THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, January 9, 1996 TAG: 9601090008
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A12 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Another View
SOURCE: By GEOFFREY LEWIS
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
Thumbs up to staff writer Alex Marshall for questioning the design of MacArthur Center. Bringing a staple of suburbia into an urban environment will not well serve the center, Norfolk or Hampton Roads in the long run.
The classic urban scenes of sidewalk cafes, second-hand bookstores, quaint restaurants, lively bars and clubs exist because of the synergy created by all these attractions concentrated in a pedestrian-oriented area.
The presence of one or two establishments is not sufficient to pull the crowds that make the urban experience exciting and safe. The current design of the MacArthur Center will attract people to the downtown area, but it will not add to the character and prosperity of any establishments outside the mall. Furthermore, it is my opinion that in 15 years, the center will have lost its attractiveness and go the way of the Granby Street Mall or Military Circle . . most likely be located in Virginia Beach or Chesapeake, and Norfolk will once again lose its tax base to these cities.
Integrating the center with the rest of downtown may be as easy as opening up the shops to the street. As the design stands now, almost three quarters of the center's street frontage is occupied by parking garages . . . hardly inviting to the passerby. Reconfiguring the mall to bring shops to the street and pushing parking to the middle of the site, or even off-site, will help for several reasons. Stores on the ground floor will be able to display their wares to shoppers inside the mall and pedestrians outside. The convenience of being able to walk into the smaller stores from the outside is of utmost importance, as many will lose interest if they have to find an entrance to the mall and then find the particular shop once inside.
Ground-floor shops opening to the sidewalk could be charged steeper rents, bringing in more revenue for the mall. Restaurants would enjoy the benefits of setting up sidewalk dining areas while still keeping the captive mall clientele. Most important, the linking of MacArthur Center and the rest of downtown Norfolk will add to the synergy that is necessary to attract visitors and residents.
Arlington County built a suburban-style mall in Ballston, Arlington's new downtown with several 20-story office buildings and high-rise apartments. Nearly 9,000 people live in Ballston, an area roughly the size of Norfolk's downtown. Despite the high day- and night-time populations and subway stop, the retail market there is dismal. Shops on the ground floors of high-rises are vacant or losing money. Shops in the mall do not fare much better.
People who live across the street from the mall often brave Northern Virginia's traffic and do their shopping at Tyson's Corner, a nicer and partly newer development. There is almost no night life in Ballston, and although the restaurants do a brisk lunch business, the dinner crowds are lean.
Part of the malaise in Ballston is caused by the lack of interesting things to see and do. The mall offers the street an imposing brick facade, offering no glimpse of what is inside; and elevated walkways link the mall to the subway, enabling people to bypass any activity that may be happening on the street. Since the boredom of boarded shops on the street offers people no incentive to come to Ballston, the mall suffers. Conversely, the pull of the mall drawing people off the street leads to the soft retail market and dull streets. It is easy to see the cycle here.
The mistake made in Ballston can be avoided in Norfolk. Norfolk has Harbor Park, Nauticus, Waterside, Town Point Park, Scope, Chrysler Hall and an opera house. It would be a shame to see the new MacArthur Center detracts from these attractions by becoming an ``economic island'' instead of an integral part of the urban experience.
The planners should rethink the design of the MacArthur Center so it accentuates downtown Norfolk instead of competes with it. MEMO: Mr. Lewis is a student at the University of Virginia's School of
Architecture, Urban and Environmental Design.
by CNB