[ardecila]

I'm actually pretty confident that former "Peshtigo" plans would have been better for the city than the current 500 N. LSD. The SOAR comparison PDF touts a reduction in the accessory parking rate from 1.18 down to 0.55, but since the new proposal increased the unit count from 358 to 500, the total number of parking spaces is virtually the same. I guess the added density is good, but if they're all driving, who cares? The old proposal would also have been much taller, with a more dynamic form.

Plus, Perkins + Will has a successful track record IMO of handling parking podiums, turning them into unique visual experiences or abstract sculpture but always maintaining relationships between the inside and outside. They never really got around to designing the podium before the proposal died, so I can only peak in hypotheticals. However, the worst thing you can do is put the parking podium behind blank walls - but that's exactly what SCB is now doing at 500 N LSD, and covering the facade in greenery. Architects often make jokes about how vegetation is used to cover up poor design, and this seems like the ideal example.