Historic Structures Report and Existing Conditions Study". After that process they then hope to see a new design and then construction.

http://www.minneapolismn.gov/www/groups ... 141459.pdf


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