Quote:
Originally Posted by bradnixon
The Westboro Loblaws is a big box, but it's built right along the street and it works. Why can't they all be like that?
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I wouldn't go so far as to say that "it works". It's built to the street all right, but Loblaws has done just about all they can do to make sure it doesn't work. For one, along the street would have been the obvious place to put all the "accessory" stores that Loblaws loves, like the photo and electronics shop, the dry cleaners, the wine store, PC Financial, the pharmacy, etc. These would have broken up the facade and promoted some street life on Richmond, rather than the empty concrete expanse that now exists. True, some of these are along Richmond, but guess what? You can't get to them from the street. And if you could, they're 2 feet above the sidewalk level. You have to go in one of Loblaws' entrances, and, wouldn't you know it, they've turned most of those on Richmond into unidirectional fire exits. Thinking of popping in to pick up some flowers and a card for your loved one? No can do - you have to go halfway down the block, walk back to the card and flowers area, walk back to the check out and then head back outside. Ok, but surely one can make use of the patio-like thing outside the restaurant/cafe on the northwest corner. Well, if it was possible initially (I seem to think it was), it isn't now since that door is, yes, you guessed it, an alarmed fire exit. Loblaws even wants you to take a longer way in to get to the cafe.
Well at least it works for people doing grocery shopping from their cars, right? Well, no. You're funnelled along a fairly narrow passageway that often gets congested past the photo store and drycleaners, then past the takeout counter (which is usually busy with people hanging around), before you can finally round the corner to begin shopping in the fish and vegetable department. It could have been designed so that the dry cleaners didn't exist in that spot near the parking lot entrance, which would put you immediately in the bread/fish/vegetable section, avoiding the congested passageway and takeout counter. And if you just want some milk and eggs for tomorrow morning's breakfast, well that's an expedition to the other end of the store. The Westboro Loblaws does nothing to facilitate, let alone promote, pedestrian/cycle/transit-based frequent grocery shopping and they even manage to make car-based shopping annoying as well.
The tragedy of the Westboro Loblaws is that from an urban design perspective, they got it about 90% right but then internally/operationally they got it about 90% wrong. The only saving grace from a long term perspective is that since the building is in the right place it can be "repaired" in the future.
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