Big Box Reuse

Hi all, I'm new. I remember once chatting with an architect who tried to convince me that big box development is actually a great opportunity because, in ten years when the company goes bankrupt, communities all over the country will have these huge boxes/land to play with. Although that logic seems pretty misguided to me (and, in my mind, the cons outweigh the pros), our reality and future includes lots of planning for big boxes...

A bunch of ideas in this New York Times article disturbed me, but this one's at the top of the list:

These projects succeed, many new owners say, simply because people feel comfortable with mall-style architecture. At Calvary Chapel, a nondenominational church in Pinellas Park, Fla., which started out in a Winn-Dixie and has now expanded to an adjacent Wal-Mart, the low-slung architecture is a draw for the 3,000 congregants.

Comments

[jlt]

I've seen some small-box reuse lately; a small strip-mall warehouse space about as big as a storage unit in Sacramento, CA is being used as a synagogue - temporarily, I hope. Wal-Mart seems so tref & goyische to me anyway - I'm not surprised that Christians are using them for their temples.

[Chris]

Make sure you check out Julia Christensen's website http://www.bigboxreuse.com/ for more examples. I also read an article awhile back about Walmart car lots being used as permanent RV locations. Of course, can't find the article now, but will keep looking.

[Jesse Pearlman Karlsberg]

Yes it's an interesting quote in the NY Times article that you mention, but to me the most interesting aspect of the project is the focus on reusing these spaces. For many municipalities it's not ultimately possible to keep Wal-Mart out.

The situation communities are ultimately faced with is what to do with abandoned superstores, which is precisely what Julia C.'s project addresses.