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Bank of America: Hearst Plaza
Bank of America hired Shook Kelley to design a new outdoor public plaza that serves as the entryway to the 46-story Hearst Tower in uptown Charlotte, which was constructed just prior to the new outdoor public plaza.
Uptown Charlotte is populated by a host of banking towers that historically had not made a sensitive transition to the sidewalk. The resultant streetscape was not a very pedestrian-friendly one, even though the number of of people walking is growing as the urban core has acquired a significant residential population.
Hearst Plaza is a 20,500 sf public plaza and associated retail development lined with shops, restaurants and the Mint Museum of Craft + Design was conceived to reverse this trend. Hearst Plaza was designed to provide Charlotte with a model for developing building transitions that enliven the pedestrian experience in the downtown area, as well as to demonstrate that sustainable public space requires active edges, human-scaled architecture and flexible seating areas.
Sustainable public space requires active edges, human-scaled architecture and flexible seating areas.
In order to orchestrate these elements, existing uses within an adjacent museum were relocated, and space that was allocated to the plaza was appropriated for additional retail uses. An adjacent restaurant opened its dining area at the second level to a newly-created terrace. In front of the plaza is a seated fountain area surrounding a 10ft glass and bronze sculpture created by artist Howard Ben Tre.
The project is a triumph of corporate responsibility in a development arena known more for monumentality than urban sensitivity. Recognizing the efforts of the development team as well as the end result can demonstrate that corporate needs for symbolism and the public’s desire for humane, lively spaces are not incompatible.
Uptown Charlotte is populated by a host of banking towers that historically had not made a sensitive transition to the sidewalk. The resultant streetscape was not a very pedestrian-friendly one, even though the number of of people walking is growing as the urban core has acquired a significant residential population.
Hearst Plaza is a 20,500 sf public plaza and associated retail development lined with shops, restaurants and the Mint Museum of Craft + Design was conceived to reverse this trend. Hearst Plaza was designed to provide Charlotte with a model for developing building transitions that enliven the pedestrian experience in the downtown area, as well as to demonstrate that sustainable public space requires active edges, human-scaled architecture and flexible seating areas.
Sustainable public space requires active edges, human-scaled architecture and flexible seating areas.
In order to orchestrate these elements, existing uses within an adjacent museum were relocated, and space that was allocated to the plaza was appropriated for additional retail uses. An adjacent restaurant opened its dining area at the second level to a newly-created terrace. In front of the plaza is a seated fountain area surrounding a 10ft glass and bronze sculpture created by artist Howard Ben Tre.
The project is a triumph of corporate responsibility in a development arena known more for monumentality than urban sensitivity. Recognizing the efforts of the development team as well as the end result can demonstrate that corporate needs for symbolism and the public’s desire for humane, lively spaces are not incompatible.