A Win-Win is Possible: We are here to help.

Montgomery Has Been Blessed with Many Gifts that Make for a Promising Future for the Downtown

Just when Montgomery is set to reap the rewards of its blessings, the RSA proposes building that directly undermines and violates the unanimously approved Downtown Master Plan and accompanying zoning code

Top 6 Problems with Current RSA Proposed Design

Top 5 Myths Preventing Progress on the Redesign of the RSA Judicial Building

Sterile v. Reproductive Economic Development— Why the RSA Proposal is Inadequate

Suburban v. Urban Design is an Economic, not Aesthetic, Issue

Suburban Design in Downtown Setting Provides None of the Benefits that Make Urban Life Desirable

Boredom Generators: How to Kill a Downtown with Design Flaws

The Easy Fix

Development and Design Center

Land Value Taxation for Dealing with Abandoned or Underused Properties

Giving the Vision to Future Generations

10 False Arguments Promoted by RSA that are Clouding the Real Issues.

1.              The only people opposed to this project are do-nothing, know-nothing little old ladies. The RSA’s failure to understand the nature of the concerns by the community is the direct result of the RSA’s refusal to seek any input from the public until the 11^th hour.  Anyone who attended the Landmarks Foundation Forum would know that legitimate design flaws in the current plan have been identified by both young and old, and with diverse backgrounds representing economic development concerns as well as concerns about the negative tourism impacts.  Those views were echoed and confirmed at the next Forum that was hosted by the Citizens for Downtown Revitalization.  Thus, the opposition to the current RSA plan is widespread— from little old ladies, to economic development consultants, to our Master Plan and accompanying Zoning Code, to downtown business owners, to the best minds in planning and design in the nation.

2.              This is a preservationist issue in which they want to make downtown replicate Colonial Williamsburg.  No one opposing the RSA’s current design has suggested that downtown Montgomery replicate Colonial Williamsburg.  And this is not only a preservationist issue.  It is an economic development issue in which proponents seek to follow the successful examples of Charleston, Washington DC and Paris.  Those cities have understood the importance of predictability and building design to the making of the city.  Indeed, Charleston has a waiting list for businesses seeking space downtown.  For the RSA to adopt the “anything goes” route of Houston is something to be avoided.  We deserve better.

3.              Dexter Avenue Needs Help.  It certainly does.  That is why we need to make sure that this substantial investment maximizes its potential to positively impact Dexter Avenue.  After all, the RSA has a reputation for constructing buildings that are designed to last generations.  Given this fact, it is imperative that this $200 million dollar project will stand the test of time.  Moving forward with all deliberate speed on a design that does not even stand up in our own generation due to correctable design flaws is a recipe for disaster.    In addition, other policy reforms should be pursued to discourage the squatter speculation that is keeping buildings boarded up along Dexter Avenue.

4.              The Downtown will benefit from a $200 million dollar building and the jobs it produces.  The Downtown will benefit even more from a $200 million dollar building which addresses the current design flaws of the proposed building that undermine the speedy revitalization of downtown.

5.              The RSA has done more for the downtown than any other developer and is the only entity building much needed class A office space downtown. Why would a private developer seek to compete against the RSA when the RSA enjoys the advantages of not paying tax, not incurring the costs of complying with local zoning regulations, and having the deep pockets associated with being a 30 billion dollar pension fund?

6.              State law permits the RSA to ignore the Master Plan and Code.  The power of sovereign immunity was not created so that the RSA could become a developer of private office buildings who is not required to follow local zoning laws.  Regardless, the failure of the RSA to comply with the recently adopted Master Plan undermines the predictability of the development.  If the RSA can build anything anywhere downtown, private developers will continue to go to the suburbs where they are greeted with greater predictability. If the RSA moves forward with the current plan, they might as well as put up “DO NOT INVEST” signs at the borders of the downtown and hand out directions to the suburbs for developers who were recently mislead into believing that the recently adopted Master Plan and Zoning Code would finally bring the predictability needed for them to feel comfortable investing in downtown development.

7.              The RSA has gone to extraordinary lengths to save the building.  Yes they have, but this is clearly not worth the $20 or $30 million due to its impact on the Capitol and surrounding grounds. The Scottish Rites/Judicial Building is a building worthy of preservation, but it is not on par with the importance of safeguarding the grandeur of the Capitol and surrounding grounds. 

8.              The RSA’s current plan does not diminish the grandeur of the Capitol.  This self-serving claim by the RSA has been rebutted by one of the nation’s most respected planners, Victor Dover, who wrote a clearly worded letter to Mayor Bright outlining the need for the RSA to follow the Downtown Master Plan.  And the substance of this advice formed the foundation of the original Olmsted plan for the Capitol and its surrounding grounds 80 years ago.  The Olmsted brothers were also entrusted with the design of the grounds for the U.S. Capitol and White House.  Given the fact that the Capitol and its surrounding grounds are the primary asset of downtown Montgomery, it is shocking that the RSA would go against the advice of the best minds in planning and advice on this issue.  The RSA should build on the strengths of the downtown, not undermine them.

9.              Former Chief Justices want to save the Judicial Building.  If that were sufficient reason to save a building, then we would all be condemned to living in the past.  It is time to look forward, and move forward.

