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Pioneer Square Redevelopment: Seattle, Washington, July, 1966
Author: John Graham and Company, Architects
Title: Pioneer Square Redevelopment: Seattle, Washington, July, 1966
Publication: Seattle, New York: John Graham and Company, 1966
Edition: First edition
Description: Oblong, 21x28cm, 93pp. Photographs, plans, maps, tables. Printed on thicker stock, photos in sepia and maps/plans in two colors, with dividers between each section. Illustrated, brown card wrappers, comb bound. Number 13 in marker on front cover, some light wear, toning, and wrinkling to edges. Clean internally and near fine.
Important Seattle architect, John Graham Jr.'s (1908-1991), study and proposed plan for the redevelopment of Pioneer Square in 1966. By the 60's, the historic Seattle neighborhood had become decrepit and faced demolition due to the belief of many that Seattle was a futuristic, forward-looking city with little worth preserving, indigenous or otherwise. Graham's plan would "blend old and new" through the urban renewal process, preserving just a few of the historic buildings, and wiping the rest out including housing, making way for high rise commercial buildings and parking garages. The plan was funded by Seattle businessman, Ben B. Erlichman.
Opposed to this proposal was Victor Steinbrueck (1911-1985), who with Graham Jr. had designed and built the famous Space Needle in 1961 of the '62 World's Fair. Steinbrueck argued in favor of complete preservation, fearing the threats to low income communities and their cultural significance, such as Skid Road:
"The Proposal as outlined is an inhuman, sterile, brutal project with vast parking lots... and four colossal skyscrapers set atop huge 'super block' parking garages. ...The City must accept the responsibility to realistically and humanely solve the sociological problems of the Skid Road residents. It will not solve itself and changing the character of the Skid Road is not a solution."
The war of words continued for some time, but Steinbrueck was more or less successful in railroading the efforts of Graham and others, eventually his ideas of preservation winning out.
This privately distributed is quite scarce, OCLC locating just one copy at the University of Washington.
.The war of words continued for some time, but Steinbrueck was more or less successful in railroading the efforts of Graham and others, eventually his ideas of preservation winning out.
This privately distributed is quite scarce, OCLC locating just one copy at the University of Washington.
Seller ID: 5878
Subject: Washington
This listing was created by Bibliopolis.