#1 Retail

Hello everyone,

On Saturday, November 7 we had a big field trip in Greensboro with HSS 105. First, we looked at the main retail spaces in Greensboro: Friendly Center and Four Seasons.

Friendly Center
We met at Friendly Center. This was the place for our first observations. Friendly Center consists of an older and a newer part. It became immediately obvious to me that there are a lot of electronic shops in the original part of Friendly Center, like Radio Shack and Ritz Camera. Overal, it seems like there are shops for people of every age and people with different interests. It seems like this part serves a wide public. The fact that the shops are not very expensive also supports this statement. In the newer part of Friendly there are actually even more electronical shops, for example Apple and AT&T. It seems like this part is more expensive, the stores look fancier, and they serve a smaller public: the upperclass. It is more like a lifestyle part. Most pedestrian paths are next to the shops under a roof, but there are also pedestrian spaces that cross the streets or parking areas. Some of them are decorated with trees and benches (see picture). That looks very nice. There are a lot of parking areas. This is not strange, since lots of people visit the Friendly Center each day. There is one block with shops that really sticks out, because it is made of brick. That is a new expansion of Friendly Center. All the other shops are made of stone. Furthermore, I consider the Bear Rock Cafe as a shop that sticks out. It has a different shape than the other stores surrounding it (see picture).

Map of Friendly Center

Friendly Center seen from a parking lot

The front of the Bear Rock Cafe

One of the pedestrian spaces leading to the other side

Four Seasons Mall

After Friendly Center we drove to the Four Seasons mall. This is a very big (3 story) shopping center. It is very busy. Everything looks very nice and you can see that the owners really thought about the arrangement of the mall. Four Seasons has a great variety of stores. There are also kiosks and eating areas. One can find everything there for a reasonable price. That is one of the reasons that a lot of people from other cities make their way to Four Seasons. Another reason is that the mall is very close to the interstate, so the accessibility is very good.

The United States Post Office

Christmas decoration in the center of the first floor

On the Other Side of the Tracks

Hello everybody,

In the class of Thursday, October 29 we went to South Elm street to observe the stores located on this street. We got extra diagrams to compare our findings with the existing stores in 1925, 1975, and 2000. In this way we are able to draw a conclusion about the development of South Elm Street and its function.

When comparing, the first thing that became obvious to me was that there were more stores back in 1925 and 1975 than now. There are a lot more open spaces now, mainly roads and parking lots. One reason for this could be that certain stores were not necessary (and as a result not profitable) anymore. Especially the last few decades technology and industrialisation increased a lot. It is not strange that some companies couldn't keep up with the progression. Also, generations change. People from this generation have very different interests than people from 1925.
I guess I have to combine my previous observation with the fact that there are a lot of new parking spaces on South Elm Street which were not there a couple of decades ago. There has been a large growth in traffic over the decades. That involves the need of parking spaces. So we can speak of infills; businesses and stores disappeared, parking lots were created.

Although, a couple of businesses are still there, such as the Southern Railway Company and the Salvation Army. These companies have always been important for the city of Greensboro and, in my opinion, will always be important. That is why they still exist. Trains are a main transport method and the Salvation Army is there to help poor people. Besides, there are a lot of antique stores located in this street. I guess that is just typical for this area. Obviously it is not a street to go to if you need food. I liked it though, because the street and most of the stores looked very nice.

Tracing the tracks : Opening the gates

Hello everyone,

In the class of Tuesday, October 27 we visited the Galyon Depot. This is the train station of Greensboro and it is a place for bus departure.

The train is very important to the city of Greensboro. Mister Morehead was the one who introduced the train to Greensboro and built a railway station. He wanted to make Greensboro known to people from out of town and he wanted to compete with other cities. Greensboro is a (central) connection point in North Carolina, but also in the whole east coast. Greensboro is called the Gate City. The place where trains stop is the "gate" in the city. The train was most important in the past, because it was actually the only transportation method if you wanted to travel long distances. Cars didn't exist back in those times (around 1900's/1910's). The Depot consists of two parts: an old and a new part. In the older part there are nice, big rooms for passengers and everything looks classic. I heard that there was still segregation in the Depot a couple of decades ago. There were separate waiting rooms for black and white people. The newer part of the Depot, which is linked to the older part, is currently a bus departure station. That is the back entrance. In the future, the train can become very important again, when the gas prices will probably be extremely high. The train will be a lot cheaper then and it is also better for the environment ("greener"), which will be a big issue in the future.

