This is what the Pioneer Square Station entrance on 3rd between James and Cherry looks like now:
What would look like if Norman Foster’s Civic Square Tower is built? Go below the fold to find out.
More images of the building here (warning 88 MB pdf), though that’s pretty much it for tunnel pictures.
That particular tunnel entrance there on 3rd Ave, is my favorite all of the tunnel entrances. It is the closest we have to this sort of NYC Subway entrance. Having said that, I really do like the building, the plaza and the tunnel entrance on the design. What do you think?
It looks nice, but I don’t love how we hide our bus tunnel entrances. There’s generally nothing that makes it obvious it’s a subway entrance – just a mysterious escalator downward. The new electronic signs help this some, but I still am not quite sure where the south end of the University station pops out. Speaking of this, standard pedestrian tunnel signs would be nice too. There are several throughout the city, and I’m sure more people would use them if they knew they were there.
The rendering just has another mysterious downward escalator that feels like it belongs to the building.
It has signs that say “Metro Station.” We do need better signage for transit stops, but I think that’ll naturally happen once light rail gets more and more ridership.
This is so much better than the previous proposals.
I’m jealous of this building, even though I live here.
That’s your idea of a nice train station? I guess it isn’t so bad either way
What I am excited about is the building itself: “Civic Square’s rich mix of residential, commercial, cultural, civic and retail uses will create a lively destination in downtown Seattle for people to live, work and play.” That’s some serious TOD – being able to hop off Link listen to a concert in the amphitheatre, or go shopping, or go to work, or come home from work.
It sounds like it will connect well with City Hall. This part might mean the station will be more exciting than it looks above: “Rivulets, fountains and a dramatic cascade animate the entrance to the square from the light rail below”
This sounds wonderful. Next time you visit City Hall, take a look across the street at the court building. You’ll notice a fountain, and a textured stone “stream” that heads right across the street and into City Hall. Water continues there (you walk over a grate), and flows through City Hall and down a few cool waterfalls and out to a fountain below. It sounds like they’ll pick up this theme and run all the way through the Civic Square.
Looks great – when do they break ground and estimate completion by?
I agree that we need to toot our underground tunnel more – perhaps when Light Rail comes, they will do so…. Take note of how we advertise London Underground stops – huge signs!
Tim
I’d be interested in Dan Bertolet’s opinion (hugeasscity). Look’s kinda massive to me (the building in relation to the entrance). But I’m a futurist/modernist so to the extent this represents progress, I like it.
David
It’s good to see small platforms where the escalators switchback, instead of some lame attempt at creating more “space” a la the Westlake tunnel mezzanines. I also hope the new entrance would have standard-width escalators instead of the current narrow ones, so that you can actually pass people on them. The first and foremost goal of a tunnel entrance should be to get people in & out as quickly as possible.
Can we get all anal, like DCites, after light rail arrives: “stand to the right people”
Let’s hope so. People in Seattle have absolutely no idea how this is supposed to work.
From my experience with the bus tunnel, most commuters have it figured out. Everyone else, not so much.
Hey there tres arboles, unfortunately this one’s pretty much off limits to me, since GGLO is the local architect, and they happen to sign my paychecks. To me the most important part of project is the public space, and the biggest challenge to its success is the the neighborhood context–I just don’t see how the current neighborhood population is going to fully activate that space very often. But I hope I’m proved wrong.