From a ground breaking in late May of 2010, Granville Urban’s latest project Fulton Village is making strides forward. You will see the foundations popping up like rafts in a sea of dirt on the Fulton and Amador site anchored to the south by long time downtown standby, Tokyo Gardens.

Building on a strong foundation is key, a cliche that warrants repeating. The work being done now is crucial for the longevity of the buildings. Poking up from the concrete is the plumbing, electrical, and anchor bolts. In no time, you will begin seeing the construction crews erecting the framing, creating the form of these three story triplexes.

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The design of this project, much like Granville Urban is searching for an identity. Many alternative for this project have been designed and drafted. Granville had even built a full scale model of the unit layout to test the plan. This type of investigation and curiosity before a project is built is interesting and admirable. I had consulted on the tail end of this project regarding some of the facade treatments. I’m curious how the final look and function of the complex will turn out.

Following the development of the Fulton Corridor Specific Plan from the inside, Tim Schulz, will be reporting on his experiences on the Community Advisory Committee. Below are his notes from the 1st public meeting.
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Representing Moule & Polyzoides Architects and Urbanists are;
Stefanos Polyzoides, David Sargent, and Juan Gomez-Novy

Most of what the M & P representatives’ presentation covered was an introduction to what they do, how they define their role, and an overview of the process they oversee to reach the end target of establishing new codes and standards by which we will improve/develop/redevelop Downtown Fresno as a whole.

Instead of re-writing everything that was presented, it is much faster to view the Power Point presentation they displayed during the introduction of their overview.

One important point that Stefanos Polyzoides established early on was to answer a question that was yet to be asked, which was that “Downtown is part of the Neighborhoods Plan.” Although we (Fresno) have two separate community advisory committees; the Fulton Corridor Specific Plan, and the Downtown Neighborhoods Plan, the two will be subject to the same codes and standards to be established over the next two years, approximately. An overview of the process, which as they state is the most important and indispensible part they will employ is as follows;

Discovery and Outreach reach out, listen, educate, listen, evaluate- underlying theme being collaboration
Vision and Charrettes learning w/ community, build political support
Unpack charrettes w/ staff, Committees
Implementation connect downtown and neighborhoods, base on current demographics
Sustainability Green Infrastructure/water/storm-water
Code + General Plan Policy adjustments Form-Based Code
Environmental review integrate w/ plan process, EIR streamlines the review process

Success for this process will largely depend on the Committees to, 1. communicate key issues, 2. gauge how MPA is doing, and 3. act as points of interest in order to attract other people

The last portion of the meeting was open for questions from both the Committee and the public. I did not record all of the questions, but tried to get the ones that I thought were more relevant and probably more common questions that the public may have.

Q Alan Allen: Fulton Mall- walk or street solution?
A Stefanos Polyzoides (S.P.): We will decide that through the process
- Side note: the Historic Preservation Commission will have a vote on April 5 to appoint the Fulton Mall a Historic Landmark.
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A S.P.: Fulton Mall may be highly important to people, but it is only one issue. There are and will be many other issues and we want to make sure that the Mall does not drown out other issues. (I personally appreciated this point and his making the statement from the beginning. We need to make sure that we don’t hyper-focus on minute or singular items, as important as they may truly be, and in doing so lose focus on the big picture and the all-encompassing purpose of the whole process.)

A David Sargent (D.S.): We will concentrate on developing standards and guidelines for adaptive re-use, zone level regulation, etc. We can change the current zoning and standards if that is what is found to be necessary.

A John Dugan (J.D.): We are going to build on Form-Based Code; we will establish a whole new foundation. In the meantime, we can adopt interim development standards and interim zoning changes in the interest of forward movement. It will be very much green field based.

Dennis Manning (Downtown Improvement Group) – would like to work with the group, and is very interested in and has background in transportation and the involved systems.

Community member – encourage going back to 2-way streets (Tree Tops), encouraging geo-tourism to celebrate our ag and immigrant history, and concerned about possible adverse affects of bringing the high-speed rail

Q Arthur Sadine – Who makes final decision for Specific Plan?
A Elliot Balch (E.B.): Ultimately the City Council, which will most likely happen in 2012.

Heather ?: What will make us unique, stand out? Worth looking into arts, entertainment, cultural diversity, and avoiding the “mom and pops” and corporations. We need character and personality. We need to make Fresno a cool place to visit.

