^^^I really like the river front plazas, what about them do you think is ugly? Other than the cheap stone that many have been using lately, they are a great way to engage the river imo.
And as for the "huge" podium, it seems to be pretty well integrated into the landscape so that it looks more like a series of retaining walls than a podium. I think it is really great compared to, say, all the k-stuff that surrounds it. And if you look at the pictures of the model, the street side is faced by huge curtain walls of glass (the podium is extremely well done so that you enter on the street and walk up so that you are elevated slightly above the river in the lobby - really great imo), so even if the retail won't open onto the street, it will be highly visible. And besides, the podium isn't even really a podium. It is more to facilitate the train tracks than anything else. Al in all, I think it is very well handled.
The model for a refresher:
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Originally Posted by spyguy
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Speaking of the retail, I wonder if Starbucks has already signed on or Hines just assumes that Starbucks will be willing to open another store... A sign of the times if Starbucks is the first tenant to sign on to a major building I guess...