The following link is the website with the flight schedule to Piedmont Triad International Airport:
http://www.ifly.com/piedmont-triad-international-airport/GSO-airport-flight-status-arrivals

A lot of immigrants come to North Carolina each year to live and work. The airport and railway stations in Guilford County are important gateways for immigrants. The following websites are places in Greensboro with a non-Western European culture embedded in them.

Greensboro Cultural Center:
http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/Departments/Executive/events/hosting/culturalcenter/

UNC Greensboro:
http://www.uncg.edu/

La Hacienda Restaurante Mexicano:
http://www.activediner.com/La-Hacienda-Restaurante-Mexicano/restaurant/Greensboro/NC/US/profile/586300

African American Atelier:
http://www.africanamericanatelier.org/

P.F Chang's China Bistro:
http://www.pfchangs.com/index.shtml

The Interstate system is also a main gateway to the Triad. If I look at the map of Guilford County, I see three Interstates that come through Guilford County: 85, 40, and 73. It helps Greensboro to become a big city with a lot of businesses. It is easy to travel to Greensboro by car.

Downtown Institutions

Hello everyone,

In the class of Thursday, October 22 we visited downtown Greensboro for the second time, this time to look at downtown institutions. In this post I will discuss five institutions: the Center City Park, the Cultural Center, the Central Library, the Greensboro Historical Museum, and the former public library.

The Center City Park
There used to be buildings at the place where the Center City Park is located now. It is a peaceful place in the center of downtown. It looks like a place to relax, especially for busy business men. The park is two years old now and it is actually privately owned, but it is donated to the city. In my opinion, water is the theme of the park, because there are a lot of fountains. The open space for the park is problably saved to have a green place downtown and to have a quiet space to rest.




The Cultural Center
In the Cultural Center of Greensboro you can enjoy performances and look at the different art styles that are exposed in the several galleries. It seems like a nice place; you can visit it whenever you want.

The Central Library
The Central Library is a new library. The central library used to be the building in which the Elon Law School is located now. I will talk about that later. I think they moved it, because there was a lack of space or they wanted to organize the library differently. I think the dome on the second floor (see picture) is very important for the library. I had the feeling that it represents something, as if learning and being educated leads to a path of light. The circle shape of it reminded me of the Elliot University Center, in which circles also play a significant role. I guess these cricles has something to do with education.




The Greensboro Historical Museum
I heard that the Greensboro Historical Museum used to be a civic auditorium and a library in between. I guess this had been an important place in the center of Greensboro and that they therefore made a museum of it. Also, in my opinion it is important for the people who live in Greensboro to know the history of the city. Then they can determine where to make the necessary changes and they learn what places are or were of great value to the city of Greensboro. The museum is impressive when you are walking inside. It is very quiet and everything looks old. It is nice to see a classroom from a century ago and the old telephone system (see pictures). I really had the feeling: "Is this really what Greensboro looked like before? That is so different." Actually it is hard to imagine.

The former public library

As I mentioned earlier in this post, the Law School of Elon University used to be the public library. This building is located more in the center of downtown Greensboro and it looks like a bank or insurance building (like many other downtown) rather than a library or what it is used for now: an educational institution. I make this statement not only because its external appearance, but also because there are fewer decorations inside than in the current library. Another difference between the former and the current Central Library is the space. The former library looks a lot smaller. Probably that is one of the reasons why it is replaced.

Back to the Center

Hello everyone,

In the class of Tuesday, October 20 we visited downtown Greensboro for the first time; a thing to be excited about! We discussed the values of some buildings, how they contribute to the city and how they can be compared to the UNCG campus. In this post I will discuss three different locations.


First Citizens Bank
If you consider what the most important employers of Greensboro are, you will emphasize that these are the colleges, the denim industry and especially the banking and insurance companies. The First Citizens Bank has a very important function. It is right in the middle of downtown Greensboro (on the corner of Elm Street and Market Street), so I think it is definitely a "beat", also because usually there are a lot of people coming in and out of the building. The design of the building is very prominent; as you can see in the picture the entrance consists of golden doors and two capitals in front of it. That refers to a classical style, that is also used for a couple of buildings on the UNCG campus, such as the Jackson Library and the Brown Building. The First Citizens Bank building is made of brick and glass. There is a lot of glass used. I think it was done this way to make the building light(er) from the inside.




Alleys
There are a lot of alleys discernable in downtown Greensboro. Most of them are used as drainage-canals. Some of them are very artistic, as you can see in the picture. On this kind of water slide the rain is guided into a box. The box leads to a sewerage system. In my opinion this is a very nice way to create from an ugly view an artistic masterpiece. It really contributes to the external appearance of the downtown of Greensboro. It makes me think about what one can do with buildings or locations in other parts of Greenboro. I consider this change of an alley as an infill and the alley itself as a "sink". This sink is partly covered by an artistic piece.