Orlando Veloria – (from Orange County, Santa Ana) Although a Clovis resident, I own a restaurant at 860 Fulton. I would encourage everyone that while this process is taking place over whatever span of time it requires, that we stay the course and invite/bring/encourage visiting downtown. Things don’t start after this is all done. The energy started long ago, and just as I have lived through and seen downtowns grow and revitalize when growing up, Fresno is more than capable of doing the same thing. Let’s clean up Fulton Mall. Let’s have public displays of renderings. Let’s show people that the wheels are in motion and that it’s not just a bunch of talk.

Q Joe Moore: Explain, 1. new urbanism, 2. economics – how does that fit into the exercise?
A S.P.: 1. Accept traditional urban form and feed a synergy between old and new. 2. Take certain steps, sequencing (Pasadena, Ca.), and patience.
A D.S.: Strategic Economics (from Berkeley). Will be on website (don’t know which site) May 4 and 5.

Don Simmons – 1902 Divisadero, Historical preservation is a large part of the environmental factor. Reiterate the April 5 hearing for Fulton Mall as State Historic Building/Site.

End note: anyone can visit the website [fresnodowntownplans.com] to ask questions or leave comments, or call 621.PLAN.

Timothy Schulz

*photo above from City of Fresno Downtown and Community Revitalization Department’s Facebook page

10am-2pm Saturday 12/19/09 – Sunday 12/20/09 Fulton & Divisadero

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As some downtown buildings just begin construction and others get a new lease on life, the Iron Bird Lofts opens its doors.
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I ran into developer, Reza Assemi, Wednesday morning on my way back from the Bank of Italy press conference. He was busy giving direction to the concrete sub-contractor at Broadway Lofts. However, he did take the time to talk to me about Broadway Lofts (more about that later) and the open house of Iron Bird Lofts.
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Some of the units have passed final inspection and others are scheduled to have tenants move in on the 1st of January. The landscaping is also shaping up. Reza said he want’s to welcome prospective renter in to experience and possible move in to their newest creation.

Saturday and Sunday 10pm-2pm the gates will be open and leasing agents will be on hand to get you living downtown. While we chatted, Reza fielded a phone call in which he requested there be lots of signs, banners, and balloons.
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Iron Bird Lofts consists of 16 three-story row houses, 48 lofts and 16 two-bedroom flats, ranging from 900 sq. ft. to 1,600 sq. ft. The architect for the project is Warren Thompson FAIA and the landscape designer is Jennifer Feaster.

Tractors have been rumbling outside my office this week. I decided to walk over and snap some photos. I caught this one of Tommy Yoshioka, owner of Tokyo Garden, and construction worker look on as tractor pushes dirt around Granville Homes latest downtown project Fulton Village

I was also lucky enough to chat with Darius Assemi while he was there. He says they are just doing the underground work for now, until the plans for the buildings are approved by the City of Fresno.

The origin of the question “The last of the urban pioneers?” came a few weeks ago as I biked down Fulton to Milano. I noticed a new sign that intrigued me.

It was in the empty lot next to Tokyo Gardens. The building that once stood there was demolished by the City of Fresno due to structural instability. The absentee owner was billed. Since then, Granville Homes purchased the site. They plan to build a mixed use development there. It a great location, next door to the iconic Tokyo Garden and near amenities such as the farmers’ market.

A preliminary design of the project was submitted for Site Plan Review with the City of Fresno on July 6th 2009. The proposal includes 4 linear buildings with exterior stairs and walkways to access 2nd and 3rd floor units. Parking is in a gated lot behind the buildings. The two buildings with Fulton frontage are anchored by commercial space on the ground floor.

While we could discuss this design in more depth there is another side of the project and Granville’s urban developments that is more intriguing. This comes from an Aggregate of what I’ve heard from associates and a conversation with Darius Assemi and Jeff Roberts when they brought a conceptual design to the Tower District Design Review Committee. They are investigating who would live downtown and how many of those people are left. It seems they are concerned that they are reaching the cap of the demographic that rents units from them at Vagabond and H Street Lofts.

A question that seems to be plaguing their minds is: are there anymore urban pioneers to rent the apartments and commercial space. With millions of dollars on the line they are rightly uncomfortable with the “if you build it, they will come” concept. They also want to know what amenities residents would want and how much they’d be willing to pay for them.