10.           It is too late to correct the design flaws.  The RSA has not submitted construction documents to the Building Commision, so they still have the opportunity to get it right.  And to get it right, they should do the same thing our forefathers did approximately 100 years ago when a substantial controversy arose over the addition of wings to the Capitol.  They reached out to the nation’s most respected architect, Charles McKim, who helped guide us to a solution that worked for everyone.  This example can be replicated by bringing in some of the nation’s most respected designers who have had a direct hand in helping breathe life into the nation’s capitol.  These designers can help us understand the possibilities that will work now and for generations to come—- just like Charles McKim did 100 years ago.

 

 

Tuesday Forum on RSA Judicial Building

Producing a Win-Win for Downtown Montgomery and the RSA   

Unfortunately, the recent debate over the proposed RSA Judicial Building on Dexter Avenue has focused on whether the RSA should construct a building or not, instead of how the project’s design flaws can be corrected in order to adequately leverage its economic development potential for the benefit of the city, region and State.  Please join us at the Hank Williams Museum Meeting Hall at 118 Commerce Street downtown on Tuesday January 22nd at 5:30 p.m. to discuss how the RSA can work with the Citizens for Downtown Revitalization in order to maximize their investment.  downtown-revitalization-forum-2008-01-23-email.pdf

 Downtown Montgomery has been an under-leveraged economic asset for this region for more than 50 years.  Fortunately, over the past several years we have had the nation’s leading planners and designers of downtown areas such as Andres Duany, Victor Dover, Rick Bernhardt, Tony Nelessen, and Ed McMahon, visit the downtown and provide their thoughts on how to leverage it economically.  

 All agreed that:  

             1.            The downtown operates like a sterile 9-5 suburban commuter office park instead of a vibrant 24/7 downtown regional center; 

             2.            Despite the substantial amount of investment in construction in the downtown area over the past 40 years, these investments failed to sufficiently foster the economic revitalization of downtown due to the failure to follow basic rules of urban design for downtown buildings; 

             3.            The downtown still has great potential due to a wide variety of factors such as the grandeur of the Capitol and its surrounding grounds, its underlying block structure, and the institutions that need to remain downtown.

In 2006 the Chamber of Commerce released its Economic Development Report for the region. Montgomery Economic Development Strategy  It correctly concluded that the downtown would not be revitalized so long as developers had no predictability in the nature of what would be built downtown.  For years, developers were drawn to the suburbs where there has been much greater predictability.

The City of Montgomery wisely heeded these conclusions and commissioned the award-winning firm Dover Kohl to work with the City and its citizens to craft a game plan for turning the downtown around. Dover Kohl answered the call with a world-class master plan and zoning code that was unanimously adopted by the City Council.  See http://www.montgomeryal.gov/depts/planning/downtown-plan.aspx. The RSA did not actively participate in this planning effort.

  In 2007, the City Council unanimously adopted a mandatory zoning code for the downtown area that requires the master plan to be followed.  These actions set the stage for downtown developers to invest in the downtown area thanks to the certainty it would now bring to development in the downtown area. Other cities are so jealous of this remarkable turn-around, that they are inviting representatives of Montgomery to come to their cities to explain how they can follow a similar path. 

  Now, less than a year after Montgomery made this quick turn-around, the RSA wants to reverse the progress that has been made by constructing a building on the most important street in downtown that does not comply with the unanimously adopted master plan or the unanimously adopted zoning code due to numerous design flaws.  While there are several correctable design flaws, the most fundamental violation is the height of the structure.

The height limitation in the master plan is premised upon several reasons including the need to safeguard the grandeur of the downtown’s most valuable asset— the view and primacy of the Capitol and its surrounding grounds. 

This requirement, along with the others found in the Master Plan, seek to emulate the success of Charleston, Washington DC and Paris as opposed to the “anything goes” policies that have produced disinvestment in places like downtown Houston.

It is absolutely imperative that this $200 million dollar project move forward in a manner that will allow it to stand the test of time.  After all, this is not only Montgomery’s Main Street, it is Alabama’s Main Street, as well as the Main Street for the Civil Rights Movement.  Add to that the fact that the RSA constructs building to last for generations, and we have no choice but to demand that the RSA refrain from moving forward with all deliberate speed on a design that does not even stand up to the concerns of the current generation due to correctable design flaws.

The good news is that we have a precedent for dealing with this impasse.  One hundred years ago there was a similarly heated controversy that arose over the addition of wings to the Capitol.  Our forefathers reached out to the nation’s most respected architect, Charles McKim, who helped guide everyone to a solution that worked for everyone.  This example can be replicated by bringing in some of the nation’s most respected designers who have had a direct hand in helping breathe life into Washington DC.  These designers can help us understand the possibilities that will allow the RSA to move forward with a design that meets their economic goals while conforming to the Master Plan and zoning code.  And the solutions will not only work now, but for generations to come—- just like the guidance given by Charles McKim 100 years ago.

These issues will be fully discussed at the next RSA Judicial Building Forum hosted by the Citizens for Downtown Revitalization at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday at the Hank Williams Museum Meeting Hall.  If you are concerned for the future of downtown, we strongly encourage you to attend and let your concerns be heard.