The KRESS Building
When I saw the KRESS building for the first time, it attracted my attention immediately. It is a beautiful building and I think the owners did a good job in making it look like the way it is. It is a building for food and entertainment and that is also the message the building transfers in its appearance. A lot of people visit this building every day, so in that perspective you can describe it as a "beat", according to Clay's vocabulary. The KRESS building is also (part of a) "strip". This part of downtown (especially Elm Street) is a very developed area and this building is definitely an example of this. By the way, there are more theatres in this area of the city.

Blandwood

Hello everyone,

In the class on Thursday, October 8 we visited Blandwood, an impressive building that originally was a farmhouse. Officially it is located on Washington Street, but it also faces other streets. It is constructed in the 18th century and there are a lot of stories imbedded in this site. What I am going to discuss in this post is the construction of the building and the reasons why the house was renovated twice and was updated several times.

This building has a great value to the city of Greensboro, because it is the oldest italianate structured building in the country (1795). The property consists of 100 acres of land. It was impressive to look around in the buiding and to realize that people lived in here two centuries ago in almost the same setting. The building was once the Keeling Institute. The building looks very nice from inside; it has great decorations. You can divide the building into two different parts: the west parlor and the east parlor. The west parlor is known as the "King" parlor and the east parlor is known as the "Queen" parlor. The difference is that the King parlor is more formal in structure, lay out and furniture, the Queen parlor is less formal in structure, lay out and furniture. The chandeliers are very impressive and unique (see picture) and also the circle patterns around the cord where the chandeliers are hanging on are interesting. In both rooms are doors with mirrors in them. The reasoning in this is that the mirror will reflect sunlight, so that the rooms will be lighter. Obvious was that the ground floor had high ceilings. This is because the heat could rise in warmer periods of the year, so the it would be cool where the family actually lived.

There are a few explanations why the family would update or renovate the original house. It is possible that they wanted to keep up with the dominant style of houses during different times. More likely is that they wanted to expand the building to show their wealth and reputation in the city and further away. Probably the family knew that their building was some kind of a role model for the area, so I think they also wanted to use their power and reputation to set a standard.

There were 4 bedrooms in the building, one downstairs and three upstairs. Most bedrooms are very simple in design, there is a lack of decoration in them. The beds were traditional sleigh beds. The ceilings were low compared to the ceilings on the ground floor, that is the reason why these bedrooms look so small. Especially the front rooms and the east and west parlors show the wealth of the Morehead family. In the front rooms the primary color of paint is green, because it doens't fade that fast. It was a great experience to see the Blandwood building from the inside. It is definitely a very important building for the area. I think that, when Blandwood took its final form, people were curious about this building and maybe they were a little jealous on the family's wealth too. They must have admired it, and as I said before, this site must have been a role model for the rest of the town.

Re-purpose : Re-use

Hello everyone,

In the class on Tuesday, September 29 we looked around near the border of College Hill neighborhood. There is a lot of industrial activity in this area. The Wafco Mill company is located here and some older industrial buildings too. Also apartment buildings and a part of Greensboro College are located here.

The Wafco Mill complex used to be a factory building. You can notice this by looking at the description on the building, but also by looking at the material the building is made of (brick) and the multiple, large windows. In this way the company could reduce the costs of electricity. Since College Hill is so close to the the campus of both UNC Greensboro and Greensboro College, it is the perfect type of building to turn into an apartment complex for students of one or both colleges.
There is a railroad track next to the building. It is not in use anymore. I think its purpose was to deliver corn and grain to the factory. That must have been an easy way of transportation. Why is not possible to re-use this railroad track and make it a transportation opportunity for students and residents with several stops on the way.
There is also an old big brick building that used to work as a factory of a certain company. In my opinion the building is too old to re-use it, but the property is suitable for a parking lot. I think there are not enough parking lots in College Hill and this property is located very close to the apartment complex Fulton Place. I heard that there are is not enough parking space on and around Fulton Place, so in my opinion this is the opportunity to create a new parking lot.

There are already a few apartment buildings built on the sides of the big streets in College Hill (for example Mendenhall Street).

Another thing that attracted my attention but has not much to do with this assignment, is that sometimes houses in the same row all have very different colors. It looks very nice. It seems like the houses incorporate different pieces of the neighborhood.