To that end Granville is gathering up input from a website and focus groups with existing Vagabond and H Street residents. Two of the residents that participated were Floyd Sanchez and Hilary Malveaux. The dialog was directed by Darius Assemi. Floyd impression of the focus group goal was to “[collect] the resident’s input on things they would like to see in a new development planned for the corner of Amador and Fulton Street.” and “They seemed receptive to specific suggestions and requests. My perception is that overall they tempered their commercial concerns with the community’s concerns well. One thing I was surprised with was the scope of their ambitions with the Amador/Fulton project (next to Tokyo Garden). They plan to do a lot with the space.”

This is further reinforced by a Fresno Bee article on July 28th that states “Almost single-handedly, Reza Assemi is rejuvenating Fresno north of Fulton Mall.” But goes on to demonstrate that downtown housing development is still a lonely path.

It’s a pretty thought, says Robin Kane, a longtime analyst of Fresno’s real estate scene. And it may unfold like that someday. But for now, he says, Uptown, even with the addition of Broadway Lofts, will remain “a niche market.”

Kane gives Assemi high marks for backbone — “he’s got the courage and innovation to do it” — and savvy — “he understands [his] market well.”

Kane says that market is in large part the younger crowd, singles or childless couples, perhaps newcomers from larger cities who yearn for a taste of what they left behind — neighborhoods near taller buildings where it’s easier to buy a painting than a lawn mower.

But, Kane says, Uptown still is too raw to lure a broad array of renters, condo-buyers and major retailers, the engine of truly dynamic inner-city redevelopment. He doesn’t explain it in so many words, but he’s talking about the middle class, that big pool of workaday folks with money and a considerable fondness for security and convenience when it comes to choosing a place to live.

For that reason, Kane says, Assemi probably is destined for a while longer to be a pioneer in Uptown development.

I drafted this post over two weeks ago. And unlike many of the other 20+ drafts I have saved, this one has become more and more relevant. With the closing of Milano on the Fulton Mall, a safe haven for Fresno Creatives for over two years, we have to question our progress. There is even the real threat of urban pioneers becoming disillusioned or even loose the faith

Downtown is not even at a point where it can support small businesses. The discussion goes back to the chicken and the egg. To live downtown, people want big city amenities. To provide big city amenities, businesses need a strong customer base. I say we need eggs by the dozen and a full hen house at the same time.

So what are your thoughts? Have we reached the cap of Downtown Pioneers willing to make sacrifices to build an urban lifestyle in Fresno? What are the hang-ups? Are there any low hanging fruit not being picked?

When will downtown become mainstream? What is that tipping point?

So readers, what is needed for you to take the plunge and move downtown? If you’re an existing resident, what will it take to keep you down there?

Yesterday, our humble website strode clear over a milestone. For the first time we had over 100 visits to the site in a single day. By midnight, we actually had 184 visits. Our previous high was 79 visits, set on April 14th during National Architecture Week.

We built this website back in January with the help of Paprika Studios to feature the steadily growing archop exhibits. We also wished to introduce content that can’t be found in any other Fresno media. That is critiques and commentaries about Fresno’s built environment, uniquely focused on design. Other local media report on architecture and the built environment. The focus is often on economics or reported as a current event, rather than exploring the implication for the built environment. The question of ‘why does that building look that way?’ or ‘is that a good or successful design?’ or ‘what does this building say about us and our city?’ rarely get explored. Also the question of ‘who is the architect?’ is left unanswered.

In other cities it is common place for newspapers to employ architectural or urban design critics, much like providing readers with food critics or cultural arts critics. John King who writes for the SF Gate and SF Chronicle come to mind. That is not currently the case in Fresno. We intend to change that paradigm here.

The 1st critique I wrote was of Tower Tattoos. That was a success story of good architectural design. That was a small tenant improvement project that we were able to dig into details of the design. It was also the beginning of what I believe is essential for pushing our Fresno’s and the region’s built environment forward.In that post I wrote:

“We need to offer constructive criticism to buildings, architects, and developers that are not preforming. We also need to highlight and reward those that demonstrate high quality design and positively contribute to a healthy and vibrant built environment.”

On Tuesday I wrote what I hope is constructive criticism on the Granville Homes’ L Street Village project. The post was the main driver for site traffic yesterday. It launched our site traffic through the roof (would our roof be a flat glass roof, maybe a sheet metal butterfly roof, or even a green roof?). The post has drawn 247 visits since Tuesday.

This has got me thinking about the theory behind design critique and a driving theory behind the archop effort.

Architectural education is not a pat you on the back, everyone gets a gold star kind of education. It is rigorous and often merciless. Part of that gauntlet is to prepare us for a professional practice that is highly competitive, low in compensation, and high in liability. A profession where creativity, communication, and cool under pressure are equally essential.

Remembering those critiques, I was forced to completely reevaluate things I had accepted as fact. In that process I discovered so much about myself and the built environment we live in. And when you do something right it shines, like an awakening the world is new and makes sense. To impart that on Fresno would be a dream come true.

This is not an effort to be critical for the sake of being critical. It is not intented to be high brow. It is not out of spite or dislike for any person. We will strive to make these critiques constructive and accessible. Please call us out if that is not the case. This is a learning process for us all.

Let us work together toward architecture, landscape and urban planning that is: a steward to the land, authentically Fresno, offers all the amenities we require with the ease we desire, innovating the whole way through.

Today is the City of Fresno Historic Preservation Commission meeting. There are several interesting items on the agenda, but I’d like to focus on one. Darius Assemi of Granville Homes has asked to meet with the Commission to present a conceptual plan for a mixed-use project at the corner of L Street and San Joaquin Avenue in downtown.

click for larger image

The report to the Commission states that Assemi is seeking Commission and public input prior to incurring additional research and expense. If you are not familiar with the Assemi family and Granville Homes, they have made substantial investments in Downtown, specifically in the Cultural Arts District.

I believe we are at a point in development in downtown Fresno that the question is no longer “development or no development?” The question now is “How do we measure successful development?”

Last week I posted theory thursday: authenticity alluding to some projects that do not evoke authenticity. I believe that this project falls into that category. Some of the things that triggered this is that the proposal included two styles which remind me much more of tract home models than that historic Art & Crafts and Italianate which they are named for. Below are the renderings included in the proposal.

Arts & Crafts

Italianate

While this neighborhood has many vacant even severely damaged buildings, several are historic. And the common style represented is Colonial Revival of various forms. Beyond missing the mark historically, I’m of the philosophy that building faux historic buildings near real historic buildings is actually detrimental to the built environment.

There are several reasons I believe this: The level of craftsmanship of the historic resources is unmatched by the economics of and process building today; the history a neighborhood should be a patchwork of different eras leading to today’s contemporary buildings. This should be easily read. By building cheap knock offs of yesterdays buildings today with foam details once hand carved out of solid wood history become very muddy for the passerby.

A contemporary building in this location should take cues from its surroundings. What is the scale of its neighboring buildings? Is there a rhythm set by how the land was parceled? What are the materials used? How do the buildings address the street? All of these elements can help a new building fit into the context of its surrounding without trying to mimic the past.

Beyond style, the planning of the project should be such it builds community. Street life is essential as is pedestrian focus. The plan proposed feels much more like a gated apartment complex. That does not fit the downtown context.

In summery, I encourage Granville Home to continue investing Downtown, however this proposed project marks a turn in the wrong direction.

UPDATE 6-23-09

The Historic Preservation Commission meeting was interesting. I was surprised how willing the commission was to accept the fact that the 3 historic buildings on the site of the Granville proposal would most likely be demolished. They were more interested in preserving the buildings on the West side of the street that were outside the bounds of the proposal.

I found some glimmer of hope in a comment made by architect and commissioner, Chris Johnson AIA “This is not the Historic DemolishionCommission.”

To Mr Assemi’s credit he was open to all input about the design. Comments from the public including a member of the Fulton/Lowell Design Review Committee, a former HPC Commissioner Cam Maloy, and even Historic Preservation project manager, Karana Hattersly-Drayton, were in favor of a third alternative not shown above.

The third design broke the long building in two with a pedestrian walkway and each building used detail elements pulled from different styles. Most notably was a center building that quoted the parapet detail from the Helm Home on the west side of the street. Granville is also planning to renovate the Helm Home.

I spoke publicly about some of the design concerns that I had that are listed above. My comments focused around authenticity, trying to preserve at least one of the building as an anchor to the project and some of the urban planning issues that needed to be addressed regarding activating the street with entry porches activating the street.

The Commission formed a subcommittee that will further advise Granville Homes about the design